Tributes from Church and State poured in yesterday for Mr Jack Lynch. On a State visit to the Czech Republic, the President, Mrs McAleese, said: "I am deeply saddened. Of course, I have known for quite some time that Jack was very, very ill. I visited him quite a number of times in the past couple of years and I was always very struck by his spirit. I said to him a couple of times that he really had the spirit of the hurler.
"He had come so close to death so many times and fought back that I had a feeling he was determined to see Cork win the hurling - and he certainly did that. But I believe - and I know this is true for Mairin - that no matter how much you are prepared, no matter how inevitable it may seem, there is still an awesome sense of loss.
"He was a gentleman, a complete gentleman, in absolutely everything he did, in every aspect of his life, in everything he touched. His towering integrity is the thing that stands out for me most and characterised everything in his political life.
"I look back on the kind of temperament he brought to dealing with politics and particularly the northern crisis which was so much a part of his life as Taoiseach. He brought to it the language of gentleness and gentility and I believe he seed-bedded the kind of peace process that we now have and which we are hopefully going to see come to fruition in the coming few weeks."
The President extended her deepest sympathy to Jack Lynch's wife, irin, Mairin, whose loving care and devotion to her husband was exemplary, and to his relatives and friends. The Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, the Rt Rev Paul Colton, said he would always remember the former Taoiseach for his human qualities - gentleness, approachability, friendship and genuine interest in people.
"It was an immense privilege in one of my first official functions as Bishop of Cork, together with Bishop John Buckley, to perform the ecumenical blessing of the Lee Tunnel which is dedicated to him as the Jack Lynch Tunnel," he said. "On behalf of the Church of Ireland people of Cork, among whom Jack Lynch was very well respected, I express our sincerest sympathy to his wife Mrs Mairin Lynch and to all who were closest to him and assure them of our prayerful support at this time."
The Archdeacon of Dublin, the Ven Gordon Linney, said the news would be received with much sadness throughout Ireland and beyond. "He served his country and his people with distinction over many years and he will be remembered with gratitude and affection."
Tributes also came from politicians and various political parties. Munster MEP Mr Pat Cox said Mr Lynch represented a beacon of integrity which was in sharp contrast to what followed him.
The Green Party's chief spokesperson, Mr Trevor Sargent, TD, said Mr Lynch's passing marked an era when the perception of politics was thought of more in terms of public service and less in terms of tribunals and controversy.
The chairman of the Fianna Fail Parliamentary Party, Dr Rory O'Hanlon, said Mr Lynch's death would be a great loss to the party. He had demonstrated a powerful mix of old-fashioned courtesy with steely determination.
As a mark of respect to the late Mr Jack Lynch, the nurses' information picket placed on the Royal Hospital, Donnybrook, will be suspended for the removal service today.