Irish History

PICTURES: Eight US presidents have made the trip to Ireland over the years

US President Ronald Reagan with wife Nancy visit Ballyporeen in Co. Tipperary

TOMORROW US President Joe Biden will arrive in Ireland, making him the ninth president to visit the Emerald Isle in an official capacity.

The first visit was made by President John F Kennedy in June 1963.

The emotional trip saw the President receive a great welcome in his ancestral home, where he was hosted by then Irish President Éamon de Valera.

In a speech made before he left, JFK promised to return to Ireland, but he would never make that trip as he was assassinated five months later.

JFK visited Ireland just 5 months before his death [Source: IFI Player]

The next trip by a US president came when Richard Nixon visited in October 1970 but there would be a gap of more than a decade before another president would officially land in Ireland.

That was President George Bush, who arrived, to much excitement, in July 1983.

The following year President Ronald Reagan would make the trip.

His visit in June 1984, accompanied by wife Nancy, saw him make a special visit to Ballyporeen in county Tipperary, which is the ancestral home of the Reagan family.

Preisdent Reagan with wife Nancy in Co. Tipperary

President Reagan’s ancestry was traced back to his great grandfather Michael Regan who was born in 1829 in the parish of Templetenny, and emigrated first to London and then to the USA.

Templetenny was renamed as Ballyporeen around 1900.

Bill Clinton took office as the US President in 1993 – a position he would hold until 2001.

A hearty Irish welcome for visiting US President Bill Clinton

During that time he visited Ireland in an official capacity on three occasions, in December 1995, September 1998 and December 2000.

President Clinton addressing the crowds during his 1995 visit

In June 2004 President George Bush (junior) visited the Emerald Isle, followed by President Barack Obama in May 2011 and President Donald Trump in June 2019.

President Joe Biden will arrive in Belfast tomorrow, in a trip planned to mark 25 yeats sinc ethe singing of the Good Friday Agreement.