President Mary McAleese led the mourners at the removal of Charles J Haughey to Our Lady of Consolation Church at Donnycarney in Dublin last evening.
The congregation, including Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, heard Fr Eoghan Haughey describe his late brother as a man "who dominated and fascinated the age in which he lived probably more than any politician of his time."
His coffin was brought from the mortuary chapel, where he had lain in an open coffin during the day, to the church shortly after 5pm. The Tricolour-draped coffin was carried into the church by the 2nd Field Military Police Company and followed by his immediate family.
The Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin, met the coffin and began the service by saying that in life he had cherished the gospel of Christ.
"We are here in different roles: we are here as a nation - led by President Mary McAleese - remembering one whose many years of service in public life have impacted the shape of our current economy and society; some are here as members of his family, who experienced his personal care during his life and returned that care lovingly during his illness; some are here as members of this local community where he had roots, both personal and in his function as a public representative."
Fr Eoghan Haughey read the gospel and then spoke about his brother. "We loved him, Charles J Haughey the man, for the great human being he was."
He commended his courage and bravery, especially in his last illness.
"Small in stature, massive in achievement, larger than life," Fr Haughey said of his brother, describing him as "a fellow pilgrim who has outstripped us in the race to eternity".
The former taoiseach's long-time friend and his adviser on the arts, Anthony Cronin, delivered a reflection.
He began by quoting Shakespeare's lines "Fear no more the heat of the sun", before describing how he had first met him in UCD more than 60 years ago.
Describing his friend as a complex but simple man, Mr Cronin said that he had left an imprint on all our lives and on every aspect of Irish life, from the laws, to the treatment of the aged, to the arts, and in the very streets of the capital with the public building projects he sanctioned.
The crowd that turned up for the removal service was smaller than had been anticipated by Government officials, who had arranged for the erection of two television screens outside the church and initially advised the media that journalists would not be allowed into the church because of the pressure on space.
During the afternoon, the media were kept to a restricted area outside the church and mourners arriving at the church were marshalled by ushers and gardaí. However, as the time of the removal service drew near, all journalists who wished to were allowed into the church and the restrictions on the public were also lifted.
The church was still not quite full for the removal ceremony, to the surprise of Government officials and Fianna Fáil politicians who had expected a much larger congregation.
Up to 500 VIPs were invited to attend the removal service and today's funeral Mass, with the remaining 1,500 seats being reserved for the public on a first-come, first-served basis.
During the day, many filed past the open coffin of the former taoiseach, whose remains had been brought from the Abbeville mansion where he spent most of his life to the parish church in Donneycarney where he grew up.
