The former Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin Donald Caird has died aged 91.
He was born in Dublin in December 1925 and attended Wesley College and Trinity College before being ordained in 1950.
He served at St Mark's, Dundela, Belfast, and Portora Royal School in Enniskillen before becoming rector at Rathmichael in Dublin and a lecturer in the philosophy of religion at the then Church of Ireland Theological College in Dublin.
He was appointed dean of Ossory in 1969 and was ordained bishop of Limerick in 1970 before moving to Meath and Kildare in 1976.
In 1985 he was elected archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland. He retired in 1996, a period that coincided with debates on divorce and abortion in the Republic, the ordination of women in the Church of Ireland and the developing peace process in Northern Ireland.
He was a noted Irish scholar and spent some time in the Dún Chaoin area of the west Kerry Gaeltacht as a young man, which inspired a life long love for the language. In 1975 he was appointed to Bord na Gaeilge.
Church of Ireland Primate Archbishop Richard Clarke said "Donald was loved and respected in equal measure" .
Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin Michael Jackson said that "as a diocesan family, we express our sympathy and our gratitude to his wife Nancy and to all members of his family.
“His affection for the people of Ireland and the Church of Ireland was unsurpassed. He loved the Irish language, was committed to it and excelled in it,” he added. “Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.”
