Erskine Hamilton Childers was sworn in as the fourth President of Ireland on June 25, 1973. A member of Fianna Fáil, he secured the presidency after defeating T.F. O’Higgins of Fine Gael by a margin of less than 100,000 votes. Childers was born in London in 1870 but was raised in County Wicklow, Ireland. He was also a Sinn Féin politician and a notable author, known for his 1903 novel "The Riddle of the Sands." His inauguration continued the tradition of presidential transitions in the Republic of Ireland.
