Eamon de Valera was an Irish statesman who served as the third President of Ireland from 1959 to 1973. He was also a leader of the Irish War of Independence and a founder of the Fianna Fail political party. De Valera was born in New York City in 1882, but moved to Ireland at the age of two. He was a prominent figure in the Irish struggle for independence and was a key figure in the negotiations that led to the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921. After the treaty was signed, de Valera became the leader of the anti-treaty faction and was elected President of the Irish Free State in 1932. He later served as Taoiseach (Prime Minister) from 1937 to 1948 and again from 1951 to 1954. De Valera was a major figure in Irish politics for over fifty years and is remembered as one of the most influential figures in modern Irish history.