Editing Jack Lynch (section)

==Early and private life==
John Mary Lynch was born on 15 August 1917, in [[Shandon, Cork|Shandon]], on the north side of [[Cork (city)|Cork]], and grew up in the nearby area of [[Blackpool, Cork|Blackpool]].<ref name=dib>{{cite web|url=https://www.dib.ie/biography/lynch-john-mary-jack-a4947|title=Lynch, John Mary|work=[[Dictionary of Irish Biography]]|last=Fanning|first=Ronan|access-date=14 January 2023}}</ref> His father Daniel Lynch was a tailor, and his mother Nora (née O'Donoghue) was a seamstress.<ref name=dib/> He was the youngest of five boys and fifth of seven children, with four elder brothers and two younger sisters, Jack, as he was known, was generally regarded as the "wild boy" of the family. He was educated at St. Vincent's Convent on Peacock Lane, and later at the famous [[North Monastery|"North Mon", the North Monastery]] [[Congregation of Christian Brothers|Christian Brothers]] School. When Lynch was just thirteen years old his mother died suddenly. His aunt, who herself had a family of six, stepped in to look after the family. Lynch sat his [[Leaving Certificate (Ireland)|Leaving Certificate]] in 1936, after which he moved to [[Dublin]] and worked with the Dublin District Milk Board, before returning to Cork to take up a position in the Circuit Court Office.

Lynch began working at the Cork Circuit Court as a clerk at the age of nineteen. His work in the court ignited his interest in law and in 1941 he began a night course at [[University College Cork]] studying law, where he was a member of the Law Society. After two years in UCC, he moved once again to [[Dublin]] to complete his studies at [[King's Inns]]. While continuing his studies he started work with the [[Department of Justice (Ireland)|Department of Justice]]. In 1945, Lynch was called to the [[Bar of Ireland|Bar]] and had to decide whether to remain in his civil service job or practice as a barrister. Lynch made the decision (literally on the toss of a coin) to move back to Cork and began a private practice on the Cork Circuit.

It was in 1943, while on holidays in [[Glengariff]], [[County Cork]], that Lynch met his future wife, [[Máirín Lynch|Máirín O'Connor]], the daughter of a naval doctor killed in [[World War I]]. The couple were married three years later on 10 August 1946 and had no children. Although she was apprehensive about her husband's decision to become active in politics, to become a minister and even to become [[Taoiseach]], she stood by him through it all and helped him make the tough decisions that would affect Lynch's life and her own.