In a quiet spot between two pretty sycamore trees, Paddy Hillery was laid to rest according to his wish beside his daughter Vivienne who died in 1987 at the age of 17. The cortege had taken longer than scheduled to arrive at the graveyard, but the crowd of about 200 who had come to pay their respects were content to wait under bright sunshine which cast a weak warmth over the exposed hillside as the biting wind faded to a breeze.

At 3.15pm the cortege arrived, played in by the army band. The two ceremonies at the Pro-Cathedral - the removal on Tuesday and the funeral mass yesterday - may have emphasised the family aspect of his life, but Paddy Hillery's burial with full military honours was a more formal recognition of the statesman.

Behind the coffin, Paddy and Maeve's son John walked hand-in-hand with his wife Caroline. And behind Mrs. Hillery's car, mourners flowed up the hill, led by President McAleese, her husband Martin and the Taoiseach.

In silence, the crowd gathered around the graveside as the army bearers removed the Irish flag from the coffin, folding it and presenting it to Mrs. Hillery.

The short burial prayers were conducted by Paddy and Maeve's nephew, Fr. Des Hillery who had flown in from Peru to participate in the funeral. He then invited Brian Cowen to deliver the graveside oration. The Taoiseach-in- waiting was chosen by the family as he is a friend of John Hillery, but nonetheless the occasion had a significance to it that stretched beyond that of a man paying tribute to the deceased father of a friend.

The last State funeral to pass through the cemetery gates was that of Charles Haughey in 2006, on an unseasonally cold June day. On that occasion, the graveside oration was delivered by his anointed political heir, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, who gave a passionate defence of his former leader - a politician who had clashed with then-President Hillery in 1982 over the dissolution of the Dail.

But yesterday Bertie Ahern stood with the rest of the mourners, and it was the words of his heir Brian Cowen that presented Paddy Hillery as a politician, statesman, father, husband, doctor and sailor.

At first seeming nervous, Cowen found his stride referring to Dr. Hillery's role at the outset of "Northern Ireland's descent into darkness", calling his support of the nationalist community "unflinching".

Referring to the turbulent political years in the Republic, he said: " Ireland and my party Fianna Fail owe him a huge debt for the manner in which he stood four square behind the leadership, behind the Constitution, and what it represented for a still young Republic."

The Tanaiste painted a vivid personal picture of Paddy Hillery also. " He has been variously described as honourable, decent, intelligent, courteous, warm and engaging. He was all of those things," he said. " Dr. Patrick Hillery embodied all that is noble and good in a man, a doctor, a politician and public servant."

After the oration, three volleys were fired into the air.