John Leydon
John Leydon was an Irish civil servant, who served in a number of significant roles in ministerial departments and was involved in the setting up and development of a number of semi-state organisations such as Irish Shipping, Aer Rianta, Aer Lingus, and the Institute of [Public Administration (Ireland)|Institute of Public Administration].
Leydon was educated at St. Mel's College, Longford, before going to Maynooth College as a seminarian, he did not pursue the priesthood, and instead joined the British civil service in 1915. A devout Catholic, he was a member of the Legion of Mary, whose founder Frank Duff, was a close friend and best man at Leydon's wedding.
Awards and honours
He was awarded by the Vatican the title Knight Commander with star of the Order of St. [Gregory the Great] in 1948.Leydon was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Dublin in 1961.