Watch: Runners give Michael D Higgins guard of honour as he departs Áras for final time as President

A guard of honour was formed outside the gates of the official residence in the biting cold by the members of the Sanctuary Runners who wanted to show their appreciation for his support.

The running group, which Mr Higgins is a patron of, is made up of Irish citizens, migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.

One runner, Monika Pumpkin – who is originally from Botswana, handed him and Sabina roses to thank him for his support during his presidency.

Members of the Sanctuary Runners group lined the avenue outside the Phoenix Park residence as President Higgins left (Julien Behal)

Ms Pumpkin, whose birthday is today, said he has been supportive of the group and “for all migrants in Ireland” and it was an “honour” to be at the gates of the Áras.

She added: “We are here today to wish him well and farewell.”

Mr Higgins, who was late as he and Sabina wanted to ring the peace bell one last time, thanked the runners for their patience due to their delay as he took the roses from Ms Pumpkin.

He wished her health and happiness before the car departed.

In a statement, Mr Higgins said that serving as president of Ireland was “a great privilege”.

“I would like to thank the people of Ireland for the warmth of reception which they gave to both Sabina and myself over the past 14 years,” he said.

“How valuable it was to be able to join with them in engaging with the issues, projects and ideas that will help us to achieve the best of our country and the best representation of Ireland and its values abroad – an inclusive citizenship and a creative society in a real Republic.”

Mr Higgins’ 14-year term ends at midnight and left-wing independent Catherine Connolly will be inaugurated as Ireland’s 10th president tomorrow.

Earlier, a number of Bernese Mountain dogs and their owners gathered outside the Áras to bid the President a final farewell.

After being elected in 2011, the President’s Bernese Mountain dogs soon became a beloved fixture at the Áras, greeting dignitaries and interrupting events in pursuit of belly rubs.

Known for his affection for the breed, he currently owns five-year-old Misneach. His previous dogs, Bród, died in 2023, and Síoda died in 2020 following a short illness.

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His 14 years as President of Ireland saw the poet expand on how the office is viewed and take outspoken positions on Government policy.

He also leaves Áras an Uachtaráin as a figure who has inspired memes, tea cosies and children’s books.

Born on April 18, 1941, in Limerick city, Michael Daniel Higgins was the third of John and Alice Higgins’s four children.

A War of Independence veteran, John Higgins struggled with alcohol, which exacerbated his poor health and Michael and his brother were sent to Newmarket-on-Fergus, Co Clare, to live with their aunt and uncle.

After leaving school, the future President Higgins worked in a factory and as a clerk before studying at University College Galway, the first of his family to access higher education.

Michael D Higgins with then Labour leader Pat Rabbitte after the party did not put him forward as a candidate in 2004 (Haydn West/PA)

As a student, he led demonstrations, the beginning of a lifelong commitment to speaking out on issues such as the rights of women and people with disabilities.

An academic career followed, which included spells studying and lecturing in the US, before he entered politics.

After a number of unsuccessful general election campaigns, he was nominated for the Seanad in 1973 by the then Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave, before being elected to the Dáil in 1981 as a Labour TD for Galway West.

In 1974, Mr Higgins married actor Sabina Coyne, and the couple went on to have four children.

Throughout his career in politics, he built a lengthy CV serving in a variety of roles, including mayor of Galway, president of the Labour Party and cabinet minister for arts, culture and the Gaeltacht.

It was during that period as a minister that Mr Higgins launched Teilifís na Gaeilge, later TG4, and reinstated the Irish Film Board, both credited with rejuvenating the Irish media landscape.

His politics were not just inward-looking; he championed global peace and democracy.

In 1982, he was deported from El Salvador when he travelled there with the charity Trócaire in an attempt to investigate reports of a massacre in a village in the south of the country.

Alongside his political work, Mr Higgins has published a number of books, including collections of poetry, speeches and essays and contributed to numerous others.

Then, in 2011, came a run for the presidency where he beat six other candidates, winning with 39.6pc of first preference votes.

Mr Higgins was elected during a turbulent period in recent Irish history, and the economic crisis dominated the start of his presidency.

Queen Elizabeth II accompanies Irish President Michael D Higgins as he is shown Irish related items from the Royal Collection (Justin Tallis/PA)

He took on the role in 2011, the first year of the EU-IMF economic bailout programme, when Ireland was experiencing high levels of unemployment, fuelling emigration.

In one of his first acts as president, he voluntarily waived almost a quarter of his salary, following a similar pay cut taken by predecessor, Mary McAleese, after Ireland was hit with a recession.

The country’s financial crash forced him to cut short a 2013 state visit to Italy.

He returned to Ireland in order to sign emergency legislation to liquidate the Irish Bank Resolution Company (IBRC), the entity formed when Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide merged.

President Michael D Higgins will be succeeded by Catherine Connolly (Brian Lawless/PA)

His first term also saw some milestones in Anglo-Irish relations, and in April 2014, he became the first President of Ireland to make a State visit to the United Kingdom, during which he delivered a historic address at Westminster.

Later that day, in his toast during a state banquet hosted by Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle, he described the trip as “a very visible sign of the warmth and maturity of the relationship between our two countries”.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with the President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina Coyne, and the president’s dog, Brod (Phil Noble/PA)

In 2018, he welcomed Pope Francis to Áras an Uachtaráin during the first papal visit to Ireland in 40 years.

Mr Higgins told the pontiff of the anger felt by those in Ireland who were abused as children by Catholic clerics.

As his first term came to an end in 2018, he announced he would seek a second term despite previously saying he would not run again.

Mr Higgins stood as an independent candidate but was backed by Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Labour, who agreed not to field their own candidates.

He instead faced a Sinn Féin candidate and four independents but won with 55pc of the vote.

President of Ireland Michael D Higgins in the stands before a Fifa World Cup Qualifying match at the Aviva Stadium (Brian Lawless/PA)

He was championed by the opposition in June 2022 when he described housing in Ireland as “our great, great failure”.

The statement was referenced by Sinn Féin, Labour and People Before Profit during leaders’ questions.

A vocal critic of the war in Gaza, Mr Higgins was criticised several times by Israel’s ambassador to Ireland.

In 2024, he accused the Israeli embassy in Dublin of leaking a letter in which he sent his “best wishes” to the new president of Iran.

The embassy rejected the claim and called the remarks “highly inflammatory and potentially slanderous”.

While remaining vocally forceful, Mr Higgins has become visibly more frail.

In February 2024, when he was 82, the President spent over a week in hospital for what was later revealed to be a mild stroke.

He cut back on public appearances for a number of weeks and was later seen in public using two walking sticks.

The final few weeks of his presidency involved another hospital stay, this time to treat an infection.

The President and his wife intend to return to Galway following 14 years at Áras an Uachtaráin.