Monarchy in the Irish Free State
| Monarchy of the Irish Free State | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Details | |
| Style | His Majesty |
| First monarch | George V |
| Last monarch | George VI |
| Formation | 6 December 1922 |
| Abolition | 29 December 1937 |
| Residence | Viceregal Lodge |
From its foundation on 6 December 1922 until 11 December 1936, the Irish Free State was in accordance with its constitution, governed formally under a form of constitutional monarchy. The monarch exercised a number of important duties, including appointing the cabinet, dissolving the legislature and promulgating laws. Nonetheless, by convention the monarch's role was largely ceremonial and exercised on his behalf by his official representative, the governor-general. The monarch's role and duties under the constitution were ended under a constitutional amendment adopted in 1936. From that point, the monarch no longer played any role in appointing the cabinet, dissolving the legislature or promulgating laws. Nor was the monarch mentioned anywhere in the constitution. Under separate legislation also adopted in 1936 it was provided that Irish diplomatic representatives would be appointed on the authority of the cabinet alone and international agreements would be concluded with the authority of the cabinet alone. At the same time, that legislation also created a new role for the king in his capacity as the "symbol of [the] co-operation" of Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, and South Africa for so long as the Irish Free State was associated with those states. The new role of the king in that capacity alone was to act on behalf of the Irish government with respect to the appointment of diplomatic and consular representatives and the conclusion of international agreements when advised by the cabinet so to do. The role of the king in acting on behalf of the Irish government with respect to appointing diplomats was not ended until 1949 and under United Kingdom law the king is regarded as having been the sovereign until that time but not under Irish law.
The monarch's title in the Irish Free State was exactly the same as it was elsewhere in the British Empire, being
The reason the monarch's title changed in 1927 was because the term "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland" had been superseded by the establishment of the Irish Free State and the renaming of the UK as the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Rather than draw attention to the partition of Ireland, the monarch's title simply referred to Great Britain and Ireland. This change did not mean the monarch adopted different crowns for different realms; that development did not formally occur until 1953.
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