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Irish Free State
Irish Free State, 1922–48. The state was formed by the Anglo-Irish treaty of December 1921, which granted dominion status, with defence safeguards, to twenty-six counties of the south and west of Ireland. Its first months, December 1922–April 1923, saw the completion of a bitter civil war; that conflict established political authority over the military challenge, but the tactics used by the Free State government, especially executions, ensured long-term acrimony. Thereafter the Free State proved remarkably stable, thanks to an overwhelmingly catholic agrarian population and the exclusion of the north-eastern counties. Once stability was established, the fundamental conservatism in social and economic affairs asserted itself. Both Cumann na nGaedheal (1922–32) and Fianna Fail (from 1932) governments adopted protectionist economic policies and catholic hierarchy-approved social policies. British forms ironically were major models for the governmental institutions. Heavy emphasis was put on Gaelic revivalism. Issues unresolved from the revolutionary period—partition and relations with Britain—dominated party politics. de Valera's government of the 1930s successfully widened the treaty settlement by abolishing the oath to the crown and removing the governor-general. The constitution of 1937 established a virtual republic and independence in international affairs was confirmed by neutrality during the Second World War; those achievements at the cost of becoming isolated. A republic was finally declared by the coalition government at a press conference in Ottawa in September 1948. Recently historians have emphasized the poor performance of the Free State economy, resulting in appalling levels of emigration and a sluggish, parochial character. The pro-treaty leader Kevin O'Higgins had been correct to observe: ‘we were probably the most conservative-minded revolutionaries that ever put through a successful revolution.’
Michael Hopkinson |
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JOHN CANNON. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN CANNON. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O110-IrishFreeState.html JOHN CANNON. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O110-IrishFreeState.html |
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Irish Free State
Irish Free State, the first name of the Irish state 1922–37. It was suggested by Arthur Griffith to Lord Birkenhead during the negotiation of the Anglo‐Irish treaty.
The treaty gave Ireland the same constitutional status as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The Free State's relationship with the imperial parliament was governed by Canadian law and usage, but this relationship rested on very different historical and geographical factors and created tensions in Irish policy. The Free State government was determined to assert its autonomy. In 1924 it issued its own passports, registered the treaty as an international agreement with the League of Nations, and appointed an Irish minister to the USA, the first dominion representative to be accredited to a foreign state. It also worked, in collaboration with other dominions, to enhance its status within the Commonwealth, contributing significantly to the enhancement of dominion status achieved in the Balfour declaration (1926) and the Statute of Westminster. In the 1937 constitution the title ‘Irish Free State’ was superseded by ‘Éire (Ireland)’, though it continues to be used, often with derisive connotations, by both unionists and republicans to refer to the southern Irish state. Deirdre McMahon |
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"Irish Free State." The Oxford Companion to Irish History. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Companion to Irish History. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O245-IrishFreeState.html "Irish Free State." The Oxford Companion to Irish History. 2007. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O245-IrishFreeState.html |
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Irish Free State
Irish Free State, 1922–48. The state was formed by the Anglo‐Irish treaty of December 1921, which granted dominion status, with defence safeguards, to 26 counties of the south and west of Ireland. Its first months, December 1922–April 1923, saw the completion of a bitter civil war. The tactics used by the Free State government, especially executions, ensured long‐term acrimony. Thereafter the Free State proved remarkably stable, thanks to an overwhelmingly catholic agrarian population and the exclusion of the north‐eastern counties. Both Cumann na nGaedheal (1922–32) and Fianna Fail (from 1932) governments adopted protectionist economic policies and catholic hierarchy‐approved social policies. de Valera's government of the 1930s successfully widened the treaty settlement by abolishing the oath to the crown and removing the governor‐general. The constitution of 1937 established a virtual republic and independence in international affairs was confirmed by neutrality during the Second World War. A republic was finally declared by the coalition government at a press conference in Ottawa in September 1948.
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Cite this article
JOHN CANNON. "Irish Free State." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN CANNON. "Irish Free State." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O43-IrishFreeState.html JOHN CANNON. "Irish Free State." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O43-IrishFreeState.html |
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Irish Free State
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"Irish Free State." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Irish Free State." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-IrishFreeState.html "Irish Free State." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-IrishFreeState.html |
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Irish Free State
Irish Free State the name for southern Ireland from 1921 until 1937.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-IrishFreeState.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Irish Free State." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-IrishFreeState.html |
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Irish Free State
Irish Free State see Ireland ; Ireland, Republic of . |
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"Irish Free State." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Irish Free State." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-IrishFre.html "Irish Free State." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-IrishFre.html |
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