The
President of Dáil Éireann was the leader of the revolutionary
Irish RepublicThe Irish Republic was a revolutionary state that declared its independence from Great Britain in January 1919. It established a legislature , a government , a court system and a police force...
of 1919–1921. The office, also known as
Príomh Aire (ˈpʲrʲiːv ˈarʲə), was created in the
Dáil ConstitutionThe Constitution of Dáil Éireann , more commonly known as the Dáil Constitution, was the constitution of the 1919–22 Irish Republic. It was adopted by the First Dáil at its first meeting on 21 January 1919 and theoretically remained in force for four years. As adopted it consisted of only five...
adopted by
Dáil ÉireannDáil Éireann was the revolutionary, unicameral parliament of the unilaterally declared Irish Republic from 1919–1922. The Dáil was first formed by 73 Sinn Féin MPs elected in the 1918 United Kingdom general election. Their manifesto refused to recognise the British parliament at Westminster and...
, the parliament of the Republic, at its first meeting in January 1919. This provided that the President was elected by the Dáil as head of a cabinet called the '
MinistryThe Aireacht or Ministry was the cabinet of the 1919–1922 Irish Republic. The Ministry was originally established by the Dáil Constitution adopted by the First Dáil in 1919, after it issued the Irish Declaration of Independence...
'. During the period of the Republic there were two office-holders,
Cathal BrughaCathal Brugha was an Irish revolutionary and politician, active in the Easter Rising, Irish War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War and was the first Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann.-Background:...
(on a provisional basis) and
Éamon de ValeraÉamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...
.
Title
The Irish text of the Dáil Constitution referred to the leader of the state as the
Príomh Aire. In English this was translated as both
Prime Minister and
President of the Ministry.
President of Dáil Éireann was also used, interchangeably with these terms, despite the fact that it did not appear in the constitution, and it was the title preferred by de Valera during his visit to the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1920–1921. Contrary to what the title might suggest, the President of Dáil Éireann was not its chairman, this was the role of a separate official: the
Ceann ComhairleThe Ceann Comhairle is the chairman of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas of Ireland. The person who holds the position is elected by members of the Dáil from among their number in the first session after each general election...
. In some senses the office exercised a role that combined that of Prime Minister and
Leader of the HouseThere are several offices titled Leader of the House:* Leader of the House in the Australian Parliament* Leader of the House in the Parliament of Singapore* Leader of the House in the Parliament of Sri Lanka...
.
As adopted, the Dáil Constitution deliberately did not provide for a
head of stateA head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
and the titles initially used all suggested an official who was merely the
head of governmentHead of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled prime minister, chief minister, premier, etc...
.
In practice, de Valera, particularly when abroad, called himself "President de Valera", creating the impression that he was head of state. In August 1922 in the run-up to the negotiations that would produce the Anglo-Irish Treaty, de Valera asked the Dáil to amend the constitution to upgrade his official status to that of head of state, in part to give him equality with King
George V of the United KingdomGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
in accrediting delegates to the negotiations. He also had the ministry restructured, with a number of offices downgraded from cabinet to sub-cabinet level.
He also maintained that, as the highest official in the Republic, the Príomh Aire was the
de facto head of state and that an amendment would merely bring the language of the constitution into harmony with this reality. It was first suggested that the constitution be amended to explicitly use the term
President of the Republic. However, because of opposition to this, a more ambiguously worded amendment was adopted referring to the office-holder as "the President who shall also be Prime Minister". After the adoption of this amendment de Valera was elected as "President of the Republic" and continued to use the title until he resigned in January 1922. However his two successors were both elected–and known–as "Presidents of Dáil Éireann", although no further amendment had been made to the constitution.
Functions
The President of Dáil Éireann had authority to appoint the remaining members of the Ministry, subject to ratification by the Dáil, and ministers could be dismissed by the President at any time. The resignation of the President also resulted in the automatic dissolution of the whole Ministry. The President, and all other members of the cabinet, had to be members of the Dáil and could theoretically be removed from office, either collectively or individually, by a vote of the house.
In April 1919 a constitutional amendment was adopted providing for a form of
vice presidencyA vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...
. The President was granted power to appoint a 'President-Substitute' or 'Deputy President' who would carry out his duties on a temporary basis if he was unable to discharge them. On 17 June de Valera appointed Griffith–then the Minister for Home Affairs–as Deputy President so that he could take de Valera's place until he returned from the United States.
History
When the
First DáilThe First Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919–1921. In 1919 candidates who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and instead assembled as a unicameral, revolutionary parliament called "Dáil Éireann"...
met in 1919 Eamon de Valera was the president of
Sinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
and thus the natural choice for leadership. However he had been imprisoned in
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
so, at the second meeting of the Dáil on 22 January,
Cathal BrughaCathal Brugha was an Irish revolutionary and politician, active in the Easter Rising, Irish War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War and was the first Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann.-Background:...
was elected as the first Príomh Aire on a temporary basis. De Valera escaped Lincoln Gaol in February and so was elected to replace Brugha at the Dáil's third meeting on 1 April. As leader de Valera visited the United States from June 1919 to December 1920. His aim was to gain both popular and official recognition for the Republic, and to float a loan to finance Dáil Éireann and the War of Independence. By his return de Valera had won public but not official support for the Republic and had raised a loan of $6 million.
After the election of the
Second DáilThe Second Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 16 August 1921 until 8 June 1922. From 1919–1922 Dáil Éireann was the revolutionary parliament of the self-proclaimed Irish Republic. The Second Dáil consisted of members elected in 1921...
in 1921 de Valera resigned on 26 August and was immediately re-elected, under the new title of
President of the RepublicPresident of the Republic was the title given to the head of the Irish ministry or Aireacht in August 1921 by an amendment to the Dáil Constitution, which replaced the previous title, Príomh Aire or President of Dáil Éireann...
. He then remained in office until January 1922 when, against his wishes, the Dáil voted to ratify the
Anglo-Irish TreatyThe Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...
. De Valera resigned and submitted his name for re-election but was rejected by the house, which instead elected Arthur Griffith, who supported the Treaty.
On 16 January the British government, in order to implement the Treaty, appointed a new Irish administration called the
Provisional GovernmentThe provisional Government of Southern Ireland was the provisional government for the administration of Southern Ireland between 16 January 1922 and 6 December 1922. The government was effectively a transitional administration for the period between the ratifying of the Anglo-Irish Treaty and the...
. The Dáil decided that the new administration would operate in parallel with the existing institutions of the Irish Republic, which the British did not recognise. Therefore as the
Irish Civil WarThe Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....
began the country had two leaders, Arthur Griffith as President of Dáil Éireann, and Michael Collins as
Chairman of the Provisional GovernmentThe Chairman of the Provisional Government of Southern Ireland was a transitional post established in January 1922, lasting until the creation of the Irish Free State in December 1922 in the Provisional Government of Southern Ireland....
. Collins was also
Minister for FinanceThe Minister for Finance is the title held by the Irish government minister responsible for all financial and monetary matters. The office-holder controls the Department of Finance and is considered one of the most important members of the Government of Ireland.The current Minister for Finance is...
in Griffith's cabinet. This anomalous situation continued until Griffith and Collins both died suddenly in August 1922; Collins was shot by anti-Treaty irregulars while Griffith died of natural causes. W.T. Cosgrave became Chairman of the Provisional Government on 25 August and, when he was also elected as President of Dáil Éireann in September, the two administrations were merged.
On 6 December both the Irish Republic and the Provisional Government came to an end as the new
Constitution of the Irish Free StateThe Constitution of the Irish Free State was the first constitution of the independent Irish state. It was enacted with the adoption of the Constitution of the Irish Free State Act 1922, of which it formed a part...
came into force. The new
Irish Free StateThe Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
had three leaders, the
KingThe Irish Free State was, in accordance with its constitution, governed formally under a form of constitutional monarchy. The British monarch was the head of state of the Irish Free State from 1922 to 1931, when the Statute of Westminster came into effect, and thereafter the Irish Free State had a...
as head of state, the
Governor-GeneralThe Governor-General was the representative of the King in the 1922–1937 Irish Free State. Until 1927 he was also the agent of the British government in the Irish state. By convention the office of Governor-General was largely ceremonial...
as the King's representative, and the
President of the Executive CouncilThe President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State was the head of government or prime minister of the Irish Free State which existed from 1922 to 1937...
as head of government. W.T. Cosgrave was appointed as the first President of the Executive Council on the same day.
List of office-holders
| No. |
Name |
Title used |
Party |
Entered Office |
Left Office |
| 1. |
Cathal BrughaCathal Brugha was an Irish revolutionary and politician, active in the Easter Rising, Irish War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War and was the first Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann.-Background:...
|
President of Dáil Éireann / Príomh Aire |
|
Sinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
|
22 January 1919 |
1 April 1919 |
| 2. |
Éamon de ValeraÉamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...
|
President of Dáil Éireann / Príomh Aire |
|
Sinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
|
1 April 1919 |
26 August 1921 |
|
Éamon de ValeraÉamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...
|
President of the Republic |
|
Sinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
|
26 August 1921 |
9 January 1922 |
| 3. |
Arthur GriffithArthur Griffith was the founder and third leader of Sinn Féin. He served as President of Dáil Éireann from January to August 1922, and was head of the Irish delegation at the negotiations in London that produced the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921.-Early life:...
|
President of Dáil Éireann / Príomh Aire |
|
Sinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
(pro-Treaty faction) |
10 January 1922 |
12 August 1922 |
| 4. |
W. T. Cosgrave |
President of Dáil Éireann / Príomh Aire |
|
Sinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
(pro-Treaty faction) |
9 September 1922 |
6 December 1922 |