The president of Dáil Éireann, later also president of the Irish Republic, was the leader of the revolutionary Irish Republic of 1919–1922. The office was created in the Dáil Constitution adopted by Dáil Éireann, 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 Ministry of Dáil Éireann. During this period, Ireland was deemed part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in international law, but the Irish Republic had made a unilateral Declaration of Independence on 21 January 1919. On 6 December 1922, after the ratification of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State was recognised as a sovereign state, and the position of the President of Dáil Éireann was replaced by that of President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State but, as a Dominion of the British Empire, King George V was head of state.
The 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 remained in operation until 6 December 1922. As adopted it consisted of five articles. Article 1 declared that the Dáil had "full powers to legislate" and would consist of representatives elected in elections conducted by the British government. For the exercise of executive power it created a cabinet, answerable to the Dáil, called the Ministry, headed by a prime minister called the "Príomh Aire". The constitution was limited to an outline of the functions of the legislature and the executive; the Dáil later established a system of Dáil Courts, but there was no provision in the constitution on a judiciary. The final article of the constitution declared that it was intended to be a provisional document, in the sense that it was subject to amendment. As adopted the constitution came to only around 370 words. In comparison, the modern Constitution of Ireland has approximately 16,000 words. Overall, the structure of the document was as follows:
The Irish Republic was an unrecognised revolutionary state that declared its independence from the United Kingdom in January 1919. The Republic claimed jurisdiction over the whole island of Ireland, but by 1920 its functional control was limited to only 21 of Ireland's 32 counties, and British state forces maintained a presence across much of the north-east, as well as Cork, Dublin and other major towns. The republic was strongest in rural areas, and through its military forces was able to influence the population in urban areas that it did not directly control.
The Second Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 16 August 1921 until 8 June 1922. From 1919 to 1922, Dáil Éireann was the revolutionary parliament of the self-proclaimed Irish Republic. The Second Dáil consisted of members elected at the 1921 elections, but with only members of Sinn Féin taking their seats. On 7 January 1922, it ratified the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64 votes to 57 which ended the War of Independence and led to the establishment of the Irish Free State on 6 December 1922.
The Government of the 20th Dáil or the 14th Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the 1973 general election held on 28 February 1973. It was a coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party, known as the National Coalition, led by Liam Cosgrave as Taoiseach with Brendan Corish as Tánaiste. It was the first time either of the parties had been in government since the Government of the 15th Dáil (1954–57), when they were in coalition with Clann na Talmhan.
There were two Governments of the 18th Dáil, which was elected at the general election held on 7 April 1965. The 11th Government of Ireland was led by Seán Lemass as Taoiseach, while the 12th Government of Ireland was led by Jack Lynch as Taoiseach. Both were single-party Fianna Fáil governments, which had been in government since the 1957 election.
There were two Governments of the 16th Dáil, which was elected at the general election held on 5 March 1957. The outgoing minority coalition government of Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Clann na Talmhan had failed to be returned. The 8th Government of Ireland was led by Éamon de Valera as Taoiseach, and the 9th Government of Ireland was led by Seán Lemass as Taoiseach. Both were single-party Fianna Fáil governments.
The Government of the 14th Dáil or the 6th Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the general election held on 30 May 1951. It was a single-party Fianna Fáil government led by Éamon de Valera as Taoiseach.
The Government of the 13th Dáil or the 5th Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the general election held on 4 February 1948 — commonly known as the First Inter-Party Government — was a government of Fine Gael, the Labour Party, Clann na Poblachta, Clann na Talmhan and the National Labour Party—and one TD who was an independent, James Dillon. The parties had many different aims and viewpoints, but opposition to Fianna Fáil overcame difficulties in forming a government; Éamon de Valera had led a series of single-party Fianna Fáil governments since 1932. The cabinet was made up of representatives of all parties, and ministers were given a great degree of independence. Some key events during the lifetime of the government include the declaration of the Republic of Ireland in 1948 and the crisis surrounding the Mother and Child Scheme in 1951.
The Government of the 12th Dáil or the 4th Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the 1944 general election held on 30 May. It was a single-party Fianna Fáil government led by Éamon de Valera as Taoiseach. Fianna Fáil had been in office since the 1932 general election.
The Government of the 10th Dáil or the 2nd Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the 1938 general election held on 17 June. It was a single-party Fianna Fáil government led by Éamon de Valera as Taoiseach. Fianna Fáil had been in office since the 1932 general election.
The Government of the 15th Dáil or the 7th Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the general election held on 18 May 1954. Commonly known as the Second Inter-Party Government, it was a minority government of Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Clann na Talmhan. Clann na Poblachta, which had been in the First Inter-Party Government (1948–51) with these parties, supported the government but did form part of it.
There were two Governments of the 2nd Dáil, which were Ministries of Dáil Éireann, the assembly of Dáil Éireann that was the legislature of the Irish Republic, a unilaterally declared state which lasted from 1919 to 1922. The Second Dáil was elected at the 1921 Irish elections on 24 May 1921. The 3rd Ministry was led by Éamon de Valera as president and lasted 136 days. De Valera resigned as president after the Dáil voted to accept the Anglo-Irish Treaty. The 4th Ministry was led by Arthur Griffith as president. Griffith died in office on 12 August 1922, but a new Dáil ministry was not formed until 9 September 1922. Griffith served 214 days as president, with a further 28 days between his death and the appointment of W. T. Cosgrave as his successor by the Dáil.
The Government of the 1st Dáil was the executive of the unilaterally declared Irish Republic. At the 1918 Westminster election, candidates for Sinn Féin stood on an abstentionist platform, declaring that they would not remain in the Parliament of the United Kingdom but instead form a unicameral, revolutionary parliament for Ireland called Dáil Éireann.
The Vice-President of the Executive Council was the deputy prime minister of the 1922–37 Irish Free State, and the second most senior member of the Executive Council (cabinet). Formally the Vice-President was appointed by the Governor-General on the nomination of the President of the Executive Council, but by convention the Governor-General could not refuse to appoint a vice-president whom the president had selected.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is a department of the Government of Ireland that is responsible for promoting the interests of Ireland in the European Union and the wider world. The head of the department is the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is a department of the Government of Ireland. It is led by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
The Department of Education is a department of the Government of Ireland. It is led by the Minister for Education.
John Joseph O'Kelly was an Irish republican politician, author and publisher who served as President of Sinn Féin from 1926 to 1931, Minister for Education from 1921 to 1922, Minister for Irish from 1920 to 1921 and Leas-Cheann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 1919 to 1921. He served as a Teachta Dála from 1918 to 1921 and 1922 to 1923.
The Government of the 31st Dáil or the 29th Government of Ireland was the government of Ireland which was formed following the 2011 general election to Dáil Éireann on 25 February 2011. It was a coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party led by Enda Kenny as Taoiseach. From 2011 to 2014, Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore served as Tánaiste, and from 2014 to 2016, the new Labour leader Joan Burton served as Tánaiste.
