Government of the 2nd Dáil
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| Govt of the 1st Dáil | (1918) |
| Govt of the 2nd Dáil | (1921) |
| Govt of the 3rd Dáil | (1922) |
| Govt of the 4th Dáil | (1923) |
The Second Dáil was elected on 24 May 1921 and lasted 388 days.
Contents |
[edit] Third Ministry
The Third Ministry was the Ministry of the Irish Republic that held office from 26 August 1921–9 January 1922. It was the appointed soon after the election of the Second Dáil, on 24 May 1921.
Contrary to the practice during the first two ministries, when de Valera was re-elected as head of government in 1922 he assumed the title of 'President of the Republic', and therefore explicitly became the republic's head of state, rather than merely its prime minister. In imitation of the practice in the presidential systems of other nations, the cabinet members of the Third Ministry were styled as 'secretaries of state' rather than 'ministers'.
[edit] Ministers not in cabinet
In January 1922 the Anglo-Irish Treaty was ratified and some members, including Éamon de Valera, resigned from the cabinet in protest.
[edit] Fourth Ministry
The Fourth Ministry was the Ministry of the Irish Republic that held office from 10 January 1922 to 9 September 1922. Following the ratification of the Anglo-Irish Treaty on 7 January, Éamon de Valera resigned in protest and the Third Ministry fell. The Fourth Ministry, headed by Arthur Griffith, and composed solely of members of the pro-Treaty faction of Sinn Féin, was elected the following day. Six non-cabinet ministers were appointed on the 11th.
Under the terms of the Treaty another cabinet, the Provisional Government, was also established just six days later, under the chairmanship of Michael Collins. The Fourth Ministry therefore held office in parallel with the First Provisional Government. In August Griffith died of natural causes and Collins was killed in action, however the remaining members of the Ministry remained in office until, on 9 September, the Third Dáil elected a new Ministry under W. T. Cosgrave. Cosgrave took this opportunity to merge the Ministry and the Provisional Government into a single administration, the Second Provisional Government. Henceforth the country was governed by only one cabinet.
The term of the Fourth Ministry was from 10 January 1922 to 9 September 1922.
[edit] Ministers not in cabinet
| Office | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| Minister for Education | Michael Hayes | |
| Minister for Trade | Ernest Blythe | |
| Minister for Agriculture | Patrick Hogan | |
| Minister for Labour | Joseph McGrath | |
| Minister for Publicity | Desmond FitzGerald | |
[edit] Assistant Ministers
| Office | Name | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asst. Minister for Local Government | Laurence Robbins | 11 January–9 September | |
| Asst. Minister for Home Affairs | George Nicolls | 17 January–9 September | |
| Asst. Minister for Education | Frank Fahy | Until 3 February (Appointment date unknown) |
|
[edit] First Provisional Government
The First Provisional Government was the Provisional Government that held office in 1922 from 16 January to 30 August. The Provisional Government was established under the terms of the Anglo-Irish Treaty as an interim administration that would govern until the establishment of the Irish Free State in December. Its members were nominated by the House of Commons of Southern Ireland on 14 January and they took up office two days later. The British government formally transferred power to the cabinet on 1 April. Headed by Chairman Michael Collins, its membership consisted solely of partisans of the pro-Treaty wing of Sinn Féin.
At the time the Provisional Government was established there was a pre-existing administration, in the form of the Fourth Ministry of the Irish Republic but that cabinet was not recognised by the British government. The Fourth Ministry came to office on 10 January, just six days before the Provisional Government, but continued in office after the latter's establishment. Thus, until September there were two parallel administrations, with an overlapping membership. This anomalous situation did not come to an end when the two competing cabinets were merged into the Second Provisional Government in September. The Provisional Government was intended to answer to the Third Dáil, which was recognised as a legitimate provisional parliament under British law. However British law did not recognise the Second Dáil, which was in session when the First Provisional Government came to office. Therefore the Provisional Government was not officially accountable to any body until the Third Dáil convened on 9 September.
After the Civil War began on 29 June four members of the cabinet were seconded for military service and substitutes were appointed to temporarily take their places as acting ministers. Two new members, Michael Hayes and Ernest Blythe, began serving as acting ministers on 17 July and were added to the cabinet as permanent members on the 27 July. Collins was killed in action on 22 August and so the cabinet met and elected Cosgrave as Chairman on 25 August. Five days later the entire cabinet was reconstituted as the Second Provisional Government. After that date, the newly constituted Provisional Government appointed by that Dáil continued in being as the sole Government, until superseded on 6 December 1922, by the formation of the 1st Executive Council of the Irish Free State.
[edit] Substitutes
| Office | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| Acting Minister for Finance | W. T. Cosgrave | |
| Acting Minister for Labour | Patrick Hogan | |
| Acting Minister for Education | Michael Hayes | |
| Acting Minister for Economic Affairs | Ernest Blythe | |
Source: Dáil Debates, 10 January 1922.
[edit] See also
- Members of the 2nd Dáil
- Dáil Éireann
- Dáil Éireann (1919-1922)
- Irish Government
- Bunreacht na hÉireann
- Irish general election, 1921
- Politics of the Republic of Ireland
