The Government of the 8th Dáil or the 7th Executive Council (8 February 1933 – 21 July 1937) was the Executive Council of the Irish Free State formed after the general election held on 24 January 1933. It was led by Fianna Fáil leader

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of govern ...

as President of the Executive Council, who had first taken office in the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...

after the 1932 general election. De Valera had previously served as

President of Dáil Éireann President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

, or President of the Republic, from April 1919 to January 1922 during the revolutionary period of the

Irish Republic The Irish Republic ( ga, Poblacht na hÉireann or ) 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 ...

. The 7th Executive Council lasted for days.

7th Executive Council of the Irish Free State

Nomination of President of the Executive Council

The 8th Dáil first met on 8 February. In the debate on the nomination of the President of the Executive Council, Fianna Fáil leader and outgoing President Éamon de Valera was proposed, and the motion was approved by 82 votes to 54. He was then appointed as president by Governor-General

Domhnall Ua Buachalla Domhnall Ua Buachalla (; en, Daniel Richard "Donal" Buckley; 3 February 1866 – 30 October 1963) was an Irish politician and member of the First Dáil who served as third and final governor-general of the Irish Free State and later served as ...

Members of the Executive Council

The members of the Executive Council were proposed by the President and approved by the Dáil. They were appointed by the Governor-General on the same day. President De Valera and his Cabinet (Poster)

President De Valera and his Cabinet (Poster)

Attorney General

Conor Maguire SC was appointed by the Governor-General as Attorney General on the nomination of the Executive Council.

Parliamentary Secretaries

On 8 February, the Executive Council appointed Parliamentary Secretaries on the nomination of the President.

Amendments to the Constitution of the Irish Free State

The following amendments to the

Constitution of the Irish Free State The Constitution of the Irish Free State ( ga, Bunreacht Shaorstát Eireann) was adopted by Act of Dáil Éireann sitting as a constituent assembly on 25 October 1922. In accordance with Article 83 of the Constitution,Constitution (Removal of Oath) Act 1933 The Constitution (Removal of Oath) Act 1933 (act no. 6 of 1933, previously bill no. 2 of 1932) was an Act of the Oireachtas of the Irish Free State amending the Constitution of the Irish Free State and the Constitution of the Irish Free State (Sao ...

(3 May 1933): Abolished the Oath of Allegiance and removed requirements that the constitution and laws of the Free State be compatible with the Anglo-Irish Treaty. This involved repealing Section 2 of the Constitution of the Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann) Act 1922, as well as altering provisions of the constitution. * Amendment No. 20 (2 November 1933): Removed the Governor General's role in recommending appropriations of money to the Dáil on the advice of the Executive Council. This function was transferred directly to the Executive Council. In practice this change was merely symbolic. * Amendment No. 21 (2 November 1933): Removed provisions granting the Governor General the right to veto bills or reserve them "for the King's pleasure" by referring them to London. * Amendment No. 22 (16 November 1933): Abolished the right of appeal to the Privy Council. * Amendment No. 26 (5 April 1935): Made a technical change to Article 3, which dealt with citizenship. * Amendment No. 23 (24 April 1936): Abolished the two

university constituencies A university constituency is a constituency, used in elections to a legislature, that represents the members of one or more universities rather than residents of a geographical area. These may or may not involve plural voting, in which voters a ...

in the Dáil. * Amendment No. 24 (29 May 1936): Abolished

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house). It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...

. * Amendment No. 27 (11 December 1936): Abolished the office of Governor General and removed all reference to the King from the constitution. The functions of the Governor General were transferred to various other branches of government.

Role of King

As well as the constitutional changes above affecting the status of the British monarch, after the

abdication of Edward VIII In early December 1936, a constitutional crisis in the British Empire arose when King-Emperor Edward VIII proposed to marry Wallis Simpson, an American socialite who was divorced from her first husband and was pursuing the divorce of her secon ...

on 11 December 1936, the Executive Council proposed and passed the

Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 The Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 (No. 58 of 1936) was an Act of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament). The Act, which was signed into law on 12 December 1936, was one of two passed hurriedly in the aftermath of the Edward VIII a ...

which reduced the role of the King to external functions only. It was followed the following year by the

Executive Powers (Consequential Provisions) Act 1937 The Executive Powers (Consequential Provisions) Act, 1937 was an Act of the Oireachtas which retrospectively completed the abolition of the Governor-General of the Irish Free State. In December 1936, then President of the Executive Council of t ...

, which completed the process of removing the position of Governor-General from Irish law.

Proposal of the Constitution of Ireland

The Executive Council proposed a new

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...

which passed final stages in the Dáil on 14 June 1937. In a plebiscite held on 1 July 1937, the same date as a general election, the Constitution was approved with the support of 56.5% of votes cast. It came into force on 29 December 1937.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Government of the 8th Dail Ministries of George V Ministries of Edward VIII Government 08 Governments of the Irish Free State 1933 establishments in Ireland 1937 disestablishments in Ireland Cabinets established in 1933 Cabinets disestablished in 1937 Minority governments 8th Dáil