Irish Office

Irish Office

The Irish Office was established in Old Queen Street, London, after the Act of Union as a small outpost of the Chief Secretary's Office in Dublin, replacing the Lord Lieutenant's resident London secretary. Intended as a channel of communication between Dublin Castle and both Parliament and Whitehall, it was often bypassed and its few officials did little work until the late 19th century, when they drafted answers to the increasing stream of parliamentary questions which Irish Parliamentary Party MPs were asking the Chief Secretary. There was also a parliamentary draftsman for local and private bills relating to Ireland. When the Provisional Government took over in early 1922, the Chief Secretary's office in Dublin was closed and those of its senior officials who had been seconded from Whitehall were relocated to the Irish Office. The Irish Office was wound down after the collapse of the Irish Boundary Commission in 1925, and London's relations with the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland were transferred to the Dominions Office and Home Office respectively.