Irish Free State

The Irish Free State (Irish: Saorstát Éireann [sˠiːɾˠsˠˈt̪ˠaːt̪ˠ eːɾʲən̪ˠ]; 6 December 1922 – 29 December 1937) was an independent state established in 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. That treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between the forces of the self-proclaimed Irish Republic, the Irish Republican Army (IRA), and British Crown forces.

The Free State was established as a Dominion of the British Commonwealth of Nations. It comprised 26 of the 32 counties of Ireland. Northern Ireland, which comprised the remaining six counties, exercised its right under the Treaty to opt out of the new state. The Free State government consisted of the Governor-General, the representative of the king, and the Executive Council, which replaced both the revolutionary Dáil Government and the Provisional Government set up under the Treaty. W. T. Cosgrave, who had led both of these governments since August 1922, became the first President of the Executive Council. The legislature consisted of Dáil Éireann (the lower house) and Seanad Éireann, also known as the Senate. Members of the Dáil were required to take an Oath of Allegiance, swearing fidelity to the king. The oath was a key issue between supporters and opponents of the Treaty. Cosgrave's party, Cumann na nGaedheal, held a majority in the Dáil from 1922 to 1932.

Irish Free State (Consequential Provisions) Act 1922

The Irish Free State (Consequential Provisions) Act 1922 (Session 2) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed on 5 December 1922. The Act dealt with a number of matters concerning the Irish Free State, which was established on the day after the Act became law; it also modified the Government of Ireland Act 1920 in relation to Northern Ireland.

Purpose

Prime Minister Andrew Bonar Law first introduced the legislation as a Bill in November 1922. The Act's purpose was to deal with a range of consequences arising from the impending creation of the Irish Free State. The Act also had to make provisions for Northern Ireland which would be appropriate depending on whether (i) Northern Ireland decided to remain part of the new Free State after its establishment or (ii) chose to opt back into the United Kingdom (as was widely anticipated). In regard to Northern Ireland, The Times recalled that there was "no doubt" that Northern Ireland would opt to rejoin the United Kingdom. The Act amended the Government of Ireland Act 1920 in certain respects.

Free state

Free state may refer to:

Places

Politics

Slave and free states

In the history of the United States of America, a slave state was a U.S. state in which the practice of slavery was legal at a particular point of time, and a free state was one in which slavery was prohibited or being legally phased out at that point of time. Slavery was a divisive issue and was one of the primary causes of the American Civil War. The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1865, abolished slavery throughout the United States, and the distinction ended.

Early history

Slavery was legal and practiced in each of the Thirteen Colonies. Organized political and social movements to end slavery began in the mid-18th century. The sentiments of the American Revolution and the equality evoked by the Declaration of Independence rallied many black Americans toward the revolutionary cause and their own hopes of emancipation. Others joined the British army, encouraged by British promises of freedom in exchange for military service. Free black men also fought in the Revolution on both sides (see Black Patriot and Black Loyalist).

Free state (government)

Free state is a term occasionally used in the official titles of some states.

In principle the title asserts and emphasises the freedom of the state in question, but what this actually means varies greatly in different contexts:

Overview

Republican England

English Parliament, in the act forming the Commonwealth of England of 1649 to 1660, declared that "England is confirmed to be a Commonwealth and Free State and shall from henceforth be Governed as a Commonwealth and Free State." The Commonwealth had a republican constitution.