User:Frenchmalawi

The British government’s reaction to this was relatively composed. The Irish government proceeded on the assumption that Ireland was an entirely sovereign independent country that was merely associated with the Commonwealth. The British government assumed that, despite their distaste for de Valera’s 1937 constitution, nothing had essentially changed. Crucially, neither insisted on its own interpretation. This remained the status quo until 1948. UCD. Unlike his predecessors, de Valera was uninterested in exploring the limits of Ireland’s status as a Dominion; instead, he ignored it. But crucially, he was unwilling to break away from the Commonwealth: the credentials of Irish diplomats were still authorised by the King, and Ireland remained an associate member of the Commonwealth. These provided continued, albeit tenuous, links to the Empire (ostensibly as a route to allow ultimate Irish unity). UCD

The Constitution (Amendment No. 27) Act 1936 “provided for the disappearance of the Crown and the abolition of the Office of the Governor General”. It became law on 11 December 1936. On the following day, the Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 was enacted and “provision was finally made for external association, i.e. that for so long as the Crown was recognized by “those nations [of the British Commonwealth of Nations] as the symbol of their cooperation” the Crown would have the function of the accreditation of diplomats.^[1] External association was now a fait accompli.^[2]

“having achieved external association unexpectedly, needed a new – internal – republican constitution (this had been announced first in May 1935).”^[3]

De Valera was bound by the Irish Free State constitution, but he avoided enactment of his 1937 draft by the Oireachtas. The treaty was still extant in Irish law, and Dáil Éireann (there was no Seanad Éireann) did not have the power under article 12 to enact a new constitution. That was for a new constituent assembly only. The plebiscite on 1 July 1937 (as opposed to its organization) was not constitutional, which is why enactment by the people (as it was dubbed) was a legal revolution. AM

“Given that there is little doubt about statehood in Ireland in 1937, was Éire/Ireland a successor to the Irish Free State? The answer would appear to be yes.” AM

“Éire/Ireland was treated as a successor state in its international relations.” AM.

“The 1921 treaty, in Irish law, was repealed from 29 December 1937. And the United Kingdom had, in its law, given this power to the Irish Free State in the Statute of Westminster 1931. It was not in any case a treaty in international law.” AM.

“6.44 Éire/Ireland, under article 29.4.2 of BNH, had remained within the commonwealth, while legally describing the relationship as external association (the United Kingdom government accepting there had been constitutional change in 1936–37). In 1948, de Valera’s political opponents – by repealing the Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 – cut the last ties with the commonwealth.”

“It was, therefore, in the 1950s, that the Irish government resolved the dilemma by calling itself the government of Ireland.” AM

the League of Nations was informed that Ireland was the correct English name for the country.^[4][5] A unique modus vivendi was adopted by the two states when they concluded a bilateral agreement on air services in 1946. That agreement was styled as an "Agreement between the United Kingdom and Ireland (Eire)".^[6] A parliamentary question as to why the term "Ireland (Eire)" was used rather than simply "Eire" was put in the British House of Commons. A parliamentary secretary for the Government, Ivor Thomas, explained the position as follows:

The designation in the Air Services Agreement was used in order to comply with the provisions of the law of the United Kingdom and of Eire respectively. In the English language, the country in question is properly described by one of the signatories as Eire and by the other as Ireland, and the designation adopted recognises this position without creating misunderstanding about the territory concerned.