Irish newspapers and the creation of the 1922 constitution of the Irish Free State

This article attempts to recover perceptions of the Constitution of the Irish Free State at the time of its creation through analysis of Irish newspapers published in 1922. The comparative analysis of contemporary perceptions is intended to serve as a counterweight to perceptions of this Constitution presented in scholarship written in the years after 1922 that have been heavily influenced by knowledge of subsequent events. This article includes analysis of the 1922 Constitution in newspapers based in all regions of the island of Ireland. It covers the jurisdiction of ‘Southern Ireland’, that was evolving into the ‘Irish Free State’, and the jurisdiction of ‘Northern Ireland’ that was destined to remain a part of the United Kingdom. The comparative analysis examines differing viewpoints within and between these two jurisdictions. The conclusion argues that the difficulties and relatively short lifespan experienced by the Constitution of the Irish Free State could not have been easily predicted from the vantage point of 1922.


I. Introduction
On 29 December 1937 the current Constitution of the self-governing Irish State officially came into force.The government led by Éamon de Valera, that had overseen the drafting process, ensured that this event, labelled 'Constitution Day', did not pass without some attempt at celebration.Special postage stamps were issued, there was a special radio broadcast, formal military ceremonies took place and there was even a dance called the 'Constitution ceilidhe'. 1Finally, in accordance with the spirit of the times, members of government were escorted by cavalry guards to Dublin's Pro-Cathedral for a special mass to mark the occasion.
The Irish judiciary formally swore allegiance to the new Constitution as required by its provisions. 2 It is difficult to know how interested ordinary members of the public were in these modest celebrations in 1937.The significance of the event went beyond personal satisfaction as far as de Valera was concerned.He was convinced that the 1937 Constitution was 'the first free Constitution of the Irish People'. 3 This was an obvious slight on the preceding 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State which came to an end on 29 December 1937.
The date of the birth of the Constitution of the Irish Free State, 6 December 1922, did not attract even the modest level of official celebration of de Valera's 'Constitution Day'.It is worth considering why this was so.First, it must be noted that the birth of the 1922 Constitution was overshadowed by the simultaneous birth of a new polity called the 'Irish Free State'.In addition, reactions to that Constitution were heavily influenced by divisions concerning the 'Articles of Agreement for a Treaty between Great Britain and Ireland', popularly known as 'the Treaty' or '1921 Treaty', signed by British and Irish representatives on December 1921.Finally, large scale celebrations were not possible on 6 December 1922 which fell in the middle of a bitter and depressing civil war. 4 This article uses contemporary newspapers to present a comparative perspective on how the Constitution of the Irish Free State was perceived by key groups within Irish society at the time of its creation in 1922.This examination is necessary because so much of the scholarship on the 1922 Constitution is dominated by perceptions of that document that were put down on paper in the years that followed.These accounts are inevitably influenced by the benefit of hindsight.The dearth of official celebrations for the birth of the 1922 Constitution can be used to support a thesis that few people in the new Irish Free State had any real enthusiasm for it. 6These circumstancestogether with supposed errors made during the drafting of the Constitution concerning provisions on human rights, judicial review and the process of amendmentcan be used to suggest that the doom of the 1922 Constitution was pre-ordained and inevitable.This article uses newspaper analysis of the enactment of the Free State Constitution to illustrate and compare reactions to that document in 1922 itself.This includes the reaction of Irish nationalists who supported the 1921 Treaty and those who opposed this settlement.It will also examine the reactions of unionists on both sides of the Irish border and the reaction of nationalists in Northern Ireland.The reaction of socialist media and newspapers that openly identified with the Catholic Church will also be analysed.Other groups, such as women and members of the legal professions, might also have been included.However, notwithstanding the presence of prominent women journalists and cartoonists in the 1920s' media, there were no publications aimed specifically at a readership of Irish women in 1922.In any case, women were subject to the same political divisions as Irish men in the difficult circumstances of the times. 7The legal professions did have dedicated publications in 1922.However, a desire to avoid political partisanship ensured that accounts of the new Constitution in legal publications were limited to factual analysis. 8This article will conclude by examining perceptions within the Irish media of 1922 as to the future that lay before the new Constitution.
Analysis of contemporary newspapers reveals the contrasting emotions that greeted the new Constitution in 1922.These included intense hostility among some sections of Irish society, which is well-remembered in the twenty-first century, but also significant popular enthusiasm and idealism embodied in the new Constitution, which is not so well-remembered.This article will argue that it was not at all obvious from the vantage point of 1922 that the lifespan of the new Constitution would be just 15 years.Most Irish newspapers, even those hostile to the 1922 Constitution, assumed that it would last a long time. 7Reactions to the provisions of the 1922 Constitution by prominent Irish women in 1922 and afterwards are examined in Thomas Mohr, 'The Rights of Women under the Constitution of the Irish Free State' (2006) 41 Irish Jurist 20. 8 The Irish Law Society Gazette was a minor publication that rarely strayed beyond professional matters concerning Irish solicitors.The other significant publication for the legal community was the Irish Law Times and Solicitors' Journal a weekly publication consisting of news and short articles.It consisted of factual news concerning the progress made in drafting the Constitution, for example Irish Law Times and Solicitors ' Journal, 4  February 1922, 33; 18 March 1922, 68; 1 April 1922, 78−79.When it finally got around to analysing the provisions of the Constitution it did so in a factual sense without offering any substantial opinion apart from a bland recognition that 'It is an historic document of great interest, and well deserves careful perusal': Irish Law Times

II. Newspaper analysis
It is difficult to assess how representative newspapers on the island of Ireland were of public opinion in 1922.Donal Ó Drisceoil argues that Irish regional newspapers in this period tended to follow rather than lead public opinion as they were bound 'socially, culturally, commercially and politically … to their readership communities'. 9There can be little doubt that the overwhelming level of support within the Irish media for the signing of the 1921 Treaty ensured the underrepresentation of the minority that opposed the settlement.Nevertheless, as this article will demonstrate, the voice of opponents of the Treaty was never silenced in contemporary newspapers.In any case, newspaper sources, for all their shortcomings, are one of the main sources available in gauging public reaction in 1922.
Although it would be tempting to confine media analysis to national newspapers with relatively large circulations, this article has avoided this easy path.This shortcut would ignore many local publications that often had a great deal to say about the Constitution.Contemporary circulation figures are notoriously difficult to acquire from 1920s' Ireland.Nevertheless, it is clear that many people relied wholly or in part on local newspapers to inform them of the events of their times.Christopher Doughan concludes that analysis of the Irish regional press is 'an obvious void in the historiography of Ireland's print media'. 10It is important to try to fill this void as much as possible.
This article focuses on newspapers that circulated in the two jurisdictions on the island of Ireland in 1922.Limited attention is occasionally provided to some non-Irish sources for the sake of context but a comprehensive global account of contemporary reaction to the Constitution of the Irish Free State falls outside the limits of this work.This article does not claim to have examined every Irish newspaper that circulated in 1922 but has examined most publications that are readily accessible and attempts to offer a representative sample in terms of regions and political perspectives.At least one publication from every Irish county was examined but not all consulted are mentioned in this article.Some regional papers expressed views that largely replicated those found elsewhere. 11Others had little or nothing to say about the Constitution.These publications might have felt that the issue was well-covered 9 Donal Ó Drisceoil, '"Sledge hammers and blue pencils": Censorship, suppression and the Irish regional press, 1916-23' in Ian Kennelly and James T O'Donnell (eds), The Irish Regional Press 1892-2018: Revival, Revolution and Republic (Four Courts Press 2018) 154.
10 Christopher Doughan, The Voice of the Provinces: The Regional Press in Revolutionary Ireland, 1914-1921 (Liverpool University Press 2019) 4. elsewhere, preferred to stick to local news or felt intimidated by a regime of censorship that pervaded the early stages of the Irish civil war of 1922-1923.Nevertheless, the large sample of newspapers examined by this work suggests that most Irish newspapers in 1922 felt willing and able to comment on the new Irish Constitution.

III. The origins of the constitution of the irish free state
The division between Irish nationalists, who dreamed of the emergence of some form of autonomous Irish State, and Irish unionists, who wished to maintain links with the United Kingdom, had been the dominant theme of Irish politics since the early nineteenth century.The division became more acute with the emergence of a political campaign for 'home rule' in the late nineteenth century which hoped to create a devolved parliament in Dublin within the embrace of the United Kingdom.Unionists, who were mostly Protestant and concentrated in the northeast of the island, feared domination by nationalists who mostly embraced the Catholic faith.These divisions became further entrenched in the aftermath of the 1916 Easter rising, an event described as having a 'tsunami-like effect on the press'. 12The leaders of the rising sought to establish an Irish republic, a far more ambitious objective for Irish nationalists than home rule.The aim of establishing a republic was confirmed by a self-declared Irish parliament known as 'Dáil Éireann' in 1919 and a bitter conflict with crown forces ensued.
In 1920 the parliament at Westminster passed the Government of Ireland Act which created two jurisdictions on the island of Ireland.These were the unionistdominated 'Northern Ireland' comprising six north-eastern counties and a nationalist-dominated 'Southern Ireland' comprising the remaining 26 counties.The conflict continued until British and Irish representatives signed an agreement on 6 December 1921 that it was often referred to as 'the Treaty' or '1921 Treaty'. 13he 1921 Treaty provided that the 26 counties, that had originally been labelled 'Southern Ireland', would form the 'Irish Free State' which would be granted the status of a 'Dominion'.The existing Dominionswhich included Canada, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealandenjoyed extensive and growing autonomy within the British Empire.Yet the Dominions had not advanced to the point of being internationally recognised sovereign States in the early 1920s and Dominion status also demanded recognition of the King and other institutions seen as essential to Imperial unity.This reality was offensive to some Irish nationalists who would accept little short of an Irish republic.The future of the six counties of Northern Ireland, dominated by unionists, was also a subject of some concern to Irish nationalists on both sides of the Irish border.
On 7 January 1922 Dáil Éireann voted by a narrow margin in favour of the 1921 Treaty.A new Irish provisional government was brought into existence one week later and immediately began work drafting the future Constitution.A 'constitution committee', dedicated to producing the basic drafts, began work on 24 January.The constitution committee produced three alternative texts, known as Drafts A, B and C which were presented to the provisional government.Draft B was chosen to form the basis of the future Constitution and the provisional government oversaw additional changes to produce a text known as Draft D. This document contained many innovative provisions that were influenced by existing Constitutions from different parts of the world.On 27 May, Michael Collins, chairman of the provisional government, and Arthur Griffith, founder of Sinn Féin and now President of Dáil Éireann, brought Draft D to London to give British ministers a confidential preview.
Draft D gave little more than token recognition to the provisions of the 1921 Treaty that asserted that the future Irish Free State would have the status of a British Dominion.This proved to be unacceptable to the British government which insisted on key amendments that reflected the settlement imposed by the Treaty. 14This saw the insertion of provisions relating to the monarchy, the representative of the crown, a controversial parliamentary oath, and an appeal from the Irish courts to an institution in London called the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. 15he provisional government had pledged to publish the draft Constitution in advance of the 1922 general election.The draft agreed with the British government only appeared in the morning newspapers on 16 June 1922, the date of the anticipated election.This happened because British-Irish negotiations on the text of the draft Constitution continued until just before the expiration of this unofficial deadline.Nevertheless, the resulting eleventh hour publication was presented as a cynical breach of faith by opponents of the 1921 Treaty.Comparative Legal History Some pro-Treaty newspapers argued that late publication had little impact on public reaction to the Constitution. 17he eruption of civil war on 28 June 1922 delayed the convening of Dáil Éireann, sitting as a constituent assembly, that would make further amendments before formally approving the final text.The Dáil finally met on 9 September 1922 and, soon afterwards, began its work as a constituent assembly.Opponents of the Treaty boycotted this special parliament.Nevertheless, the Dáil completed its work as a constituent assembly on 25 October 1922 when it enacted the final text of the draft Constitution.The draft was then considered by the parliament of the United Kingdom which also approved the text without amendment of the substantive articles. 18The Constitution was formally brought into force following a proclamation by King George V on 6 December 1922.

IV. The provisions of the 1922 constitution of the irish free state
The drafters of the 1922 Constitution used a wide array of existing constitutions in preparing their own document.Two volumes were later published that reproduced the texts of the constitutions used during the drafting process. 19The Constitution of Switzerland proved particularly influential in the provisions relating to direct democracy while the constitutions of the Dominions were used as models for the provisions relating to the settlement created by the 1921 Treaty. 20rticle 12 of the 1922 Constitution created a legislature known as the 'Oireachtas'.It was to consist of the King and two houses of parliament, the 'Chamber of Deputies', officially known as 'Dáil Éireann', and a 'Senate', officially known as 'Seanad Éireann'.The Seanad would be abolished in 1936 after it used its powers to delay several constitutional amendments passed by the Dáil. 21This left the Dáil as the sole house of the Oireachtas until the adoption of the new Constitution in 1937.The 1922 Constitution included human rights provisions that covered similar subject matter to many contemporary European constitutions. 22The very existence of the human rights provisions in the Constitution of the Irish Free State would be used to distinguish it from the constitutions of the existing Dominions, which did not contain detailed codes of rights. 23ne of the most controversial provisions in the 1922 Constitution concerned 'extern ministers' who could hold ministerial office without necessarily being members of the Oireachtas.These persons could be appointed on the basis of special expertise or abilities and need not necessarily be elected politicians. 24Contemporary newspapers were quick to spot the influence of the Swiss Constitution on this proposal. 25This scheme was criticised as undemocratic in newspapers that spanned the political divides of nationalism and unionism and support and opposition for the 1921 Treaty. 26In late 1922 the scheme was diluted to the extent that some newspapers concluded that its provisions were now largely a 'dead letter'. 27This prediction proved to be accurate and these provisions never functioned as intended.No equivalent provisions would appear in the succeeding 1937 Constitution.
The provisions of the 1922 Constitution promised the electorate a direct role in law-making through provisions for 'referendum' and 'initiative'.The 'referendum' referred to a power under which members of the Oireachtas could trigger a plebiscite on a bill that was about to become law. 28The 'initiative' referred to a power to initiate proposals for new laws, including constitutional amendments, by voters signing public petitions. 29Once again, contemporary newspapers soon identified the precedent for these provisions in the Swiss Constitution but were divided as to their wisdom and practicability. 30These provisions would never operate in practice and would be formally removed in 1928. 31 Constitution.A mechanism for triggering a referendum on a bill would be replicated in the 1937 Constitution but, like its predecessor in the 1922 Constitution, would never work in practice. 32Of course, newspapers in 1922 wrote without knowledge of these failures.In 1922 pro-Treaty nationalist publications often made use of these provisions to promote the democratic credentials of the emerging Irish State. 33Nevertheless, some newspapers accurately predicted that these provisions would never function in practice. 34he provisions in the Constitution relating to the 1921 Treaty proved most divisive.These included provisions relating to the King, the King's representative (known as the Governor-General) and a controversial parliamentary oath. 35The provisions on the courts included the creation of a new High Court and Supreme Court, that would be retained by the 1937 Constitution, but also recognised an appeal to a court in London known as the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. 36Anti-Treaty newspapers described the Privy Council appeal as the 'judicial link in the strong chain which binds the Free State to the chariot wheels of Britain'. 37This British imperial court was also presented as the final arbiter of the 1921 Treaty settlement and of the Irish Constitution itself. 38The pro-Treaty Freeman's Journal predicted that the appeal to the Privy Council from the Irish courts would never function in the face of determined resistance from Dublin. 39As events transpired, this institution did not create serious difficulties for Irish governments until the Privy Council delivered a series of controversial decisions in the late 1920s and early 1930s.Thereafter, the prediction of the Freeman's Journal, that the appeal could be stymied by Irish resistance, proved to be accurate. 40Its abolition was finally settled in 1935. 41he removal of the Privy Council appeal was just one aspect of a wider programme of constitutional reform aimed at dismantling the Treaty settlement that was initiated by the Fianna Fáil government led by a new Irish Constitution in 1937.The new Constitution kept many important features of the old.These included most of the human rights provisions of the 1922 Constitution along with the structure of the courts and key provisions concerning Dáil Éireann.Nevertheless, as mentioned earlier, this article will argue that the replacement of the Free State Constitution after just 15 years was not something that could have been easily anticipated in 1922.

V. Irish newspapers in 1922
The island of Ireland had a lively and varied press in 1922. 42There were three daily newspapers based in Dublin that enjoyed a national circulation.These were the moderate nationalist Irish Independent and the Freeman's Journal together with the moderate unionist Irish Times. 43The most important newspapers in the six counties that comprised Northern Ireland were the unionist Belfast News Letter, Belfast Telegraph, Northern Whig and the nationalist Irish News. 44The other significant daily newspaper was the Cork Examiner which circulated in much of the south of Ireland.These important newspapers were joined by many regional newspapers that mostly identified with the nationalist tradition. 45Regional newspapers in the 26 counties that had traditionally adopted a unionist stance had to adapt or face extinction after 1922.
As mentioned earlier, the great majority of Irish newspapers supported the 1921 Treaty throughout the period of transition that included the drafting of the Constitution of the Irish Free State.Opponents of the Treaty reacted by creating new publications, for example Poblacht na h-Éireann, also known by its English name Republic of Ireland.Disruption followed the outbreak of the Irish civil war in June 1922.Some anti-Treaty newspapers, such as the Connachtman and the Kerry Leader, were supressed or effectively put out of business. 46Opponents of the 1921 Treaty responded with occasional examples of 'sledge-hammer censorship'. 47he Freeman's Journal, a moderate nationalist newspaper that had been in existence since 1763, had its printing press smashed on 30 March 1922 during the period of tension that preceded the conflict.The outbreak of civil war in June 1922 saw other moderate nationalist newspapers, for example the Cork Examiner, join unionist newspapers, such as the Cork Constitution, in having their printing presses smashed by opponents of the Treaty. 48Opponents of the Treaty also forced some pro-Treaty newspapers to print anti-Treaty material within the areas of their control during the civil war. 49This proved to be a temporary phenomenon as supporters of the Treaty would soon establish control over all parts of the new State.The Irish Free State and its pro-Treaty government were firmly established when the civil war came to an end in May 1923.
A newspaper known as An Saorstát or the Free State, funded by the provisional government, was established in February 1922.This short-lived instrument of government propaganda proved entirely unnecessary in a context of overwhelming support for the 1921 Treaty within the existing media.The provisional government withdrew support, and it stopped publishing in November 1922, a sign that its contribution was considered unnecessary. 50An Saorstát, a shortlived commercial failure which Horgan and Flynn conclude was 'only notionally a newspaper', could hardly have set an agenda followed by the remainder of the pro-Treaty media. 51here is no evidence that the regime of censorship imposed by the provisional government extended to demands for positive coverage of the new Constitution.A revealing incident took place in September 1922 when an acting military censor instructed the editor of the Waterford News how to lay out his paper.This was later condemned as an abuse of power and 'indefensible' by Piaras Béaslaí, publicity director of the National Army and chief official in charge of media censorship. 52Censorship under the provisional government was limited to supressing 46 Ó Drisceoil (n 9) 153.unfavourable information and did not extend to demanding that newspapers print favourable content.In any case, as Peter Martin has demonstrated, official censorship by the provisional government was only a feature of the early part of the Irish civil war.It lasted from July 1922, when it was introduced soon after the outbreak of hostilities, to October 1922, when Béaslaí was ordered to wind down restrictions. 53Consequently, official censorship was not in place at the times of peak coverage for the new Constitution, which occurred when the draft document was published in June 1922 and when it came into force in December 1922.As will be seen, pro-Treaty newspapers, though generally favourable towards the draft Constitution, did not adopt an uncritical attitude towards its provisions.In these circumstances, it can be concluded that, although anti-Treaty newspapers may have faced challenges in propagating their criticism of the Constitution, any praise showered on the document by pro-Treaty newspapers was unprompted and entirely sincere.

VI. The constitution and nationalist supporters of the 1921 treaty
Most Irish newspapers in 1922 were nationalist in orientation and supported the 1921 Treaty.Assertions that few were enthused by the Free State Constitution, made in the years that followed its enactment, are not consistent with the reaction of many Irish newspapers in 1922. 54There was, in reality, ample evidence of enthusiasm for the new Constitution.For example, the Freeman's Journal declared the Constitution 'An historic document that gives Ireland her place among the nations of the world'. 55Pro-Treaty newspapers often made allusions to Magna Carta or the 'Great Charter' in greeting the publication of the draft Constitution in June 1922. 56An Saorstát declared the Constitution 'one of the most democratic in the world'. 57 during their period of domination is here set amongst fundamental rights'. 58This was, as mentioned earlier, a publication funded by the provisional government but its conclusions were shared by many pro-Treaty newspapers. 59For example, the Cork Examiner spoke of a 'Reward of centuries of struggle' 60 and concluded: The Irish Constitution may be said to symbolise the liberty for which the country has struggled and waited since the Union.… Its scope is sufficiently embracing to secure not only the regeneration and prosperity of Ireland, but to enable this country to take her place proudly as a nation in the councils of the world. 61 mentioned earlier, most Irish newspapers in 1922 supported the 1921 Treaty.Nevertheless, the political compromise contained in the Treaty contained features that were unpalatable to many Irish nationalists, such as the parliamentary oath and provisions relating to the British monarchy.Consequently, pro-Treaty newspapers faced the challenge of explaining these unpalatable compromises to their readers while maintaining a positive outlook on the Constitution as a whole.In addition, the reality that the Constitution had been brought into force by parallel statutes passed in Dublin and in London muddied the origins of the document. 62ro-Treaty newspapers were always keen to emphasise the Irish origins of the new Constitution.For example, the Freeman's Journal declared 'the Irish Free State begins its life to-day under a Constitution of Irish manufacture'. 63Éire Óg or Young Ireland, published a political cartoon depicting the Constitution with a seal reading 'déanta i nÉirinn' or 'made in Ireland'. 64The argument that the 1922 Constitution was an exclusively Irish creation was used to support the legitimacy of the State institutions that were formally brought into existence on 6 December 1922. 65ro-Treaty political cartoons concerning the Constitution, which were more numerous than might be expected, tended to focus on the benefits that it offered.The weekly newspaper Young Ireland, a publication founded in 1917 and aimed at a young readership, provided a particularly rich source.For example, the Constitution was depicted as a key that would unlock 'complete national development'. 66Other cartoons celebrated attributes of the Constitution such as the provision of universal suffrage.Young Ireland published a cartoon of a biplane representing the Irish Free State dropping a trail of leaflets reading 'votes for all persons over 21'. 67These cartoons provide visual refutation of subsequent claims that the 1922 Constitution was greeted without enthusiasm at the time it came into force.
The Irish pro-Treaty media was not a monolith in 1922.It was possible to support the 1921 Treaty but retain serious reservations concerning the draft Constitution published in June 1922. 68Those who championed this position argued that the draft Constitution that had returned from the British-Irish negotiations in June 1922 fell short of the full degree of sovereignty offered by the terms of the Treaty.This position was championed by members of the Labour Party and by George Gavan Duffy, one of the Irish signatories of the 1921 Treaty.Their stance was echoed to varying degrees by newspapers such as the Leinster Leader, Meath Chronicle, and the socialist newspaper Voice of Labour. 69The Leinster Leader expressed its disappointment by complaining 'The Constitution is not at all what the people were led to expect'. 70ome pro-Treaty newspapers worried that some of the provisions inserted to satisfy the purported requirements of the Treaty, which the provisional government insisted were merely matters of form, might have more serious consequences than anticipated. 71Concerns over the defence provisions and the Privy Council appeal were evident in several newspapers that supported the Treaty. 72y contrast, the provisions on the representative of the crown and the controversial parliamentary oath that mentioned King George V were rarely causes of significant anxiety within the pro-Treaty press. 73he legal identity of the Irish Free State under the 1922 Constitution also proved to be a divisive topic among pro-Treaty newspapers.Under the 1921 Treaty the new State was to come into existence as a Dominion with its status in key constitutional affairs linked to those of Canada.Opinions remained divided throughout the 1920s as to whether the Dominions could legally be considered sovereign States. 74Textbooks on public international law were reluctant to class any of the Dominions in this category until after the enactment of the Statute of Westminster in 1931. 75any pro-Treaty newspapers did not shy away from the legal identity of the new Irish State as a Dominion as reflected in the provisions of the 1922 Constitution. 76Some commentators in 1922 argued that Dominion status would actually enhance the reality of Irish autonomy as the existing Dominions would, in their own self-interest, be inclined to oppose British attempts to interfere in Irish domestic affairs. 77Other pro-Treaty publications chose to minimise the significance of the identity of the Irish Free State as a Dominion in 1922.For example, the Westmeath Examiner argued that the new Irish Dominion would, in real terms, have as much autonomy as if it were a republic. 78The argument that Dominion status offered a stepping stone to greater sovereignty was also a common feature in many newspapers that supported the Treaty.For example, An Saorstát predicted a future for the Irish State within the 'European comity' in which it would become safe to ignore the United Kingdom. 79Acceptance of Dominion status in 1922 by pro-Treaty newspapers is important in the context of later denials by some Irish legal authorities, including the courts, that the Irish Free State ever really constituted a Dominion.T. Mohr The 'stepping stone' argument expressed by many pro-Treaty publications would prove to be accurate.Many of the legal implications of Dominion status were removed by the constitutional reforms of the 1930s.Although some pro-Treaty newspapers accurately predicted the direction of reform, they did not anticipate the pace of change.The legal reforms of the Statute of Westminster Act 1931, in particular the removal of the supremacy of British imperial statutes over local Dominion statutes that set the foundations for the constitutional reforms of the 1930s, were not anticipated by even the most optimistic sections of the pro-Treaty media in 1922.

VII. The constitution and nationalist opponents of the 1921 treaty
Nationalist opponents of the 1921 Treaty were under-represented but never entirely silenced in the Irish media of 1922.Anti-Treaty publications founded in early 1922 included Poblacht na h-Éireann and The Plain People.These publications circulated freely when the Constitution was published on 16 June 1922 but as seen earlier, the outbreak of civil war had a serious impact on anti-Treaty newspapers.Some continued to circulate in late 1922 such as the southern, Scottish, and special war news editions of Poblacht na h-Éireann together with minor underground publications such as The Fenian, Dublin News and Freedom.In addition, newspapers that supported the Treaty reported the words and actions of prominent opponents of the settlement, such as Éamon de Valera and Erskine Childers.British newspapers that circulated in Ireland occasionally published anti-Treaty bulletins, although even they risked having their circulation blocked in the 26 counties for doing so. 81Left-wing publications such as the communist Workers' Republic, which will be examined at a later stage, provided robust criticism of the 1921 Treaty and the 1922 Constitution throughout the period of civil war.
A small number of local newspapers opposed the Treaty settlement and the 1922 Constitution.As seen earlier, some were supressed, for example the Connachtman which supported anti-Treaty forces in Dublin after the outbreak of civil war and printed a story of Free State soldiers laying down their arms and refusing to fight. 82Others, such as the Waterford News and Donegal Vindicator, took more subtle approaches to propagating anti-Treaty perspectives and continued to publish right through the civil war and beyond.The stance adopted by the Waterford News can be explained by the personal sympathies of its owner Edmund Downey who has been described as 'a great admirer of Éamon de Valera'. 83 Comparative Legal History direct comment on the Constitution of any substance.Instead, it printed commentary and correspondence from other persons criticising the Constitution. 84The Donegal Vindicator openly admitted that its stance on the 1921 Treaty had been influenced by de Valera's rejection of it. 85It was less subtle in its opposition to the Treaty settlement and the 1922 Constitution and had to endure a raid by the Free State army in September 1922. 86This isolated event did not interrupt printing and the Donegal Vindicator continued to circulate for many years to come.
Poblacht na h-Éireann 87 dedicated most of its issue on 22 June 1922 to detailed analysis of the Constitution under the headline 'Abject Surrender'. 88Predictably, this analysis focused almost entirely on the provisions of the Constitution relating to the 1921 Treaty and Dominion status. 89It described the new Constitution by using words such as 'sham', 'deception', 'camouflage', 'humbug', 'shameful' and, most common of all, 'surrender'. 90he emphasis on the 'Imperial Treaty' 91 or the 'Treaty of Surrender' 92 ensured that the legal implications of Dominion status dominated reaction to the Constitution in anti-Treaty newspapers.This ensured that the Constitution was sometimes mentioned with either the words 'Irish' or 'Constitution' placed in inverted commas. 93On other occasions, it was referred to as the 'so-called "Constitution"', 94 the 'enslaving Constitution', 95 the 'faked Constitution', 96 the 'King-pitted Constitution', 97 as a 'British made "Constitution"' 98 or even as 'Churchill's Constitution'.

202
T. Mohr The drafting of the 1922 Constitution was supposed to be top secret.However, it was, in fact, subject to numerous leaks.This ensured that opponents of the Treaty knew that the draft Constitution taken to London was very different to the document that returned. 100These circumstances allowed opponents of the Treaty to declare that the entire 1922 Constitution was a British imposition. 101his perspective was communicated in a cartoon published by the anti-Treaty newspaper The Plain People that depicted the Constitution as a racehorse bearing Arthur Griffith as a jockey wearing union jack colours.Griffith's steed called 'Constitution' bore a crown on its head and, far from being a thoroughbred, was depicted as a knock-kneed donkey. 102nti-Treaty newspapers placed considerable emphasis on the provision that would later become known as the 'Repugnancy Clause', which demanded that the provisions of the 1921 Treaty override all other sources of Irish law including the Constitution itself. 103The existence of this overriding provision was used to deny that the Constitution would really be the basic law of the future Irish State. 104Opponents of the Treaty would also buttress their argument that the Constitution was a foreign imposition by arguing that it had been brought into force by a British statute, thereby ignoring the parallel Irish statute passed by the third Dáil Éireann sitting as a constituent assembly. 105pponents of the Treaty did not recognise the legitimacy of the third Dáil Éireann which, in turn, allowed them to question the legal status of the 1922 Constitution that had been passed by that parliament.This position was based on the argument that the second Dáil Éireann had not been validly dissolved and, therefore, remained in existence.This argument only emerged towards the end of 1922, when it began to appear in anti-Treaty publications, but would have serious longterm consequences. 106This legal argument, popularly known as 'republican legitimism', permitted various iterations of the IRA (Irish Republican Army) to 100 Poblacht na h-Éireann, 22 June 1922, 1, 4. 101  reject the legal status of the 1922 and 1937 Constitutions and the Irish State itself in the decades that followed.
Newspaper analysis reveals that anti-Treaty reaction to the draft Constitution was not a monolith.For example, the Donegal Vindicator can be distinguished from other anti-Treaty newspapers in arguing against boycotting the third Dáil that would, amongst other things, approve the final text of the Constitution. 107t was also unique in considering the results of the 1922 election as providing a democratic mandate for the new Constitution.It wrote 'The people have bowed the knee to English domination' and acknowledged that 'The "democratic" constitution … was before them as they voted'.This newspaper ruefully concluded 'Someday we, or our children, or our children's children will wipe out the record'. 108t is difficult to find much substantive analysis within the anti-Treaty media of the provisions of the Constitution that were not related to the 1921 Treaty or the legal implications of Dominion status.Even on rare occasions in which anti-Treaty newspapers appeared to examine these provisions the commentary was diverted to matters relating to the 1921 Treaty.For example, Poblacht na h-Éireann dismissed the provisions on fundamental rights by concluding: 'There are no fundamental Irish rights in the Constitution.There are fundamental British rights'.No further analysis of the rights provisions was deemed necessary. 109 rare exception to the almost total focus on the provisions related to the Treaty settlement appeared in the final edition of Poblacht na h-Éireann that was published just after the outbreak of civil war.This analysis of the Constitution criticised the provisions on religious freedom for being too permissive and likened the Seanad to the House of Lords.Proposals for 'extern ministers' were condemned as undemocratic.The analysis also argued that the Seanad would have substantial influence over the appointment of judges, a conclusion based on an erroneous interpretation of the text and regretted that the opportunity had not been taken to make the position of chief justice of the Supreme Court an elected office.Only the provisions of Article 11, dealing with the rights of the State over natural resources, won praise with the conclusion that 'in more grammatical language it might easily form an Article in a Republican Constitution'. 110s events transpired, these provisions would be substantially replicated in Article 10 of the 1937 Constitution.
The anti-Treaty media's assessment of the 1922 Constitution was overwhelmingly negative.It was presented as a worse settlement for Ireland than the various proposals for Irish home rule in the late nineteenth and early twentieth

204
T. Mohr centuries and, on occasion, as being more objectionable than the 1921 Treaty itself. 111Anti-Treaty commentators tended to perceive the Constitution as the instrument and symbol of the scrapping of the Irish republic declared during the 1916 rising and confirmed by the first Dáil Éireann in 1919.The Connachtman concluded that the Constitution was an 'unqualified surrender and abandonment of the Nation's rights' and concluded that it would constitute 'a voluntary acceptance and acknowledgment of a status of slavery by the Irish people'. 112The depth and persistence of anti-Treaty opposition would be an enduring feature of the history of the Constitution of the Irish Free State and would contribute to its replacement by the current Constitution of Ireland.Yet even the most inveterate opponent of the 1922 Constitution did not predict its demise just 15 years in the future.

VIII. Southern unionist reaction
In 1922 several traditionally unionist newspapers that circulated south of the Irish border appealed to their readers not to abandon the territory of the future Irish Free State. 113Nevertheless, years of conflict and emigration had taken its toll on southern Protestants, many of whom identified as unionists.The result was a decline in southern unionist newspapers in the early twentieth century.
Examples include the Kerry Evening Post which ceased publishing in 1917 and the Dublin Daily Express, which had no connection to the London newspaper bearing the same name, which ceased publishing in 1921.The Cork Constitution never recovered from the destruction of its printing facilities by the IRA during the civil war.Alan McCarthy argues that the subsequent reduction of the unionist voice led to 'a slightly monochromatic tinge to the mainstream media'. 114Other southern unionist newspapers survived by moderating and ultimately abandoning their traditionally unionist stance.These included the Dublin Evening Mail, the Limerick Chronicle, the Waterford Standard and the Church of Ireland Gazette. 115he most important of the southern unionist newspapers that circulated in 1922 was the Irish Times.This newspaper, in common with the other surviving unionist publications, supported the 1921 Treaty and resigned itself to the birth of the Irish Free

Comparative Legal History
State.In early 1922 the Irish Times, urged its readers to embrace the emerging Irish State and to become loyal citizens. 116The Church of Ireland Gazette admitted its traditional unionist stance but now declared its loyalty to the future Irish Free State. 117In 1922 John Gregg, the Church of Ireland (Anglican) archbishop of Dublin, advised his co-religionists that 'The new constitution will claim our allegiance with the same solemn authority as the one that is now being constitutionally annulled'. 118outhern unionist publications were among the most enthusiastic supporters of the Irish Free State Constitution from the time of its first appearance in draft form in June 1922.The Irish Times greeted the publication of the draft document by declaring 'this Constitution is a magnificent charter of liberty'. 119It added that 'Southern loyalists are ready to help to make the Constitution an instrument of national peace, unity and progress'. 120Southern unionist publications outside Dublin, such as the Cork Constitution and the Limerick Chronicle, also described the Constitution as a 'charter of liberty'. 121The Cork Constitution even attempted to speak for the city in which it circulated when it wrote 'So far as public opinion in the city goes there can be no doubt the man in the street is pleased with the new Constitution'. 122he praise showered on the Constitution by southern unionist publications was comparable to the pro-Treaty nationalist media.Both saw the Constitution as a source of stability and material progress.Yet there was a difference.Southern unionist newspapers, in contrast to nationalist pro-Treaty publications, were not at all perturbed by the references to the King and other institutions common to the Dominions that appeared in the text.The Irish Times even stressed that the Irish Free State had achieved the maximum level of legal autonomy that could be obtained inside the confines of the British Empire within which it had to remain. 123Despite differing perspectives, unionist newspapers fully shared the hopes of pro-Treaty nationalist newspapers that the Constitution would provide a much-desired return to order and stability.
The response of southern unionist publications to the more novel democratic features of the Constitution was, in common with pro-Treaty nationalist newspapers, a mixed one.The Irish Times concluded that although some of these novel features, for example the provisions on direct democracy, were 'admirable', others were of 'doubtful utility' while a few seemed 'freakish and even dangerous'. 124The Church of Ireland Gazette staunchly opposed the provisions relating to extern ministers who would not be elected members of the Oireachtas. 125outhern unionist newspapers valued institutions such as the proportional representation voting system and the Seanad which were obvious concessions to the minority community.The disproportionate number of Protestants appointed to the Seanad was also welcomed by these newspapers.For example, the Waterford Standard argued that this gesture was 'positive proof to the minority that they are still wanted in this country and that their services and experiences are an asset to the nation'. 126However not all newspapers that traditionally identified with southern unionism were satisfied with the institution of the Seanad with some expressing dismay at the obvious weakness of this upper house of the Oireachtas. 127outhern unionist newspapers also valued university representation in the Oireachtas.They likewise praised the contribution of the representatives of Trinity College Dublin, then a bastion of the Protestant community, in the proceedings of the constituent assembly that fixed the final wording of the 1922 Constitution. 128Special representation became more significant when the constituent assembly moved the provisions on university representation from the Seanad to Dáil Éireann, the far more powerful lower house of the Oireachtas.Southern unionist publications were also staunch supporters of the appeal from the Irish courts to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.The Privy Council appeal was widely perceived by the southern unionist media as a guarantee against possible discrimination by future Irish governments and institutions.Claims made by Irish governments in the late 1920s and early 1930s that southern Protestants did not value the appeal were always at variance with the position of traditionally unionist newspapers alongside other prominent institutions such as Trinity College Dublin and the Church of Ireland. 129he provisions of Article 8 of the Constitution guaranteed 'Freedom of conscience and the free profession and practice of religion'.While this and other provisions of the Constitution aimed at minority communities were valued, southern unionist media newspapers told their subscribers not to place excessive reliance on them.In 1922 the Irish Times warned its readers: The litera scripta of the most water-tight Constitution will not protect them if it is not honoured in the true spirit of good-will.The existence of that spirit alone will give reality to the clauses of the Constitution which guarantee religious and other liberties to all classes and creeds in Ireland. 130 This advice was repeated once again in 1930 by James Douglas, a Quaker sitting in the Seanad and himself one of the drafters of the 1922 Constitution, who warned his fellow non-Catholics in 1930 'If the majority cannot be trusted, no constitutional provision however carefully worded … will be of any avail whatever'. 131he sense of unease as to the longevity of the special constitutional concessions granted to the southern minority proved to be justified.Within 15 years most of them were gone.The university seats in the Dáil, the Privy Council appeal and the Seanad would be abolished in the constitutional amendments of the 1930s.Only a modified version of the provisions on freedom of religion, contained in Article 44 of the 1937 Constitution, along with the proportional representation voting system would remain after the demise of the 1922 Constitution.

IX. Partition and nationalist reaction in northern ireland
The relationship between partition and the 1922 Constitution is complicated by the reality that the division of the island of Ireland preceded the birth of the Irish Free State.The Government of Ireland Act was enacted on 23 December 1920 and came into force on 3 May 1921.The Treaty offered the parliament of Northern Ireland the choice after 6 December 1922 between opting for the United Kingdom under the Government of Ireland Act or for the Irish Free State under the 1922 Constitution.Article 44 of the Constitution appeared to facilitate the latter option when it declared that 'The Oireachtas may create subordinate legislatures with such powers as may be decided by law'.However most expected the parliament of Northern Ireland to choose the former option which, under the provisions of the 1921 Treaty, ensured that a boundary commission would be invoked to redraw the border 'in accordance with the wishes of the inhabitants, so far as may be compatible with economic and geographic conditions'. 132The Irish border was already very real in 1922 but had no finality attached to it.
Despite expectations that the Belfast parliament would choose the United Kingdom, some nationalist newspapers, north and south of the border, did express hopes that it might actually opt for the Irish Free State to avoid a reduction of the territory of Northern Ireland by the anticipated boundary commission. 133The Tuam Herald dismissed the Belfast parliament as an 'egregious failure' and encouraged it to 'avail itself of the superior advantages of the new charter, a far more comprehensive and effective measure than they have at present'.It encouraged acceptance of the Irish Free State Constitution and, in particular, 'the enabling provisions of this great charter, so full of possibilities of good' to allow the emergence of 'a truly National Parliament, one for all Ireland as it must be sooner or later'. 134Young Ireland published a cartoon in which a man, representing the 'six counties', was attempting to fix the broken-down car of his 'subordinate parliament'.He was offered a lift by a driver of a car representing the Irish Free State sitting close to a sign pointing the way to 'prosperity. 135Yet even Young Ireland, an unusually optimistic nationalist publication, could not ignore the choice that most people expected would be made.
The absence of detail in both the 1921 Treaty and in the 1922 Constitution as to how a subordinate parliament in Belfast might work within the wider framework of the Irish Free State underlined the dominant expectation as to which choice would finally be made in 1922.This was reflected in Young Ireland which published a cartoon depicting the 'six counties ostrich' with its head in the sand while the sun of the Irish Free State rose on the horizon. 136The Northern parliament formally opted for the United Kingdom on 7 December 1922.The Irish News declared 'no one will feel surprised by the decisionthough many will regret it'. 137lthough the continuation of partition after the Constitution came into force was entirely predictable, there was a widespread expectation among nationalist media, north and south of the border, that partition would not last long. 138ome even believed that the Constitution would have a role in securing unification.The Cork Examiner argued 'the publication of the Irish Constitution, which typifies the sovereign power of the Irish State, must be regarded as the herald of the larger unity which ultimately is inevitable'.The Irish News, a daily newspaper based in Belfast, was the leading northern nationalist newspaper in the 1920s.However identification of the northern nationalist media in the 1920s is complicated by the reality that many local newspapers in this period straddled the border.This position is further complicated by the expectation that the existing border would move in many regions.The expectation that partition would not last long, as mentioned earlier, might help explain why nationalist publications that circulated partly or entirely in Northern Ireland devoted extensive attention to the Constitution of the Irish Free State in 1922.The Irish News, concluded that the document was 'the Constitution of a free nation' and 'the Charter of Constitutional Liberty'. 140Soon after the Constitution came into force a number of northern nationalist papers printed a common editorial celebrating 'the opening of a new era and the restoration of National liberty, for which successive generations of Irishmen have fought and struggled for nearly 750 years'. 141This common editorial stressed that the Constitution had been 'framed by Irishmen themselves' and that it ensured that 'the people have full control of their own national and economic affairs free and unfettered by outside interference'.It concluded 'We enter on an epoch fraught with great possibilities for the future'. 142There was little indication here or elsewhere within the northern nationalist media of any perception that the new Irish State and its Constitution had little to do with their community.
The overall stance of most northern nationalist newspapers on the 1922 Constitution had much in common with their southern counterparts.There was little sympathy for the stance adopted by de Valera and anti-Treaty opposition towards the Constitution. 143The debates of the third Dáil, sitting as a constituent assembly, were followed closely and were favourably contrasted with the debates of the preceding second Dáil. 144The more innovatory aspects of the Constitution were analysed with similar degrees of enthusiasm or scepticism as in nationalist newspapers south of the border.For example, the provisions for direct democracy received favourable coverage from the Derry People and Donegal News. 145On the other hand, some northern nationalist papers expressed reservations concerning the provisions on judicial review and extern ministers. 146orthern nationalist newspapers highlighted the provisions of the 1922 Constitution designed to give a voice to southern Protestants and protect their rights.The obvious purpose was to contrast these provisions with the treatment of the minority community in Northern Ireland.Northern nationalist newspapers contrasted the 1922 Constitution's provisions on the Seanad and the proportional representation voting system with allegations that the Belfast government had a policy of excluding northern Catholics. 147They protested the abolition of proportional representation in local government elections in Northern Ireland in 1922.This proved to be a forerunner of the abolition of this system in elections for the Belfast parliament in 1929. 148The Ulster Herald noted 'In the Free State, on the other hand, Proportional Representation has been retained in the interest of minority representation'. 149edia analysis from 1922 provides a rare example of interaction by the two minority communities separated by the Irish border.Northern nationalist newspapers had little sympathy for the complaints of some southern unionists that the provisions of the 1922 Constitution aimed at their community were insufficient.The Irish News condemned representatives of the southern minority for trying 'to claim more than they can expect to get' and insisted that they had 'no genuine cause for apprehension'. 150In 1922 this newspaper referred to southern unionists by placing the term in inverted commas or by referring to them as 'ex-Unionists'. 151Newspapers aimed at southern Protestants occasionally contrasted the decision of their community to become loyal citizens of the Irish Free State and engage with its institutions with the path taken by northern Catholics which, at least initially, was one of boycott and non-engagement with the institutions of Northern Ireland. 152Southern Protestant newspapers never referred to the northern minority as 'ex-Nationalists'.
Northern nationalist newspapers were prepared to accept a delay in detailed consideration of the border until the Irish Free State and its Constitution were safely established. 153Some clearly expected that the boundary commission would be convoked very soon after the Constitution came into force in 1922. 154As events transpired, the civil war and its aftermath delayed this event until 1924.In 1922 northern nationalist newspapers printed the declaration of the Irish leader WT Cosgrave, 'We must not, cannot, forget our solemn pledges to the great sections of the population in the Six Counties who desire to be included in the Free State'. 155They also noted the claim of Kevin O'Higgins, another prominent member of the provisional government, that 'This Constitution had been framed for all-Ireland'. 156In 1922 northern nationalist newspapers appeared confident that the Constitution of the Irish Free State could and would form the basic law of a united Ireland.These hopes proved to be in vain when the boundary commission collapsed in 1925 leaving the border unchanged, an outcome that had not been widely anticipated by nationalist publications north or south of the border in 1922.The response of this branch of the Irish media in 1922 to the new Constitution makes clear that they regarded it as an instrument that would facilitate unification.There is little evidence of any anticipation of the transience of the 1922 Constitution, which would never apply to Northern Ireland, or the longevity of the partitioning of the island.

X. Unionist reaction in northern ireland
The other community most directly affected by the partitioning of the island were northern unionists.Their media remained interested and engaged with events occurring south of the border, including the emergence of the 1922 Constitution.These newspapers were among the most pessimistic as to the future of this legal instrument.This pessimism extended to the provisions of the Constitution most influenced by the settlement imposed by the 1921 Treaty.The purported identity of the Irish Free State, as the latest addition to the Dominions of the British Empire, was the subject of considerable scepticism.
Northern unionist newspapers never had any doubt as to the choice that the Belfast parliament would make between the United Kingdom and the Irish Free State in December 1922. 157The Belfast Telegraph rejected all calls for Northern Ireland to join the 'seething cauldron' of the Irish Free State 158 and 153 For example Irish News, 16 June 1922, 4. 154  asked 'why should Ulster go under the Southern Constitution and be called upon to pay for the havoc done by the [anti-Treaty] Irregulars?'. 159hese circumstances did not mean that northern unionist newspapers were uninterested in events south of the border.The condition and future of the southern Protestant community was a subject of some concern.The Belfast News Letter noted, soon after the publication of the draft Constitution in June 1922, the inclusion of provisions guaranteeing religious rights but concluded that everything depended on their interpretation and by the efforts made by future Irish governments to protect southern Protestants.It added 'They are receiving no protection at present, though they are under the British Constitution'. 160Northern unionist newspapers did not predict a happy future for southern Protestants.The Belfast Telegraph declared 'The outlook before the minority in the Free State is truly dark'. 161The Belfast News Letter went further in predicting that 'Their position will be made so uncomfortable that those of them who can do so will leave the country'. 162orthern unionist newspapers were interested in the future Constitution of the Irish Free State in its own right and maintained a generally favourable impression of the Constitution as a legal document.Indeed, newspaper analysis suggests that the 1922 Constitution was far more suited to being a Constitution for the whole island than its successor in 1937 which openly claimed to be an all-Ireland Constitution. 163Northern unionist newspapers recognised that the 1922 Constitution had been drafted 'substantially on Dominion lines' and welcomed the insertion of the Repugnancy Clause that appeared to guarantee interpretation in accordance with the terms of the Treaty. 164These newspapers stressed that these features of the text had obviously been inserted at the insistence of Downing Street. 165orthern unionist newspapers also examined the features of the Constitution that did not relate to the Treaty settlement such as the provisions for extern ministers, the Seanad, the provisions on referendums, the power of initiative, the provisions on participation in future wars, the Irish language, the provisions on citizenship and the provisions on religious rights. 166The political colossus of Irish unionism, Edward Carson, expressed hopes that the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State would succeed although he was convinced that too high a price had already been paid for it. 167he real source of the hostility of northern unionist newspapers centred on the Irish Free State itself, as an entity that had seceded from the United Kingdom, rather than on any complaints concerning the text of the 1922 Constitution.In fact, their principal objection to the Constitution, as a legal document, was a firm conviction that it would not long survive, at least not in its existing format. 168Northern unionist newspapers were convinced that the embryonic Irish Free State was only limited by 'sham pieces of paper' and was already 'practically a Republic'. 169When the Northern Whig referred to the Constitution as 'A Vague Constitution' it made clear that it was referring to the provisions derived from the 1921 Treaty and displayed considerable scepticism as to whether they would ever really function. 170The Northern Whig also argued thateven if economic, geographical and strategic differences between distant Canada, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand and the embryonic Irish Free State were discountedthe latter could not be considered a Dominion in terms of 'the "sentimental" bond'. 171Nevertheless, this newspaper made clear that North-South relations could be improved by means of wider Commonwealth cooperation. 172his possibility was seen as dependent on the survival of constitutional provisions based on the 1921 Treaty.The Northern Whig argued 'There can be unity of purpose between the North and the South, if the South accepts the treaty as permanently defining its status as a member of the Empire, not as a half-way house to independence'. 173If, as the Northern Whig feared, the Irish Free State chose to marginalise Commonwealth relations, all such progress would be retarded. 174he Northern Whig remained pessimistic as it concluded that the provisional government in Dublin had merely put the objective of a republic into 'cold storage' and that its members 'do not even pretend to be reconciled to the inclusion of the Free State in the British Empire'. 175he Belfast News Letter was prepared to accept the sincerity of WT Cosgrave's wish for partnership within the Commonwealth but insisted that most of his followers did not share these values. 176Northern unionist newspapers also expressed scepticism as to the will and ability of nationalist supporters of the 1921 Treaty to resist the demands of opponents of the settlement.The Northern Whig concluded 'However admirable in theory some of the provisions of the Constitution may be, the most profoundly significant fact in relation to it is that, like the treaty, it came into being as the result of a surrender to assassins'. 177It added that nationalist supporters of the Treaty, which included the Irish provisional government, 'are for the most part handicapped by their want of any real faith in those articles of the Constitution which will be the subject of the fiercest controversy'. 178he Belfast News Letter accused the new government in Dublin of suffering from a dual personality disorder with one hand claiming to be a loyal part of the Empire while the other hand sought concessions that would enable the creation of a future Irish republic. 179Northern unionist newspapers predicted that the new State would go to some effort to degrade the ability of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council to interpret the Constitution and some even predicted the abolition of the Irish appeal to this court in the not too distant future. 180The Belfast News Letter concluded that more people than will openly admit it believe that 'after a few years under the Irish Constitution Ireland may tail off into a declaration of independence'. 181hese predictions would prove all too accurate.The replacement of the Free State Constitution in 1937 was followed by a declaration that the Irish State would constitute a republic in 1949. 182The original text of the 1937 Constitution would also include a claim to the territory of Northern Ireland.This claim was only withdrawn in 1999 following the conclusion of Belfast or Good Friday Agreement one year earlier. 183

XI. Catholic newspapers and the constitution
The Catholic Church and its associated newspapers showed unstinting support for the enactment of the 1922 Constitution.They associated the document with the achievement of statehood and hopes for a return to peace and stability after years of conflict.The Irish Catholic newspaper was one of the Irish newspapers most inclined to accept the identity of the Irish Free State as a Dominion under the Treaty and Constitution. 184The main challenge identified by this section of the Irish media was the absence of any reference to God in the draft versions of the Constitution.This was an omission that it was determined to rectify.
The Irish Catholic concluded that the 1922 Constitution was 'Ireland's great Charter of Freedom'. 185A headline in the Catholic Register, a newspaper aimed at the Irish diaspora in Canada, referred to the 1922 Constitution as a 'Monument to Labor and Patriotism of Michael Collins and Arthur Griffith and Greatest Triumph Since Battle of Kinsale'. 186The Catholic bishop of Cork, Daniel Cohalan, concluded 'We will have got a constitution, and with it a measure of freedom and independence such as the most sanguinenot even those who are now striving to wreck itever hoped for.It is not perfect, but it is a great measure of freedom'. 187atholic newspapers recognised the limitations of the Treaty settlement that had had such a powerful impact on the final text of the 1922 Constitution.Father John Augustine Ryan, a priest from Minnesota of Irish descent, provided a detailed assessment of the new Constitution for Catholic media outlets that was more critical than that provided by other Catholic commentators.Ryan taught at the Catholic University of America and was a leading authority on moral theology and its application in the field of social justice.His analysis of the draft Constitution was serialised and published in several Catholic newspapers in late 1922. 188Ryan concluded that the draft Constitution was 'not perfect' and was a mix of positive and negative features. 189He condemned the provisions designed to protect the Treaty settlement, including the Repugnancy Clause, powers of veto over Irish legislation and the appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.Ryan blamed the inclusion of these provisions on the conclusion of the 1922 Collins-de Valera electoral pact which, he felt, had raised unnecessary British suspicions and so led them to insist on the inclusion of these provisions. 190et he would conclude by dismissing these provisions as 'relatively insignificant limitations'. 191Ryan found much to praise in the draft Constitution including the provision of free elementary education, the safeguarding of natural resources and the proportional representation electoral system. 192These three features would all be replicated in the text of the future 1937 Constitution. 193irect clerical support for the 1922 Constitution was supplemented by indirect support in the form of appeals for respect for the institution of law and for the authority of the new State.On 10 October 1922 the Irish bishops issued a pastoral letter that made clear that those who took up arms against the authority of the provisional government and the embryonic State should face the penalty of excommunication. 194The Catholic Register added 'If they are deaf to the law of man, it may be that they will listen to and obey the law of God'.Pope Pius XI was not consulted in the drafting of the 1922 Constitution, as he would be in relation to the 1937 Constitution, but he did issue a message in the days after it came into force that stressed the merits of advancing Irish interests by non-violent means, 'I would say to the people of Ireland to try to get their rights by peaceful means and please God everything they want will come to them in time'. 195n late 1922 several Catholic figures, including members of the hierarchy, campaigned behind the scenes to secure a reference to God in the text of the secular draft Constitution.Dennis Hallinan, bishop of Limerick, and Edward Mulhern, bishop of Dromore, lobbied the provisional government to include such a reference. 196Alfred O'Rahilly, professor of mathematical physics at University College Cork and a member of the committee charged with producing early constitutional drafts, also threw his weight behind this effort. 197The campaign became a public one when the issue was raised in a series of letters to the Irish Catholic.A letter from a concerned parish priest declared 'It is the duty of our Government to prevent us having a Godless Constitution for a Christian land'. 198Another correspondent added 'Surely Ireland -Catholic Irelandwill never permit that in the first great act of her freedom she shall, as it were, officially turn her back on God'. 199The Irish Catholic itself referred to the omission as 'a serious blot' and a 'scandal'. 200It concluded that there was still time to repair the omission and 'the Catholic people of Ireland will now assuredly expect the Government to take steps towards that end without further delay'. 201n 11 October 1922, the provisional government moved to add a preamble to the Constituent Act that began with the words 'Dáil Éireann sitting as a Constituent Assembly in this Provisional Parliament, acknowledging that all lawful authority comes from God to the people'. 202This amendment, which was accepted by the constituent assembly, satisfied most Catholic commentators including John Augustine Ryan and Patrick J Fogarty, editor of the Irish Catholic. 203The latter concluded that the insertion of a reference to God 'gives, it may be confidently hoped, Ireland's claim to that Divine assistance in her difficulties and dangers, present and to come, without which effort to surmount them might well be regarded as hopeless'. 204The reference to God that appeared in the preamble of the Constituent Act remained the only obvious expression of religious principles.Otherwise, the 1922 Constitution, which received substantial praise and support from Catholic media, was an entirely secular document.
Although the reference to God appeared wholly tokenistic it would have a significant influence on Irish caselaw in the years that followed. 205It would be used in a dissenting judgment in the 1934 case of State (Ryan) v Lennon to support an argument that provisions of Irish law could be rendered null and void if found to contravene basic principles of natural law. 206There is little evidence that any such consequences were anticipated by contemporary media when the reference to God was inserted in late 1922.Nevertheless, the unsuccessful attempt to pull natural law into the Constitution in the 1930s was an important sign of the revival of this school of jurisprudence in Ireland.The succeeding 1937 Constitution would be an overtly religious document filled with provisions inspired by naturalist thought. 207

XII. Socialist and communist perceptions of the constitution
The position of publications associated with the Irish Labour Party can be contrasted with the main communist publication, Workers' Republic.The former subjected the Constitution to robust, though generally constructive, criticism while the latter rejected the document on the apparent basis of classical Marxist theory.
The number of socialist newspapers was not large in 1920s Ireland.However some regional newspapers were prepared to publish socialist perspectives.For example, the position of Labour electoral candidates towards the draft Constitution was reported in several regional newspapers.This included a declaration on the need to maintain a close watch on the document 'to prevent the Constitution being made the instrument of legal oppression and class ascendency, to guard the rights of the people against the greed of the parasites'. 208he Voice of Labour, Official Organ of the ITGWU (Irish Transport and General Workers' Union), reflected many of the concerns of the Labour Party that won 17 seats out of 128 in the 1922 election and played an active role in the debates of the constituent assembly.This party had underestimated its own level of support as it had only put forward 18 electoral candidates.The Labour Party accepted the 1921 Treaty, but this did not result in unquestioning support for the provisions of the draft Constitution as published in the newspapers in June 1922.In fact, the Labour Party questioned the need for written Constitution in 1922, a position that was rejected by the provisional government. 209he Voice of Labour bitterly criticised the confidential preview of the draft Constitution provided to the British government.It concluded that the result was that 'all the humbug of monarchy and royalty are written all over the draft' with 'lip-service paid to the people'. 210This paper was particularly hostile to the Repugnancy Clause which placed the Constitution in a subservient position to the 1921 Treaty.The Voice of Labour concluded that 'The charter of Irish liberty ought to be superior to every Treaty'. 211This paper was also deeply critical of the stance adopted by the provisional government that prevented the amendment of certain 'vital clauses' of the draft Constitution that were deemed essential in adhering to the Treaty settlement. 212ne headline read 'Swallowing England's Constitution -No free hand for the Dáil on vital clauses'. 213This newspaper also reflected the Labour Party's concerns at the institution of judicial review which it saw as a 'dangerous feature' of the Constitution. 214This stance appears to have been based on fears that conservative judges might strike down legislation concerning labour conditions and trade unions. 215he Workers' Republic, a communist newspaper officially associated with the Socialist Party of Ireland, provided a classical Marxist perspective on the 1922 Constitution.It saw the Constitution almost exclusively through the eyes of class struggle.This newspaper insisted that Michael Collins and Arthur Griffith had accepted the Treaty for class reasons as 'cultured hangers-on' to the dominant bourgeois class. 216It was also heavily critical of the preview of the draft Constitution in London 'where it was thoroughly revised and harmonised with imperial needs'. 217n some occasions the Workers' Republic adopted a mocking tone towards 'The Jolly Old Constichooshun' and declared that its 'supreme point' was the offer of a holiday every four years, a consequence of the provision that election days would be public holidays. 218It concluded that 'this constitution is a fainthearted mixture of American [USA] and Swiss bourgeois democracy encased in the stringent form of British imperialism'. 219Workers' Republic criticised the decision of the moderate Labour Party to work with the institutions created by the Constitution.This newspaper heaped particular scorn on Labour's decision to take the controversial parliamentary oath and also its willingness to enter the Seanad, which was presented as an institution of class privilege. 220Workers' Republic offered a scathing conclusion on the 1922 Constitution, 'There is not a single State (and the Irish Free State will prove no exception), however democratic, which does not contain loopholes or limiting clauses in its constitution, which guarantees the bourgeoisie the legal possibility of dispatching troops against the workers'. 221etermined criticism from the far left did not deter the Labour Party from maintaining a policy of critical engagement with the 1922 Constitution throughout its lifetime.Judicial review would experience a difficult beginning under the 1922 Constitution. 222However fears that this constitutional innovation would be used to target welfare legislation and the trade union movement never materialised.Judicial review was retained under the 1937 Constitution and would eventually emerge as one of the more successful constitutional innovations envisaged in 1922. 223

XIII. Prospects for the future of the new constitution in 1922
Although some of the reaction to the new Constitution in 1922 was rooted in Irish history, most media commentary focussed on the future.A question of obvious interest was whether the new Constitution would last.Opponents of the 1921 Treaty described it as a 'sham Constitution' and insisted that it was an illegal instrument. 224Some predicted in June 1922 that the draft Constitution would never pass into law. 225When that prediction was confounded, anti-Treaty media predicted that the new Constitution would never be allowed to function. 226his prediction became less sustainable when it became more and more obvious that the new State would survive the civil war.
Not all supporters of the 1921 Treaty were entirely satisfied with the Constitution and some clearly hoped that major amendments would occur in the future.Yet few observers in 1922 predicted the eventual replacement of the Constitution of the Irish Free State.Those exceptional sources that did consider the possibility of replacement relegated it to a distant future.For example, An Saorstát, funded by the provisional government, concluded that 'the present generation of Irishmen and women have accepted this Constitution, and if the next generation want to change it, let them'. 227The Meath Chronicle, which, as seen earlier, was a pro-Treaty newspaper that had serious reservations concerning the 1922 Constitution, also foresaw the potential for change in a distant future.It noted that constitutions have an 'everlasting potency' and apply for 'all future generations'. 228However it added that 'A constitution may be subverted by a revolution'. 229It argued that such an opportunity might come 'in England's hour of greatest difficulty' which it predicted would occur through involvement in a future war. 230Northern unionist newspapers often predicted that the Treaty settlement would not last but they were not always clear as to whether this would require a new Constitution. 231he great majority of the Irish media in 1922 appeared convinced that the Constitution of the Irish Free State would last even if questions remained as to the longevity of settlement contained in the 1921 Treaty.For example, the Irish Times stressed the need for care in drafting the Constitution for the sake of future generations as it should be assumed that 'the Irish people will live for a long time in the house which it is now a-building'. 232The Limerick Chronicle welcomed a 'momentous measure, which dominates the future of this country'. 233The Dublin Evening Mail considered the publication of the draft Constitution an event of the 'greatest magnitude, and of the greatest significance to the future of the Nation'. 234The Evening Herald concluded that 'the Constitution has been framed on wise and statesmanlike lines' and predicted 'If it is worked in the proper spirit Ireland is bound to become one of the freest and best governed countries in the world'. 235any pro-Treaty newspapers dismissed the limits of 1921 Treaty settlement and Dominion status and concluded that the Irish Free State would, in essence, be a sovereign State. 236They tended to focus on the sovereignty that the new Constitution would give rather than on any possible limitations. 237The Constitution was not merely a symbol of liberty for supporters of the Treaty but also encapsulated their hopes for the future.An Saorstát declared 'it is the duty of a constitution not only to enshrine but to make possible the realisation of the nation's hopes'. 238In the short-term this meant a return to law, order and stability.In the longer term it was hoped that the sovereignty and stability provided by the Constitution might provide the conditions necessary for internal unity within the Irish Free State that would also facilitate the ending of partition. 239he 1922 Constitution proved unable to fulfil either of these objectives which were, with the benefit of hindsight, unattainable in the context of the 1920s and 1930s.
The Irish Times, as the most important newspaper of the southern Protestant minority, hoped that the constitutional provisions aimed at that community would be long-lived.These included the institutions of the Seanad and proportional representation.This newspaper was convinced that these and other concessions to the minority community were important 'as proofs of the new spirit which will prevail in the new Ireland'. 240It also argued that their removal in the future would not just alienate the minority but also be disrespectful to the memory of Arthur Griffith, the Irish statesman who had first offered these constitutional provisions. 241As seen earlier, the obvious sense of doubt and unease concerning the survival of most of these provisions proved to be justified.
The democratic nature of the Constitution was a point of considerable pride in 1922. 242The Cork Examiner declared the Constitution was 'democratic in essence and in spirit, the advantages it [will] confer on the present generation and must confer on posterity, are incalculable'. 243This newspaper boasted that 'Undoubtedly it is in advance of the British Constitution'. 244Some newspapers went even further.The government-funded An Saorstát concluded 'Not only is our Constitution democratic, but it is among the most democratic of Constitutions that the world knows to-day'. 245Other newspapers, not in receipt of government funding, went further still and declared that the 1922 Constitution was the 'most democratic constitution that is to be found in the world to-day'. 246This level of hubris was exceptional.Nevertheless, the bulk of the Irish media was confident that the new Irish State, under the 1922 Constitution, would remain a robust democracy far into the future.The Cork Examiner even hoped that the 'Irish Free State will be a synonym for triumphant democracy amongst the nations of the world'. 247ssociations between the Constitution and a more prosperous future were very common in 1922 and were, once again, based on hopes of a return to stability after years of conflict culminating with a bitter civil war. 248The Irish Independent declared 'The business man sees in the Constitution the material for the establishment of a Government free enough, and broad enough, to work out a great future for Ireland'.The Cork Examiner concluded 'Its scope is sufficiently embracing to secure not only the regeneration and prosperity of Ireland, but to enable this country to take her place proudly as a nation in the councils of the world'.The Catholic media quoted Cardinal Michael Logue, the leading figure in the Irish Catholic Church, when he declared 'By the new Constitution the way is left open to future progress and prosperity'. 249The Waterford Standard declared that the stability and security brought by the Constitution would be essential for 'economic life and for the 'material and national welfare of the common people'. 250ontemporary political cartoons also made the connection between the Constitution and hopes for a more prosperous future. 251For example, a cartoon in Young Ireland depicted the Constitution as a tree warmed by a sun of 'freedom and democracy' and bearing multiple fruit including 'security', 'law', 'stability', 'progress', 'industry', 'development' and 'Irish ideals'. 252Another cartoon showed the Constitution as a castle bearing a tricolour flag of 'stability', 'progress' and 'security'. 253Even these optimistic illustrations could not compete with the high hopes expressed by the Cork Examiner.It concluded 'A free Ireland, if disposed to avail to the full of the legislative powers entrusted to its elected representatives, should, under the Irish Constitution, reach the highest planes in industry, commerce, agriculture, science and art, and become a model nation in which peace, industry, and progress will help create a Golden Age'. 254

XIV. Conclusion
So much of the scholarship on the 1922 Constitution is based on perceptions of that document that were put down on paper from the 1930s onwards.These accounts were written with the benefit of hindsight that was not available in 1922.This has resulted in a tendency to downplay the significance of provisions demanded by the 1921 Treaty that made clear that the State was to be a constitutional monarchy and member of the Commonwealth. 255Some commentators focus on apparent errors made in the drafting of the Constitution and, in particular, provisions relating to human rights, judicial review and amendment of the Constitution. 256The 1922 Constitution is also presented as a victim of the Irish civil war that is seen as undermining some of its more experimental features. 257In these circumstances the replacement of the Free State Constitution might appear inevitable and something that might have been easily foreseen by people living in 1922.One commentator concludes that 'The Free State Constitution was always going to be a stepping stone.Few people-or at least few people South of the border-were enthused by it'. 258ewspaper analysis from 1922 confirms that difficulties with some of the provisions of the Constitution, that emerged in the late 1920s and early 1930s, were not obvious to contemporary observers who lacked the blessings of hindsight.The allegation that few were enthused by the new Constitution in 1922 is easily refuted by analysis of contemporary media.This is evident in contemporary political cartoons and in editorials celebrating the democratic attributes of the Constitution.However it is possible that the strength of emotion that greeted the 1922 Constitution was less attributable to its provisions than for what it represented.The Constitution represented hopes for a better future for supporters of the 1921 Treaty and a sense of betrayal for opponents of the settlement.Northern nationalists did not feel themselves excluded from the ambit of the new Constitution and shared the hopes that many of their southern counterparts placed in it.These hopes, together with their apparent confidence as to the certainty of restoring Irish unity, would prove to be misplaced.Unionist media, north and south of the border, greeted the new Constitution with obvious feelings of anxiety.Yet elements of optimism can be detected in the southern unionist media that were entirely absent from its northern equivalent.
The causes of the replacement of the 1922 Constitution with the Irish Constitution of 1937 are disputed among historians and, in any case, lie beyond the scope of this article. 259The 1937 Constitution was also a divisive document as evident by the plebiscite that preceded its coming into force.This saw 685,105 votes in favour of the 1937 Constitution with 526,945 against and an extraordinary 134,157 spoiled votes.Nevertheless, the circumstances behind the enactment of the 1937 Constitution, controversial as they were, cannot in any way be compared to the mix and strength of emotions that greeted its predecessor. 260Few constitutions in world history were enacted with such contrasts of hope, hostility, ambition, and anxiety that accompanied the origins of the Irish Constitution of 1922.Contemporary newspapers represent one of the most significant historical sources in fully revealing this reality.
The 1922 Constitution did not usher in any kind of 'Golden Age' as predicted by the Cork Examiner and its lifespan was little over 15 years. 261Yet many of its core provisions survive intact or slightly amended in the Irish Constitution of 1937.Many of the institutions created by the 1922 Constitution also live on in modified form.These include the Oireachtas, the High Court, the Supreme Court, and the State itself.In addition, hopes for a democratic future for the Irish State, a cause of considerable pride and expectation in 1922, proved not to be in vain.

Disclosure Statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on contributor
Thomas Mohr is an associate professor at the School of Law, University College Dublin.He is vice president of the Irish Legal History Society and book review editor of the Irish Jurist, Ireland's oldest law journal.His publications on Irish legal history range from medieval Gaelic law to the law of the independent Irish state in the 20th century.His latest books are "Guardian of the Treaty -The Privy Council Appeal and Irish Sovereignty" (2016) and "Law and the Idea of Liberty in Ireland -From Magna Carta to the Present" (2023).

11
For example the North West of Ireland Printing and Publishing Company owned the Derry People and Donegal News, Fermanagh Herald, Strabane Chronicle and Tyrone and Donegal Advertiser, Tyrone Herald and Ulster Herald.This ensured that these newspapers shared a substantial amount of content.

42
There is considerable secondary literature on Irish newspapers in the 1920s that has informed this article even if it has not always proved possible within the confines of a lengthy article to provide detailed analysis of it.Examples include Felix M Larkin and Mark O'Brien (eds), Periodicals and Journalism in Twentieth-century Ireland 1: Writing Against the Grain (Four Courts Press 2014); idem, Periodicals and Journalism in Twentieth-century Ireland 2: A Variety of Voices (Four Courts Press 2021); Joe Breen and Mark O'Brien (eds), The Sunday Papers: A History of Ireland's Weekly Press (Four Courts Press 2018); Martin Conboy and Adrian Bingham (eds), Edinburgh History of the British and Irish Press, vol 3 (Edinburgh University Press 2020).Other important secondary sources are mentioned elsewhere in this article.43 See Mark O'Brien and Kevin Rafter (eds), Independent Newspapers: A History (Four Courts Press 2012).For historical accounts of the Freeman's Journal see the works of Felix M Larkin, for example 'The dog in the night-time: The Freeman's Journal, the Irish Parliamentary Party and the Empire, 1875-1919' in Simon J Potter (ed), Newspapers and Empire in Ireland and Britain: Reporting the British Empire, c.1857-1921 (Four Courts Press 2004).There are many historical accounts of the Irish Times, for example Dermot James, Changing Times: A History of the Irish Times (Woodfield Press 2008); Mark O'Brien, The Irish Times: A History (Four Courts Press 2008); Terence Brown, The Irish Times: 150 Years of Influence (Bloomsbury 2015).44 The full name of the Northern Whig in 1922 was the Northern Whig and Belfast Post (henceforth Northern Whig).In addition the full name of the Irish News in 1922 was the Irish News and Belfast Morning News (henceforth Irish News).
53.A map of key incidences of attacks, seizures and censorship of newspapers prepared by Ian Kenneally and Donal Ó Drisceoil is provided in John Crowley and others (eds), Atlas of the Irish Revolution (Cork University Press 2017) 662.50 Horgan and Flynn (n 12) 17. 51 Ibid 24.52 Peter Martin, Censorship in the Two Irelands, 1922-1939 (Irish Academic Press 2006) 18.

200
This newspaper avoided trouble by refraining from making any 81 Alan McCarthy, Newspapers and Journalism in Cork: Press Politics and Revolution (Four Courts Press 2020) 218, 231.82 The Connachtman, 1 July 1922, 4, 5, 8. 83 Christopher Doughan, 'The printed word in troubled times: A historical survey of the Irish provincial press, 1914-1921' (PhD thesis, Dublin City University 2015) 289.The stance of the Waterford News is also analysed in McCarthy (n 81) 221.

115
On the last-named publication see Ian d'Alton, 'The Church of Ireland Gazette and the twentieth century: "a Church paper for Church people"?' in Felix M Larkin and Mark O'Brien (eds), Periodicals and Journalism in Twentieth-century Ireland 2: A Variety of Voices (Four Courts Press 2021).
16 14 See Brian Farrell, 'The Drafting of the Irish Free State Constitution: III' (1971) 6 Irish Jurist 111; idem, 'The Drafting of the Irish Free State Constitution: IV' (1971) 6 Irish Jurist 345; DH Akenson and JF Fallin, 'The Irish Civil War and the Drafting of the This article does not use the popular term 'oath of allegiance' for the parliamentary oath contained in Article 4 of the Treaty.For example Tom Garvin has argued that the use of the term 'oath of allegiance' represents 'a marvellous lie of silence that has become institutionalized in Irish popular culture': Tom Garvin, 1922: The Birth of Irish Democracy (Gill and Macmillan 1996) 51.See also Michael Laffan, Judging WT Cosgrave: The Foundation of the Irish State (Royal Irish Academy 2014) 103, 313.
It concluded, 'Everything that the British denied us 53 Ibid 18-19.54 Quinn (n 6).55 Freeman's 56 Irish Independent, 27 September 1922, 3; clearly unimpressed with the committee that had created the early drafts, for example The Nationalist and Leinster Times, 24 June 1922, 4; America: A Catholic Review of the Week, 14 October 1922, 605.
67Young Ireland, 25 November 1922, 1. 68 Some newspapers were published in the 1920s arguing that the Dominions could not be considered sovereign states include PJ Noel Baker, The Present Juridical Status of the British Dominions in International Law (Longmans 1929) 356; Pearce Higgins, Hall's International Law (Oxford University Press 1924) 34.
74Examples of texts 80 For example National Archives of Ireland (NAI), Department of the Taoiseach, S12046, memorandum by John J Hearne, 'The legal basis of the establishment of the Irish Free State' (31 March 1932).See also Kohn (n 5).
99 84 These included De Valera's response to the draft Constitution, a letter to another newspaper comparing the Constitution to the restrictive fifteenth-century legislation 'Poynings' Law', George Gavan Duffy's objections to it in the constituent assembly and a letter from a Catholic clergyman condemning a 'Godless Constitution': Waterford News, 23 June 1922, 6; 30 June 1922, 6; 22 September 1922, 3; 29 September 1922, 2. Republic of Ireland' appeared in much larger print than the Irish equivalent of 'Poblacht na h-Éireann' on the banner of this newspaper.Nevertheless, this article will use the Irish equivalent because it predominated in other editions using this name.These include Poblacht na h-Éireann (Scottish Edition), Poblacht na h-Éireann (Southern Edition) and Poblacht na h-Éireann (War News).