British involvement in the creation of the constitution of the Irish Free State

Existing accounts of the British contribution to the drafting of the first Irish Constitution tend to focus exclusively on matters relating to the Anglo Irish Treaty of 1921. This article examines the advice given by the British government on the provisions of the 1922 Constitution that were not directly connected to the demands of the Treaty. The British provided their less experienced Irish counterparts with constructive advice on such diverse matters as the composition of the Irish cabinet, the dissolution of the Dáil, the granting of titles of honour, the use of terminology in the Irish language and on the winding up of the 'Dáil courts'. This article notes that many of the amendments made in these areas were replicated in the present Irish Constitution of 1937. It concludes that this aspect of the British involvement in the drafting of the first Irish Constitution has proved more durable than concerns over many of the symbols of sovereignty that loomed so large in 1922.