Southern Ireland (1921–1922)
Southern Ireland | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1921–1922 Disputed with the Irish Republic | |||||||||
| Capital | Dublin 53°20′22″N 06°15′14″W / 53.33944°N 6.25389°W | ||||||||
| Common languages | English, Irish | ||||||||
| Religion | |||||||||
| Demonym(s) | Southern Irish | ||||||||
| Government | Devolved parliamentary legislature within constitutional monarchy | ||||||||
| Monarch | |||||||||
• 1921–1922 | George V | ||||||||
| Chairman | |||||||||
• 1922 | Michael Collins | ||||||||
• 1922 | W. T. Cosgrave | ||||||||
| Legislature | Parliament of Southern Irelanda (until 27 May 1922) Provisional Parliament (9 August 1922 onwards; unicameral) | ||||||||
| Senate (until 27 May 1922) | |||||||||
| House of Commons (until 27 May 1922) | |||||||||
| History | |||||||||
| 3 May 1921 | |||||||||
| 6 December 1921 | |||||||||
| 16 January 1922 | |||||||||
| 6 December 1922 | |||||||||
| Currency | Pound sterling | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | Republic of Ireland | ||||||||
a. A Council of Ireland was also envisaged with "a view to the eventual establishment of a Parliament for the whole of Ireland" (Source: GOI Act) | |||||||||
Southern Ireland (Irish: Deisceart Éireann, pronounced [dʲɛʃcəɾˠt̪ˠ ˈeːɾʲən̪ˠ]) , covering the area today known as the Republic of Ireland, or simply Ireland, was the larger of the two parts of Ireland that were created when Ireland was partitioned by the Government of Ireland Act 1920. It comprised 26 of the 32 counties of Ireland or about five-sixths of the area of the island, whilst the remaining six counties, which occupied most of Ulster in the north of the island, formed Northern Ireland. Southern Ireland included County Donegal, despite it being the largest county in Ulster and the most northerly county in all of Ireland.
The Act of 1920, which became effective on 3 May 1921, was intended to create two self-governing territories within Ireland, each with its own parliament and governmental institutions, and both remaining within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It also contained provisions for co-operation between the two territories and for the eventual reunification of Ireland. However, in the 1921 elections for Southern Ireland's House of Commons, Sinn Féin candidates won 124 of the 128 seats (all candidates were unopposed and no actual polling occurred), and ignored the parliament, assembling instead as the Second Dáil. The House of Commons of Southern Ireland—consisting of the four unionist members—met only once, while the Senate only met twice. Continuing unrest resulted in the Anglo-Irish Treaty and the Provisional Government, which administered Southern Ireland from 16 January 1922 to 5 December 1922: effectively a transitional administration for the period between the ratifying of the Anglo-Irish Treaty and the establishment of the Irish Free State. Its legitimacy was disputed by the Anti-Treaty delegates to Dáil Éireann.
Southern Ireland, as a political entity, was superseded by the Irish Free State on 6 December 1922 (which later became the fully independent state of Ireland from 1937 with the adoption of its own constitution).