The state known today as Ireland is the successor state to the Irish Free State, which existed from December 1922 to December 1937. At its foundation, the Irish Free State was, in accordance with its
Leinster House, decorated for the visit of King George V and Queen Mary in 1911; within a decade, it became the seat of the Oireachtas (Irish Free State)
King George 1923 LCCN2014715558
HRH The Prince of Wales No 4
King George VI LOC matpc.14736
Éamon de Valera was an Irish statesman. He served as the president of Ireland from 1959 to 1973, and three terms as prime minister. He had a leading role in introducing the Constitution of Ireland in
Portrait, c. 1918–1921
De Valera addressing a crowd on the steps of Ennis Courthouse, County Clare, in July 1917
The Kilmainham Gaol cell of Éamon de Valera