Constitution of Ireland
national democratic constitution
The Constitution of Ireland (Irish: Bunreacht na hÉireann, pronounced [ˈbˠʊnˠɾˠəxt̪ˠ n̪ˠə ˈheːɾʲən̪ˠ]) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executive president, a bicameral parliament, a separation of powers and judicial review.
It is the second constitution of the Irish state since independence, replacing the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State. It came into force on 29 December 1937 following a statewide plebiscite held on 1 July 1937. The Constitution may be amended solely by a national referendum. It is the longest continually operating republican constitution within the European Union.
Background
The Constitution of Ireland replaced the Constitution of the Irish Free State, which had been in effect since the independence, as a dominion, of the Irish state from the United Kingdom on 6 December 1922. There were two main motivations for replacing the constitution in 1937. Firstly, the Statute of Westminster 1931 granted parliamentary autonomy to the six British Dominions (now known as Commonwealth realms) within a British Commonwealth of Nations.
The public source identifies “Constitution of Ireland” as national democratic constitution. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Constitution, Ireland and national.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Constitution of Ireland”, the useful work is to connect “national democratic constitution” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The record creator and administrative purpose are central evidence, because official documentation reflects both action and institutional priorities. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q733272. The first chronological checks are 1922, 1937 and 1931.
Official terminology may obscure informal participation, dissent or communities documented only indirectly. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Compare institutional narratives with records created by participants and affected communities. Dates and formal titles are useful anchors, but not substitutes for context.
- Event chronology
- Institutional context
- Locating named record creators
Contemporary correspondence, government or organizational records, oral histories and cited historical scholarship.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Constitution of Ireland”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Constitution of Ireland primary sources, Constitution of Ireland archive and Constitution research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Constitution of Ireland”?
- Who created the surviving record, and for what administrative purpose?
- What chronology connects this entry to wider political or social change?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Constitution of Ireland” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.