Irish heads of government since 1919
Ireland[]
The head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland is known as the Taoiseach and heads a cabinet called the Government. However, since 1919, heads of government in the Irish state have borne a number of titles. Under the short-lived Irish Republic of 1919–22 the head of government was known first as the President of Dáil Éireann and later as the President of the Republic. Under the Irish Free State of 1922–37 the head of government was the President of the Executive Council. There also briefly existed, immediately before the creation of the Irish Free State, an interim office of Chairman of the Provisional Government. For a brief period in 1921 the offices of President of the Republic and Chairman of the Provisional Government existed simultaneously.
Offices[]
Head | Deputy | Cabinet | State | Constitution | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
President of Dáil Éireann/ President of the Irish Republic[a] |
N/A | Ministry | Irish Republic | Dáil Constitution | 21 January 1919 – 6 December 1922 26 August 1921 – 6 December 1922 |
Chairman of the Provisional Government | N/A | Provisional Government | Southern Ireland | Irish Free State (Agreement) Act 1922 | 3 May 1921 – 6 December 1922 |
President of the Executive Council | Vice-President | Executive Council | Irish Free State | Constitution of the Irish Free State | 6 December 1922 – 29 December 1937 |
Taoiseach | Tánaiste | Government | Ireland | Constitution of Ireland | 29 December 1937 – present |
List of office-holders[]
No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) |
Term of office | Political party | Constituency | Government | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | ||||||
1 | Cathal Brugha (1874–1922) |
21 January 1919 | 1 April 1919 | 70 days | Sinn Féin | Waterford County | 1st Ministry | |
2 | ![]() |
Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) |
1 April 1919 | 9 January 1922 | 2 years, 283 days | Sinn Féin | Clare East and Mayo East (1919–1921) Clare (1921–1922) |
2nd Ministry (1919–1921) 3rd Ministry (1921–1922) |
3 | ![]() |
Arthur Griffith (1872–1922)[b] |
10 January 1922 | 12 August 1922 | 214 days | Sinn Féin (Pro-Treaty faction) |
Cavan | 4th Ministry |
4 | ![]() |
Michael Collins (1890–1922)[b] |
16 January 1922 | 22 August 1922 | 218 days | Sinn Féin (Pro-Treaty faction) |
Cork Mid, North, South, South East and West |
1st Provisional Government |
5 | ![]() |
W. T. Cosgrave (1880–1965) |
22 August 1922 | 9 March 1932 | 9 years, 200 days | Cumann na nGaedheal[c] | Carlow–Kilkenny (1922–1927) Cork Borough (1927–1932) |
1st Provisional Government (1922) 2nd Provisional Government (1922) 1st Executive Council (1922–1923) 2nd Executive Council (1923–1927) 3rd Executive Council (1927) 4th Executive Council (1927–1930) 5th Executive Council (1930–1932) |
(2) | ![]() |
Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) |
9 March 1932 | 18 February 1948 | 15 years, 346 days | Fianna Fáil[d] | Clare | 6th Executive Council (1932–1933) 7th Executive Council (1933–1937) 8th Executive Council (1937) 1st Government (1937–1938) 2nd Government (1938–1943) 3rd Government (1943–1944) 4th Government (1944–1948) |
6 | John A. Costello (1891–1976) |
18 February 1948 | 13 June 1951 | 3 years, 115 days | Fine Gael[e] | Dublin South-East | 5th Government | |
(2) | ![]() |
Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) |
13 June 1951 | 2 June 1954 | 2 years, 354 days | Fianna Fáil | Clare | 6th Government |
(6) | John A. Costello (1891–1976) |
2 June 1954 | 20 March 1957 | 2 years, 291 days | Fine Gael | Dublin South-East | 7th Government | |
(2) | ![]() |
Éamon de Valera (1882���1975) |
20 March 1957 | 23 June 1959 | 2 years, 95 days | Fianna Fáil | Clare | 8th Government |
7 | ![]() |
Seán Lemass (1899–1971) |
23 June 1959 | 10 November 1966 | 7 years, 140 days | Fianna Fáil | Dublin South-Central | 9th Government (1959–1961) 10th Government (1961–1965) 11th Government (1965–1966) |
8 | ![]() |
Jack Lynch (1917–1999) |
10 November 1966 | 14 March 1973 | 6 years, 124 days | Fianna Fáil | Cork Borough (1966–1969) Cork City North-West (1969–1973) |
12th Government (1966–1969) 13th Government (1969–1973) |
9 | ![]() |
Liam Cosgrave (1920–2017) |
14 March 1973 | 5 July 1977 | 4 years, 113 days | Fine Gael | Dún Laoghaire and Rathdown | 14th Government |
(8) | ![]() |
Jack Lynch (1917–1999) |
5 July 1977 | 11 December 1979 | 2 years, 159 days | Fianna Fáil | Cork City | 15th Government |
10 | ![]() |
Charles Haughey (1925–2006) |
11 December 1979 | 30 June 1981 | 1 year, 201 days | Fianna Fáil | Dublin Artane | 16th Government |
11 | ![]() |
Garret FitzGerald (1926–2011) |
30 June 1981 | 9 March 1982 | 252 days | Fine Gael | Dublin South-East | 17th Government |
(10) | ![]() |
Charles Haughey (1925–2006) |
9 March 1982 | 14 December 1982 | 280 days | Fianna Fáil | Dublin North-Central | 18th Government |
(11) | ![]() |
Garret FitzGerald (1926–2011) |
14 December 1982 | 10 March 1987 | 4 years, 86 days | Fine Gael | Dublin South-East | 19th Government |
(10) | ![]() |
Charles Haughey (1925–2006) |
10 March 1987 | 11 February 1992 | 4 years, 338 days | Fianna Fáil | Dublin North-Central | 20th Government (1987–1989) 21st Government (1989–1992) |
12 | ![]() |
Albert Reynolds (1932–2014) |
11 February 1992 | 15 December 1994 | 2 years, 307 days | Fianna Fáil | Longford–Roscommon | 22nd Government (1992–1993) 23rd Government (1993–1994) |
13 | ![]() |
John Bruton (born 1947) |
15 December 1994 | 26 June 1997 | 2 years, 193 days | Fine Gael | Meath | 24th Government (1994–1997) |
14 | ![]() |
Bertie Ahern (born 1951) |
26 June 1997 | 7 May 2008 | 10 years, 315 days | Fianna Fáil | Dublin Central | 25th Government (1997–2002) 26th Government (2002–2007) 27th Government (2007–2008) |
15 | ![]() |
Brian Cowen (born 1960) |
7 May 2008 | 9 March 2011 | 2 years, 306 days | Fianna Fáil | Laois–Offaly | 28th Government |
16 | ![]() |
Enda Kenny (born 1951) |
9 March 2011 | 14 June 2017 | 6 years, 97 days | Fine Gael | Mayo | 29th Government (2011–2016) 30th Government (2016–2017) |
17 | ![]() |
Leo Varadkar (born 1979) |
14 June 2017 | 27 June 2020 | 3 years, 13 days | Fine Gael | Dublin West | 31st Government |
18 | ![]() |
Micheál Martin (born 1960) |
27 June 2020 | Incumbent | 1 year, 248 days | Fianna Fáil | Cork South-Central | 32nd Government |
Northern Ireland[]
The most recent devolved cabinet in Northern Ireland is the Northern Ireland Executive, established under the Good Friday Agreement. The Executive has been in operation, intermittently, since 1999; but had existed continuously since 2007, but after elections following a government collapsed on 16 January 2017, no Executive was formed until January 2020, when the parties came to an agreement and an Executive was subsequently established. Since 1921, there have been three different prime ministerial offices in Northern Ireland. The most recent structure, the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister, represents a diarchy. As such, there is no longer a singular executive office, but rather a dual office.
Offices[]
Head | Cabinet | Date |
---|---|---|
Prime Minister | Government | 7 June 1921 – 30 March 1972 |
Chief Executive | Executive (Sunningdale) | 1 January 1974 – 28 May 1974 |
First Minister and deputy First Minister | Executive | 1 July 1998 – present |
List of office-holders[]
No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) |
Term of office | Political party | Constituency | Government | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | ||||||
1 | ![]() |
Sir James Craig (1871–1940)[f] |
7 June 1921 | 24 November 1940 | 19 years, 170 days | Ulster Unionist Party | Down (1921–1929) North Down (1929–1940) |
Craigavon ministry |
2 | ![]() |
John Miller Andrews (1871–1956) |
25 November 1940 | 1 May 1943 | 2 years, 157 days | Ulster Unionist Party | Mid Down | Andrews ministry |
3 | Sir Basil Brooke (1888–1973)[g] |
1 May 1943 | 25 March 1963 | 19 years, 328 days | Ulster Unionist Party | Lisnaskea | Brookeborough ministry | |
4 | Terence O'Neill (1914–1990) |
25 March 1963 | 1 May 1969 | 6 years, 37 days | Ulster Unionist Party | Bannside | O'Neill ministry | |
5 | ![]() |
James Chichester-Clark (1923–2002) |
1 May 1969 | 23 March 1971 | 1 year, 326 days | Ulster Unionist Party | South Londonderry | Chichester-Clark ministry |
6 | Brian Faulkner (1921–1977) |
23 March 1971 | 30 March 1972 | 1 year, 7 days | Ulster Unionist Party | East Down | Faulkner ministry | |
1 January 1974 | 28 May 1974 | 147 days | South Down | 1974 Executive | ||||
First Ministers | ||||||||
1 | ![]() |
David Trimble (born 1944) |
1 July 1998 | 14 October 2002 | 4 years, 105 days | Ulster Unionist Party | Upper Bann | First Executive |
2 | ![]() |
Ian Paisley (1926–2014) |
8 May 2007 | 5 June 2008 | 1 year, 28 days | Democratic Unionist Party | North Antrim | Second Executive |
3 | ![]() |
Peter Robinson (born 1944) |
5 June 2008 | 11 January 2016 | 7 years, 220 days | Democratic Unionist Party | Belfast East | Second Executive (2008–2011) Third Executive (2011–2016) |
4 | ![]() |
Arlene Foster (born 1970) |
11 January 2016 | 9 January 2017 | 364 days | Democratic Unionist Party | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Fourth Executive |
11 January 2020 | 14 June 2021 | 1 year, 154 days | Fifth Executive | |||||
5 | ![]() |
Paul Givan (born 1981) |
17 June 2021 | 3 February 2022 | 231 days | Democratic Unionist Party | Lagan Valley | |
Deputy First Ministers | ||||||||
1 | ![]() |
Seamus Mallon (1936–2020) |
1 July 1998 | 6 November 2001 | 3 years, 128 days | Social Democratic and Labour Party | Newry and Armagh | First Executive |
2 | ![]() |
Mark Durkan (born 1960) |
6 November 2001 | 14 October 2002 | 342 days | Social Democratic and Labour Party | Foyle | First Executive |
3 | ![]() |
Martin McGuinness (1950–2017) |
8 May 2007 | 9 January 2017 | 9 years, 246 days | Sinn Féin | Mid Ulster (2007–2016) Foyle (2016–2017) |
Second Executive (2007–2011) Third Executive (2011–2016) Fourth Executive (2016–2017) |
4 | ![]() |
Michelle O'Neill (born 1977) |
11 January 2020 | 3 February 2022 | 2 years, 23 days | Sinn Féin | Mid Ulster | Fifth Executive |
See also[]
- Irish head of state from 1936 to 1949
- President of Ireland
- Irish cabinets since 1919
- History of the Republic of Ireland
- History of Northern Ireland
- Politics of the Republic of Ireland
- Politics of Northern Ireland
- Records of Irish heads of government since 1922
- List of chief governors of Ireland (1172-1922)
- List of High Kings of Ireland (up to 1198)
Notes[]
- ^ The President of Dáil Éireann, also known as the Príomh Aire, was upgraded to a head of state-level President of the Irish Republic in August 1921.
- ^ a b From January to August 1922 there were two administrations operating in parallel, the Ministry of the self-declared independent Irish Republic and the Provisional Government accepted by the United Kingdom, and each cabinet had an overlapping membership. De Valera had filled both posts, but after his resignation there were two heads of government, Arthur Griffith, as President of the Republic, and Michael Collins as Chairman of the Provisional Government of Southern Ireland. This anomalous situation came about because the British Government would only recognise the parliament that it had established through the Government of Ireland Act, so Sinn Féin participated in the charade to move matters along. To add to the confusion, Collins was Griffith's Minister of Finance, while Griffith was Collins's Minister for Foreign Affairs. The dual leadership came to an end when W. T. Cosgrave assumed both offices on the deaths of Griffith, on 12 August 1922, and Collins, on 22 August, and merged the two parallel administrations.
- ^ When W. T. Cosgrave first became head of government he was still technically a member of Sinn Féin. However the pro-Treaty faction of Sinn Féin reformed itself as Cumann na nGaedheal shortly afterwards.
- ^ Successor of the Sinn Féin Anti-Treaty faction.
- ^ Successor of Cumann na nGaedheal and two more parties.
- ^ After 1927, the Viscount Craigavon.
- ^ After 1952, the Viscount Brookeborough.
References[]
- Lists of heads of government
- Political history of Ireland
- Irish heads of government