Deirdre Brennan
EyeVine/Redux
Reflecting on 100 Years of The Irish Free State
Dora Burke and her son Charlie Burke, Dublin, Ireland. November 2022. Reflecting on 100 Years of The Irish Free State. Established 100 years ago when King George V signed a proclamation on December 6, 1922.
Members of the public pose with a 1920’s Bakelite hand mirror whilst reflecting on the past hundred years.
When asked of their opinion about the state of the nation since independence from Britain, subjects responded with a mixture of positive and negative commentary, with a lot of emphasis on the social problems facing modern Ireland.
In this picture Dora Burke and her son Charlie Burke who are originally from Uganda declare
Dora: “Ireland is very welcoming. I have so many Irish friends. Coming from a Third World country things are much, much better. I can get everything I want. Basic medical care. I love that people can have their own opinion.
Charlie: “Ireland is very welcoming. It is very green. I play a lot of soccer. I have a dream about playing for Liverpool”.
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was given one month to decide whether to remain part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland opted out of the Free State on December 7, 1922.Dáil Éireann sat on 6 December and the new upper house, Seanad Éireann, met for the first time on 11 December 1922.Article 4 of the Constitution of Ireland, adopted in 1937, provides that the name of the State is Éire or the English language, Ireland.
