Page "Irish head of state from 1936 to 1949" Paragraph 9

Until the Republic of Ireland Act came into force in April 1949, the President of Ireland had no international role.

Nonetheless from 1936 until 1949 the role of the King in the Irish state was invisible to most Irish people.

The monarch never visited the state during that period and, due to the abolition of the office of Governor-General, had no official representative there.

The president, on the other hand, played a key role in important public ceremonies.

Due to his role in foreign relations, however, almost every state with which the state had diplomatic relations concluded that it was the King who was head of state.