W. T. Cosgrave, the first President of the Irish Free State had led both of these " governments " since August 1922.

With no ensuing restrictions on his policies, he abolished the Oath of Allegiance ( which Cosgrave intended to do had he won the 1932 general election ), the Senate, university representation in the Dáil, and appeals to the Privy Council.

At the cabinet meeting in Dublin held to consider the Treaty immediately after it had been signed, Cosgrave surprised de Valera by agreeing with Collins and with Arthur Griffith, de Valera's predecessor as leader of Sinn Féin and the chairman of the delegation which included Collins that had negotiated the Treaty.

Though it had the option of going for General Richard Mulcahy, Collins ' successor as Commander-in-Chief of the National Army, the pro-Treaty leadership opted for Cosgrave, in part due to his democratic credentials as a long-time politician.

In the Dáil debate on 7 December Cosgrave stated: " I had only one figure in my mind and that was a huge nought.

Cosgrave had legislation passed to force Fianna Fáil to take their seats in the Dáil and this proved successful with de Valera and his party entering the Dáil.

Cosgrave, as a devout Catholic like most of his cabinet, had invested much time in the build-up to it and wished it to proceed without any tension from a pending General election.

While popular with Irish language enthusiasts and artists and respected by many Republicans, he had a strained relationship with the Coalition Government, particularly with Conor Cruise O ' Brien and with Liam Cosgrave.

This proved the last straw for Ó Dálaigh, who believed that Cosgrave had additionally failed to meet his constitutional obligation to regularly brief the President.

Cosgrave and Griffith had been prominent in Sinn Féin since the 1900s, while Collins rose quickly through its ranks after 1916.

He had asked Cosgrave to be his " managing director " in the Dail while he was absent on legal work.

Cosgrave, not surprisingly, had declined this.

This put him at odds with Cosgrave, whose government had strengthened the act.

Cosgrave, as such, maintained a marked distance from Aras an Uachtarain ; whereas previously, presidents had been briefed by taoisigh once a month, Cosgrave briefed Presidents Childers and Ó Dálaigh on average once every six months.

In addition, Cosgrave frequently interfered in Ó Dálaigh's constitutional role as the state's representative to foreign governments ; he was not permitted to receive the Legion of Honour from France, although former president Sean T. O ' Kelly had previously received it, and Cosgrave attended the United States ' bicentennial celebrations in 1976 in Ó Dálaigh's place.

Cosgrave, together with James Tully, the Labour Minister for Local Government had redrawn the constituency boundaries to favour Fine Gael and Labour for the first time ( the " Tullymander ") and they confidently expected the new boundaries would win for them.

However, he had a strained relationship with the incumbent government, led by Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave of Fine Gael.

Childers had campaigned on a platform of making the presidency more open and hands-on, which Cosgrave viewed as a threat to his own agenda as head of government.

Cosgrave played an active role in the Easter Rising of 1916 serving under Eamonn Ceannt at the South Dublin Union.

W. T. Cosgrave, President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State ( prime minister ) from 1922 to 1932 and a deeply religious Catholic, suggested that the burnt out shell of the General Post Office, the location of the 1916 Rising, be turned into a cathedral, but the idea was not acted on, and the GPO was restored for use as a post office.

Birch Wathen Lenox was created in 1991 through the merger of The Birch Wathen School that was founded in 1921 by Louise Birch and Edith Wathen, and The Lenox School founded by Jessica Cosgrave Finch in 1916.

Cosgrave was awarded the Distinguished Service Order first in 1916 and again in 1918 ; later Cosgrave was presented with the French Croix de Guerre.

He was made commandant of the 4th Battalion of the Volunteers, and during the Rising was stationed at the South Dublin Union and the Marrowbone Lane Distillery, with more than 100 men under his command, notably his second-in-command Cathal Brugha, and W. T. Cosgrave.

It has been argued that Cosgrave fell into the category of being a " chairman " rather than a " chief " as far as the day to day running of his Government was concerned.

Cosgrave can be accused of calling the 1977 election prematurely, as the Irish economy was recovering rapidly in early 1977 and a later election in the autumn or winter of that year may have been more propitious for the National Coalition.

However, Childers remained detached from the government ; whereas previously, presidents had been briefed by taoisigh once a month, Cosgrave briefed President Childers and his successor, Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh on average once every six months.

The true reason, however, appears to have been the new government's discovery that in 1932, O ' Duffy's was one of the voices urging W. T. Cosgrave to resort to a military coup rather than to turn over power to the incoming Fianna Fáil administration.

The Government immediately appointed as Secretary to the President Michael McDunphy, a controversial, outspoken and temperamental civil servant who had prior to his appointment been Assistant Secretary to the Executive Council, and had once been Secretary to the Provisional Governments of Michael Collins and W. T. Cosgrave ( January – December 1922 ) McDunphy, like the Presidential Commission, was originally based in Dublin Castle until a new presidential residence was chosen.

William Thomas " W. T ." Cosgrave (; 6 June 1880 – 16 November 1965 ), was an Irish politician who succeeded Michael Collins as Chairman of the Irish Provisional Government from August to December 1922.

Cosgrave was very successful in his role at the Department of Local Government.

These councils then cut their links to the British, and pledged loyalty to the Sinn Féin Department of Local Government, under Cosgrave.

Collins, in accordance with the Treaty, formed a Provisional Government ; this included Cosgrave amongst its membership.

Griffith and Collins died in August 1922 during the early stages of the Irish Civil War, leaving Cosgrave to lead the pro-treaty faction and the Provisional Government in the run-up to the formal establishment of the Irish Free State.

Until 1932, Cumann na nGaedheal continued to form the Government of the Irish Free State, with Cosgrave as President of the Executive Council.

Cosgrave became Chairman of the Provisional Government on 25 August and, when he was also elected as President of Dáil Éireann in September, the two administrations were merged.

As plans were made to bring the new state into being, the Provisional Government under W. T. Cosgrave sought a temporary venue for the meetings of the new Chamber of Deputies Dáil Éireann and Senate Seanad Éireann.

Cosgrave, the British Government recommended to King George V that Healy be appointed the first ' Governor-General of the Irish Free State ', a new office of representative of the Crown created in the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty and introduced by a combination of the Irish Free State Constitution and Letters Patent from the King.

Initially the Government of the Irish Free State under Cosgrave wished for Healy to reside in a new small residence, but, when facing death threats from the IRA, he was moved as a temporary measure into the Viceregal Lodge, the former ' out of season ' residence of the Lord Lieutenant, the former representative of the Crown until 1922.

The Provisional Government under W. T. Cosgrave hired the use of the main lecture theatre of the Royal Dublin Society in its headquarters in Leinster House, a formal ducal palace, to enable a formal state opening of the new two chamber Oireachtas of the new Irish Free State and the delivery of the speech from the throne by the new Governor-General of the Irish Free State, Tim Healy in December 1922.

In 1922, when the Provisional Government under W. T. Cosgrave made plans for the coming into being of the new Irish Free State, it gave little thought to using the old Parliament House as the parliament building for the new state.

W. T. Cosgrave assumed control of both the Irish Republic's cabinet and the Provisional Government and both administrations disappeared simultaneously shortly afterwards, replaced by the institutions of the Irish Free State on 6 December 1922.

O ' Higgins was appointed as the Assistant Minister for Local Government under W. T. Cosgrave.

Last October the Minister of Local Government W. T. Cosgrave and myself came deliberately to the decision that we would not recommend any settlement involving allegiance to the king of England.

O ' Higgins had formed a negative view of Cosgrave having worked under him at Local Government and was not happy when the latter was appointed President of the Executive Council.

After Collins ' and Griffith's deaths in August 1922, W. T. Cosgrave became both Chairman of the Provisional Government and President of Dáil Éireann, and the distinction between the two posts became irrelevant.

The two chief governmental offices, the President of the Republic and the Chairman of the Provisional Government ( who was constitutionally a Minister of the Crown ), came to be held by the one man, W. T. Cosgrave, producing a unique constitutional hybrid ; a crown-empowered prime minister who was also president of a republic.

After Collins's and Griffith's deaths in August 1922, W. T. Cosgrave became both Chairman of the Provisional Government and President of Dáil Éireann, and the distinction between the two became increasingly confused and irrelevant up until the creation of the Irish Free State in December 1922.

W. T. Cosgrave is elected President of Dáil Éireann and Chairman of the Provisional Government.