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According to the Letters Patent, establishing the office of Governor-General (6 Dec 1922), Chief Justice (referred to as "Chief Judge" in the Letters Patent), Aodh Ua Cinneidigh (Hugh Kennedy), should have acted as the Officer Administering the Government during a vacancy. However, he refused to swear the Oath of Allegiance to the British monarch and engaged in a torrent of correspondence with Eamon de Valera and King George V, suggesting at one point that the King could exercise his Constitutional functions without a Representative. De Valera attempted to have the office of Governor-General merged with that of President of the Executive Council, but when the need for a Governor-General became pressing because there were bills that required the Royal Assent de Valera gave in and advised the King to appoint a new Representative of the Crown. Domhnall Ua Buachalla (Donal Buckley) was appointed to the office on 24 Nov 1932 and was sworn in on 26 Nov 1932. |
