Abstract
This article analyses the process of democratic consolidation in the Irish Free State. It outlines two historical conceptions of consolidation, one which focuses on the taming of the anti-system opposition between 1922 and 1927, and one which focuses on the achievements of Fianna Fail in power after 1932. The article argues that the 1932 changeover was the crucial event in the consolidation process. Three factors: the willingness of William Cosgrave to 'retreat' from a position of dominance; the refusal of de Valera to use public office as a means of settling scores with his former enemies; and the apolitical values of Irish bureaucratic elites, explain why the changeover went so smoothly. The article concludes with an analysis of the different levels at which the system was consolidated, and argues that in every respect the system was consolidated before World War Two.
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