‘Of no interest to this country’: the Treaty of Lausanne and its consequences for the Foreign Policy of the Irish Free State, 1923 to 1924

Following its creation, the Irish Free State took steps to assert itself from the United Kingdom in the area of foreign policy. While a notable success was joining the League of Nations, another key moment presented itself in the form of the Treaty of Lausanne and discussions regarding its ratification by the Irish government. While this accord concerned the Allied Powers of World War One and the entity we now know as Turkey, talks regarding its approval by Dublin had far-reaching consequences, on the right of dominions to refuse calls to arms from London and touched upon the issuing of Irish passports, which distinguished between British subjects and Irish citizens. Indeed, discussions in the Dáil and Seanad to approve this treaty would also play a role in British approval for the appointment of an Irish Plenipotentiary in Washington DC, the first British Dominion to do so.