births
March 27, 1869
James McNeill, Irish politician, 2nd Governor-General of the Irish Free State (died 1938)
James McNeill
James McNeill was an Irish colonial administrator, politician, and diplomat, who served as the first High Commissioner to London and second Governor-General of the Irish Free State.
Governor-General of the Irish Free State
The governor-general of the Irish Free State was the official representative of the sovereign of the Irish Free State from 1922 to 1936. By convention, the office was largely ceremonial. Nonetheless, it was controversial, as many Irish Nationalists regarded the existence of the office as offensive to republican principles and a symbol of continued British involvement in Irish affairs, despite the Governor-General having no connection to the British Government after 1931. For this reason, the office's role was diminished over time by the Irish Government.