DE VALERA, Éamon. Dréacht-Bhunreacht (Draft Constitution). Stand by Ireland’s Declaration of Independence and Social Justice. Vote “Yes” on July 1st

Dublin: Published by the Stationery Office, [1937]. Government Publications Sales Office, 5 Nassau Street. Price Twopence.

Small 8vo. pp. 117. Original printed paper booklet bound within a later black cloth presentation binding, upper cover incorporating the original printed referendum poster panels. Text in Irish with some English. A photographic portrait of Éamon de Valera loosely inserted. A small slip bearing the signature of de Valera tipped onto the front pastedown. Light browning and occasional spotting to the paper stock as expected; otherwise a very good example of this fragile political publication.

An important survival from one of the most significant constitutional moments in modern Irish history. This pamphlet represents the official printed draft of the Constitution of Ireland, circulated in advance of the national referendum held on 1 July 1937. The document set out the proposed framework of the new Irish state, replacing the 1922 Constitution of the Free State and establishing many of the political and legal structures that remain central to Irish governance today.

Prepared under the direction of de Valera during his tenure as President of the Executive Council and later Taoiseach, the constitution was designed to assert Ireland’s sovereignty while carefully navigating the political sensitivities of the period. The campaign literature urging voters to support the measure — echoed here in the printed slogan “Stand by Ireland’s Declaration of Independence and Social Justice” — reflects the ideological framing used during the referendum campaign.

The present copy is of particular interest due to the association with de Valera himself, preserved through the tipped signature slip and accompanying photograph. While signatures of de Valera are not uncommon in isolation, examples connected with the foundational text of the Irish Constitution remain highly desirable.

A tangible relic of the referendum campaign that reshaped the Irish state and one of the most consequential political publications issued in twentieth-century Ireland.

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