Although the Irish Free State was established in 1922, the United Kingdom did not have a diplomatic mission of its own. The only British representation in the State was that of the Trade Commissioner, first appointed in 1929.[2]
The British Embassy's front gate, as seen from Merrion Road.
By contrast, the Irish High Commission (now the Embassy of Ireland) in London was established as early as 1923.[3]
It was not until 1939 that a separate mission, known as the British Representative's Office, was finally established.[4] Following the passing of the Republic of Ireland Act by the Oireachtas in 1948, under which Ireland withdrew from the Commonwealth the following year, the mission was renamed the British Embassy, with its head restyled Ambassador.
Until 1972, the embassy was located at 39 Merrion Square, on the southside of Dublin city center.[5] On 2 February of that year, it was burnt to the ground with petrol bombs during demonstrations by large crowds of people.[6] This occurred following the Bloody Sunday massacre in Derry on 30 January, where the British Army's Parachute Regiment shot and killed fourteen unarmed Catholic civilians during a civil rights demonstration.[7]
In 1981, protesters tried to storm the British Embassy in response to the IRA hunger strikes of that year.[8][9]
The current embassy building on Merrion Road was built in 1995 and designed by Allies and Morrison. It is built around a central courtyard, a cloister-like space.[10]
The British Ambassador's official residence in Dublin is Glencairn House, located on Murphystown Road. Glencairn House has been the official residence of successive British Ambassadors to Ireland since the 1950s.[12]
1 Diplomatic posts only with no consular facilities. 2 Consular posts only with no diplomatic functions. 3 The United Kingdom and His Majesty's Government do not recognise or have formal bilateral intergovernmental, diplomatic or consular relations with the (generally unrecognised) Government of the Republic of China in Taipei. Functions in Taiwan as an accredited informal and unofficial representative post and a semi-official informal consular post.
