National Centre Party (Ireland)

The National Centre Party was a political party in the Irish Free State founded in late 1932 the party was initially know as the National Farmers and Ratepayers League. Its most prominent members were Frank MacDermott the leader of the party and James Dillon, who was the son of the last leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party, John Dillon. In the 1933 General Election the party won eleven seats - this election occured only one month after the founding of the party.

The National Centre Party merged with Cumann na nGaedheal and the Army Comrades Association to form Fine Gael, the current main Irish opposition party, in Sept 1933. MacDermot and a small number of party members found the merger unacceptable, some of whom stood in future elections as Independents, with MacDermot deciding to join Fianna Fáil and later resigning from politics at the 1937 Gereral Election.