association with St Patrick or with Ireland prior to the foundation of the Order is unclear, however. One of the first knights was the 2nd Duke of Leinster, whose arms carry the same cross. After 1922 The last non-Royal member appointed to the Order was the 3rd Duke of Abercorn in 1922, who served as the first Governor of Northern Ireland. When the Irish Free State left the United Kingdom in December of that same year, the Irish Executive Council under W. T. Cosgrave chose to make no further appointments to the Order. Since then, only three people have been appointed to the Order, all members of the British Royal Family. The then-Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VIII and later Duke of Windsor) was appointed in 1927 and his younger brothers, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, in 1934 and Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI), in 1936. The Constitution of Ireland of 1937 provides that "Titles of nobility shall not be conferred by the State" (Article 40.2.1°) and "No title of nobility or of honour may be accepted by any citizen except with the prior approval of the Government" (Article 40.2.2°). Legal experts are divided on whether this clause prohibits the awarding of membership of the Order of St Patrick to Irish citizens, but some suggest that the phrase "titles of nobility" implies hereditary peerages and other noble titles, not lifetime honours such as knighthoods. This argument does not address the words "or of honour" however. The last living non-royal recipient, the 9th Earl of Shaftesbury, died in 1961. Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, at his death in 1974, was the last surviving knight. However, the Order is technically extant with a Sovereign and one officer, Norroy and Ulster King of Arms. Possible revival Prime Minister Winston Churchill suggested reviving the Order in 1943 to recognise the services in North Africa of General the Hon. Sir Harold Alexander, a member of an Ulster Scots family from County Tyrone, but the opinion of the other ministers and civil servants was that it would upset the diplomatic balance between London and Dublin. Taoiseach Seán Lemass considered reviving the Order during the 1960s, but did not take a decision. Composition Members The British monarch is the Sovereign of the Order of St Patrick. The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, the monarch's representative in Ireland, served as the Grand Master.