 In 1937, following the adoption of the Constitution of Ireland which changed the name of the independent Irish State, the coins became marked "Éire", although the Irish pound remained pegged at par to sterling.Ireland and the United Kingdom decimalised their currencies in 1971, and parity between the two currencies continued until Ireland joined the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1979.An exchange rate between the Irish pound and the pound sterling was established on 30 March 1979.