This dissertation deals with the ministerial career of Patrick Hogan, who was Minister for Agriculture in the first governments of independent Ireland His ten years in office spanned the creation and consolidation of the new state, and he set his mark upon the development of the country’s largest industry, agriculture. The dissertation analyses Hogan’s career in terms of his role in national politics, his influence on agricultural policy and his relations with his civil servants, his contribution to the general business of the Cosgrave governments, firstly as an extern minister and after 1927 as a member of the executive council, and his activities in matters including the quality control of agricultural produce, land ownership, rationalisation of the dairy industry, and the development of the first sugar factory. It also discusses the gradual shift towards a policy of protection. Finally, it casts some light on the political style of the Cumann na nGaedhael party. The dissertation is based principally upon research in the records of the Department of Agriculture, and in the surviving papers of ministers of the time.