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Welcome to the Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland

VRTI is an all-island and international research partnership hosted by Trinity College Dublin, working to reconstruct the Public Record Office of Ireland — a magnificent archive destroyed in 1922 at the outset of the Civil War. This is an ever-growing, open-access resource, freely and permanently available online to all those interested in Ireland’s deep history, at home and abroad.

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INTRODUCING

Knowledge Graph

for Irish History

The Knowledge Graph for Irish History is a dynamic research tool enabling discovery of information about Ireland’s deep history.

The Knowledge Graph for Irish History

Population Portal

17th – 19th Centuries

Discover name-rich population records from Hearth Money Rolls (17th Century) to the pre-Famine Censuses (19th Century)

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The Age of Revolution

18th – 19th Centuries

Discover how Ireland was transformed between 1760 and 1830 during the global Age of Revolution

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The Age of Conquest

12th – 15th Centuries

Discover how Ireland was ruled in the centuries after the English conquest of 1169

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Gleanings and Fragments from the Censuses of Ireland, 1813–1891

19th century

Curated by Dr Brian Gurrin

The Irish House of Commons, 1776–1801

18th Century

Parliamentary Debates from Legislative Independence to the Act of Union. Curated by Dr Joel Herman. Generously supported by the Fitzpatrick Family Foundation.

The Chief Secretary’s Papers, 1770-1830

18th – 19th Centuries

The Administration of Crisis, Conflict, and Control. In partnership with the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. Curated by Dr Timothy Murtagh.

1766 Religious Census

18th Century

Ireland's First Census. Curated by Dr Brian Gurrin. Generously supported by the Fitzpatrick Family Foundation.

State Papers Ireland, 1660–1715

17th – 18th centuries

Transforming access to the records of early modern Ireland. Curated by Dr Neil Johnston with Simon Neal, The National Archives (UK)

Cromwellian Surveys

17th Century

Cromwellian land surveys including volumes from the Books of Survey and Distribution, the Civil Survey and maps from the Down Survey of Ireland. Curated by Dr David Brown.

Fiants of Tudor Monarchs

16th – 17th centuries

Originally calendared by the Public Record Office of Ireland Between 1875 and 1886. Curated by Dr Peter Crooks, Dr Eamonn Kenny and Sadhbh Dunne.

CIRCLE 2.0

1244 – 1509

A Calendar of Irish Chancery Letters, 1244 – 1509. The inspiration and foundation collection for VRTI. Edited by Dr Peter Crooks.

Royal Revenue, 1270-1450

1270 – 1450

The culmination of five years’ work to fully digitise and translate the largest series of late-medieval Irish documents in The National Archives (UK). Curated by Dr Elizabeth Biggs with Dr Paul Dryburgh and Dr Peter Crooks.

Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 1237 – 1778

13th - 18th centuries

Exploring Dublin's deep history in partnership with the Royal Irish Academy and the Irish Manuscripts Commission.

Census Reports, 1821-1891

19th centuryPublished Reports and UK Parliamentary Papers on the Censuses of Ireland. Curated by Dr Brian Gurrin.

The Calendars of the Rebellion Papers (1790-1808)

18th centuryExploring Dublin Castle’s Secret Archive (1790-1808), in partnership with National Archives, Ireland. Curated by Dr Timothy Murtagh.

Home Office and Ireland, 1782 – 1851

18th centuryFrom Rebellion to Union. In partnership with The National Archives UK. Curated by Dr Timothy Murtagh with Dr Neil Johnston.

The papers of William Molyneux and the Dublin Philosophical Society

17th – 18th centuryExploring the Irish past: stories from pre-modern Ireland. Curated by Dr Eamon Darcy and Dr Ciarán Wallace

Dublin Gazette, 1750-1800

18th centuryPublished by Authority. Curated by Dr Ciarán Wallace and Dr Eamonn Kenny in partnership with the Oireachtas Library.

The Registry of Deeds

18th centuryExploring Eighteenth-Century Irish Property Records in partnership with Tailte Eireann. Curated by Dr Brendan Twomey and Dr Patrick Walsh.

Map Room

15th — 20th centuriesCurated by Dr David Brown with the L. Brown Collection and Participating Institutions.

Grand Jury Records and Maps

19th — 20th centuriesIn partnership with Local Government Archivists and Records Managers.

Wills (1536–1813) from the Prerogative Court of Armagh

16th – 19th centuryIndexed by Sir Arthur Vicars in 1897 and curated by the Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland in 2025.

Philadelphia Papers

17th centuryIreland’s historical collections have been scattered far and wide. Now, for the first time, many of them can be reunited on screen.

Irish Kings and English Rulers

13th – 15th centuriesIn partnership with The National Archives UK. Curated by Dr Elizabeth Biggs with Dr Paul Dryburgh.

Memoranda Rolls: Originals, Copies and Extracts

12th — 15th centuriesMoney, memory and malpractice in the Irish medieval memoranda rolls, in partnership with National Archives, Ireland. Curated by Dr Elizabeth Biggs.

Christ Church Deeds

12th – 19th centuriesExplore the earliest collection of records in the Public Record Office of Ireland. Curated by Dr Stuart Kinsella in partnership with Representative Church Body Library and Christ Church Cathedral.

Merchants and Mariners in Medieval Ireland

14th – 15th centuriesCurated by Dr Daryl Hendley Rooney in partnership with Timothy O'Neill.

Deputy Keeper’s Reports

19th — 20th centuriesSearch the annual reports of Ireland's chief archivist

PROI Publications

19th centuryExplore seminal publications by the Public Record Office of Ireland before the blaze.

Find out more about our latest discoveries and research through our Priority Research Strands, 2023 to 2025.

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Retracing Archival Footsteps

A Century of Recovery and Discovery

A century ago, the Public Record Office of Ireland faced the enormous challenge of recovering from the devastating loss of its entire collection.

Cultures of Conquest

Recovering Voices of the Colonized, 1200–1550

Cultures of Conquest transforms access to rare documentary treasures held in Ireland and Britain, offering translations alongside digital images of the originals.

INSPIRE: Integrating State Papers Ireland

Unlocking the Story of Early Modern Ireland, 1660–1715

The decades immediately following Oliver Cromwell's death and the fall of his regime were marked by dramatic events in Ireland.

Castle and Country

Reconstructing the State, Revealing Society, 1760–1830

Castle and Country delves into the workings of the Irish executive government and parliament during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.