Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland

GOLD SEAMS

Gold Seams are full-scale reconstructions of entire series of archives destroyed in 1922. These pages include deep historical context and exploration tools, providing an enriched understanding of life at the time.

  • Gleanings and Fragments from the Censuses of Ireland
  • The Irish House of Commons
  • Chief Secretary's Papers
  • 1766 Religious Census
  • State Papers Ireland
  • Cromwellian Surveys
  • Fiants of Tudor Monarchs
  • CIRCLE 2.0
  • Royal Revenue
  • Deeds of the Guild of St Anne

Gleanings and Fragments from the Censuses of Ireland

1813–1891
This Gold Seam brings scattered survivors from the censuses of Ireland, 1813-1891, together for the first time, presenting them within an easy-to-use geographical hierarchy of province, county, barony, civil parish and townland.
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The Irish House of Commons

1776-1801
This Gold Seam recovers the debates of the Irish Parliament in a period critical to the formation of Modern Ireland – from the American War of Independence, through Legislative Independence, the French Revolution, the 1798 Rebellion, and up to Union. Curated by Dr Joel Herman.
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Chief Secretary's Papers

1770-1830
This Gold Seam reunites surviving official papers and personal correspondence of Ireland’s Chief Secretaries, providing rare insight into the executive government at Dublin Castle. From intelligence gathering and countering conspiracies to routine tasks such as managing state finances and public services, these papers reveal how the machinery of government operated during a time of significant political and social change.
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1766 Religious Census

18th century
The religious census of 1766 is one of the richest sources available to the historical and genealogical researcher for the period prior to the commencement of the statutory census series in 1813.
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State Papers Ireland

1660–1715
Transforming access to the records of early modern Ireland. Curated by Dr Neil Johnston with Simon Neal, The National Archives (UK)
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Cromwellian Surveys

17th century
The Cromwellian Surveys Gold Seam provides unprecedented access for anyone researching land ownership in Ireland throughout the early modern period.
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Fiants of Tudor Monarchs

1522–1603
The ‘Fiants of Tudor Monarchs, c.1522–1603’ Gold Seam provides digital access to a key series from the Irish chancery destroyed in 1922. Curated by Dr Peter Crooks, Dr Eamonn Kenny and Sadhbh Dunne.
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CIRCLE 2.0

1244-1509
CIRCLE reconstructs the records of the Irish chancery destroyed in 1922 and seeks to provide an accessible and accurate summary in English for letters issued by the Irish chancery between the reigns of Henry III and Henry VII.
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Royal Revenue

1270-1450
The Royal Revenue Gold Seam provides access to one of the most significant and underused sources for the history of late-medieval Ireland and its connections with Britain and the wider world—the records of the medieval Irish exchequer.
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Deeds of the Guild of St Anne

13th-18th centuries
Now part of the collections of the Royal Irish Academy, the records of the Guild of St Anne offer a unique window onto everyday urban life in medieval and early modern Dublin. Based on a previously unpublished calendar prepared by Leonard Beiler for the Irish Manuscripts Commission, this Gold Seam presents the original parchment deeds alongside their first-ever English translation. Coming Autumn 2025!
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