Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 1237 – 1778

Introduction

The deeds of the Guild of St Anne, preserved in the Royal Irish Academy, are a unique and invaluable resource for the history of medieval and early modern Dublin. Ranging from the 13th to the 18th centuries, these original records are among the most significant surviving civic documents of their kind — illuminating the everyday lives of Dubliners and city officials, as well as providing insights into family ties, material possessions, and inheritance customs. Beyond individual stories, the deeds let us trace the development of the city over five centuries, documenting buildings, construction materials, and renovations of properties as they changed hands. The Deeds of the Guild of St Anne Gold Seam, 1237–1778, is a partnership with the Royal Irish Academy and the Irish Manuscripts Commission. This Gold Seam was curated by Dr Lynn Kilgallon and Dr Theresa O’Byrne, with Dr Peter Crooks, Sadhbh Dunne, Dr Éamonn Kenny, and with additional contributions by Dr Colm Lennon, MRIA.

This Gold Seam presents high-resolution digitised images of more than 700 original deeds held by the Library of the Royal Irish Academy, alongside fully-searchable metadata and hidden stories revealing the rich histories contained in this collection. The research builds on a deep collaborative relationship fostered by Siobhán Fitzpatrick, former Librarian to the Academy, and continued by the current Librarian, Barbara McCormack.

Additionally, the Gold Seam provides access for the first time to an unpublished calendar of the Guild of St Anne deeds commissioned by the Irish Manuscripts Commission, and created by Ludwig Bieler (d. 1981). Bieler’s calendar has been edited and prepared for online presentation by Dr Theresa O’Byrne and Dr Lynn Kilgallon. The Bieler calendar provides English-language summaries for all the Guild’s original Latin deeds. The translations in Bieler’s calendar are rich in detail, maintain a fidelity to the original text, and also contain information related to the materiality of the deeds.

Aside from their intrinsic value as a source for the social and legal history of Dublin, its medieval residents, and the lordship’s government officials, presentation of the deeds alongside the calendar also offers a useful resource for students of Latin and palaeography.

By interlinking the new digitised edition of Bieler’s calendar, presented in TEI-XML, with images of the original documents, this Gold Seam offers new opportunities for historians, genealogists, and archaeologists to study the physical, social, and economic fabric of Dublin, especially during the Middle Ages.

The Guild of St Anne Gold Seam provides historians with unprecedented access to this unique and valuable collection, and opens a remarkable window onto Dublin’s past, tracing its streets, families, and fortunes over five centuries.

Within the records of the guild are glimpses of the city’s changing fabric and of the lives of those who shaped it, including merchants, craftsmen, officials, and women whose stories rarely surface elsewhere. In their day, these deeds were the routine paperwork of property and tenancy, yet their survival is nothing short of extraordinary in a city where so many records have been lost.

RIA GSA/5/8, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 4 Edward III, Item 8 (7 July 1330).

What can I find here?

The parchment and paper deeds now held in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy include approximately 718 documents ranging in date from 1237 to 1739. These are supplemented with approximately 175 further entries recorded in the Guild’s Abstract Book ranging in date from 1241 to 1796.

This Gold Seam includes:

High-resolution digital images and rich metadata for 718 original parchment and paper deeds, held by the Royal Irish Academy.

A digital calendar of the Deeds of St Anne, created by Ludwig Bieler (d. 1981) for the Irish Manuscripts Commission, and prepared for online publication by VRTI, with English summaries of 718 deeds. The calendar entries are presented in TEI-XML, and are interlinked with images of the original deeds.

The deeds in this collection date mainly to the 14th and 15th centuries:

1200s – c. 32 documents
1300s – c. 233 documents
1400s – c. 324 documents
1500s – c. 194 documents
1600s – c. 93 documents
1700s – c. 12 documents

This Gold Seam also includes a historical introduction to the Guild of St Anne, the archival history of the collection, and information on the deeds and the creation of the new digital calendar.

The Team

Dr Lynn Kilgallon, Research Fellow, VRTI
Dr Theresa O’Byrne, Associate Researcher, Delbarton School
Sadhbh Dunne, Archival Research Assistant, VRTI
Dr Eamonn Kenny, Senior Software Architect, VRTI
Dr Peter Crooks, Academic Director, VRTI

Scroll through Signatures and Notarial Marks in the Deeds

'Signum Manuale of Thomas Baghill, Notary' - RIA GSA/9/18, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 5 Henry VI, Item 18 (27 January 1431).

'Signature of James Dillon, Seneschal of the King' - RIA GSA/13/22, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 16 Henry VI, Item 22 (20 October 1500).

'Signum Manuale of James Yonge, Notary' - RIA GSA/9/22, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 11 Henry VI, Item 22 (12 December 1432).

'Signatories of Grant' - RIA GSA/18/17, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 19 James I, Item 17 (10 April 1621).

'Signatories of Bond' - RIA GSA/21/8, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 21 Charles II, Item 8 (6 September 1669).

'Ornamented Name of Walter Ewstas on Dorse of Deed' - RIA GSA/13/25, Deeds of the Guild of St Anne, 20 Henry VI, Item 25 (1 October 1504).

What can I do here?

Delving Deeper

Take a deeper look at the story told within this Gold Seam

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