In 1924 the reference library of the Chief Secretary’s Office was transferred from Dublin Castle to the Houses of the Oireachtas.
The Dublin Castle collection (6,800 items) contains a variety of formats including historical monographs, maps, periodicals, cartoons, prints and pamphlets. The collection is particularly distinct in its holdings of visual and periodical material.
Given the wide range of publication dates, major themes and topics of Irish history are represented. These include materials relating to:
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The 1641 rebellion,
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The Restoration land settlement,
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The Popish Plot and Exclusion crises,
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The United Irishmen,
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The Act of Union,
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Catholic Emancipation,
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The Great Famine,
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The Land League,
- 1912–1916.
The Special Collections include original manuscript material, most notably the correspondence of George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland from 1767 to 1772. This original manuscript material is unique to our collection and is not held elsewhere. Our Special Collections are an extremely important repository of material relating to Irish affairs in the nineteenth century, especially with regards to the Fenian movement of the 1860s.
Collection Dates
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Additional Details
Custodial Information
The Oireachtas Library has legal ownership of this collection.