175,000 new historical records released to mark 103rd anniversary of Four Courts fire
Available to view for the first time are more than 60,000 names from the 19th century census destroyed in the 1922 fire, which occurred during the Civil War.
Compiled from transcriptions preserved in the National Archives of Ireland and the Record Office of Northern Ireland, the recovered transcripts contain details of the lives of ordinary people across Ireland in the decades around the time of the Famine.
Started three years ago, the VRTI project is led by Trinity College Dublin and supported by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport.
'We are excited to release our latest collections freely online for citizen researchers, students, and the academic community. The scale, scope, and significance of these materials is remarkable,' Trinity historian Dr Peter Crooks said.
'They will be of huge interest to anyone exploring Ireland's story as a global island.
"Thousands of names of individuals from before and after the Great Famine; extensive intelligence reports from the Tudor era; and a host of medieval records presented in English alongside the original Latin parchment – these vast and varied collections are a testament to the power of collaboration.'
In the three years since it was launched, the VRTI has put together more than 350,000 records and 250 million words of searchable Irish history.
Other new additions to the VRTI include documents telling stories from the 1798 Rebellion and Irish links to the American Revolution, and five million words of Anglo-Norman Irish history from 1170 to 1500 translated into English.
'A stand-out for me is the extraordinary detective work by our research team and partners in Dublin and Belfast on the pre-Famine census returns. Millions of names were lost, tragically, in 1922 when those records went up in flames,' Dr Crooks said.
'But today, on the 103rd anniversary of the fire, we are releasing more than 60,000 names newly recovered from those very census returns.
"It's a tremendous achievement. What we have uncovered after years of painstaking archival work will help families across the world trace their story deeper into the Irish past.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Daily Mirror
7 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Town's residents in 'strong opposition' to 'controversial' Mise Eire festival
A number of residents and business owners in Castlebar are 'voicing strong opposition' to the 'controversial' Mise Éire festival slated for a hotel in the town this weekend - launching a petition to have the festival moved. Mise Éire Festival was initially set to take place on August 23 at the Mayflower Community Centre in Drumshanbo, Co. Leitrim, featuring 'live music, talks and workshops celebrating Irish culture, heritage and shared values'. One of the panel discussions is titled Echos of Éire, learning from Ireland's Past to Shape a Resilient Future from figures including far right writer John Waters, Brehon Academy founder Kevin Flanagan and others. But earlier in August, the Mayflower Community Centre in Drumshanbo informed the public that the event would not be taking place at the centre due to terms and conditions not being complied with'. The announcement followed an open letter signed by around 600 artists, musicians and arts workers including The Mary Wallopers, Chris O'Dowd, Fontaines D.C., Christy Moore, Frances Black, Stephen Rea and more being sent to the community centre calling on them to cancel what they called the 'far right' festival. The Mayflower Community Centre in Leitrim (Image: Mayflower Community Centre/Facebook) In a subsequent interview with Shannonside News, one of the festival's organiser Stephen Kerr explained that the festival would still be going ahead in Mayo, just outside Castlebar. He said the 'music and culture' festival would see 'talks and music all day long in three different areas.' Now, a number of residents and business owners in Castlebar are 'voicing strong opposition' to the 'controversial' Mise Éire festival and have launched an online petition to have the festival pulled citing 'significant concerns for public safety'. At the time of writing the petition had amassed over 2,000 signatures. 'Castlebar is a proud, welcoming town, especially at the height of our tourist season,' said one local concerned resident. 'An event shrouded in secrecy, which was already rejected by another community, is not welcome here. We are deeply concerned about the potential for disruption and the damage this could do to our reputation as a safe and inclusive place for families, visitors, and investors.' Christy Moore (Image: Getty Images) In an open letter, the coalition of residents and business owners wrote: 'An event shrouded in secrecy, which was already rejected by another community, is not welcome here. We are deeply concerned about the potential for disruption and the damage this could do to our reputation as a safe and inclusive place for families, visitors, and investors.' 'Further questions remain regarding an 'after-party' planned for an undisclosed rural location near the town. 'It is unclear if organisers have secured the necessary permits or put adequate safety and logistical plans in place, adding to the community's sense of unease. 'Concerned residents are urging local authorities and elected officials to address the lack of transparency and ensure all public safety, licensing, and planning regulations are strictly enforced.' Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Examiner
an hour ago
- Irish Examiner
Intel needs Ireland: Why US stake could help Leixlip, not harm it
The US Government's plan to take a 10% stake in Intel poses big questions for the future of the embattled chipmaker and its global operations. Having largely missed out on the recent boom in chips to power AI, the California-based giant is struggling to catch up with rivals Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which have both benefited from the soaring demand for generative AI. Intel's operational lapses are reflected in its latest earnings, with its most recent quarterly profit from the end of June of €3.5bn lagging significantly behind Nvidia's €26.7bn and TSMC's €17.6bn. The White House's potential deal aims to help Intel strengthen its US operations, serving as another means for President Donald Trump to fulfil his promise to grow domestic business and bring US companies home. The significant investment, which the Trump administration is also justifying on national security grounds, will likely carry a list of terms and conditions, if similar previous deals are anything to go by. Last year, the US government took an ownership stake in US Steel as part of a merger agreement with Japan-based Nippon Steel, enabling the controversial takeover while maintaining veto power over certain investment decisions in the interest of national security. These included strategic decisions such as plant closures, import levels and technology transfers - powers that would help the government protect US jobs and safeguard domestic production. At the outset, it seems a similar deal between the White House and struggling chipmaker Intel could have significant ramifications for Ireland, where its Leixlip hub serves as the key gateway to the European market. But should its Leixlip operations, Intel's second-largest base after the US, employing almost 5,000 people, really be worried about this potential new partnership? Since 1989, Intel has invested more than €30bn in its Irish operations, the majority of which has been injected in the last few years. In 2023, the chipmaker opened its €17bn Fab 34 facility, the largest construction project ever undertaken in Ireland, according to Intel, doubling the chipmaker's manufacturing space at its Leixlip hub. In June last year, asset management firm Apollo Global committed €10bn to Intel for a 49% stake in the Fab 34 facility, which allowed the chipmaker to retain majority ownership while gaining access to additional funding for future expansions. Leixlip's "critical role" The Leixlip campus is also poised to produce the majority of its Intel 4 technology, which includes the company's extreme ultraviolet (EUV) chips, the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing technology on the market. According to Intel, EUVs play a 'critical role' in driving the company towards its goals of delivering five nodes in four years and regaining leadership in process technology by 2025. Intel's Irish base also seems to have escaped the worst of global restructuring measures brought in by CEO Lip-Bu Tan to cut its workforce by 20%, with the expected job losses from its current round of layoffs far less than what would be considered proportionate. Intel's European operations are extremely intertwined, and the Leixlip facility is the epicentre. The Fab 34 facility in Leixlip is also part of what the company calls a 'first-of-its-kind end-to-end leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing value chain in Europe,' with the site being combined with a wafer fabrication facility in Germany and an assembly and test facility in Poland. EU chip production The company is also nicely positioned to benefit from the EU's goal to increase its global share of chip production to 20% by 2030 as the bloc seeks to enhance competitiveness on the back of the eye-opening Draghi report published last year. The EU is ready to give away billions to enable domestic semiconductor and chip manufacturing. If Intel moves its operations back to the US, it risks losing out on significant gains that it cannot afford to miss. While a government stake may help its financial woes, Intel's biggest problem is its lack of paying customers, a problem that President Trump could actually help fix by putting pressure on other US companies with large European operations to switch to Intel for their manufacturing needs. The US wants Intel to be a leader in chipmaking. For that to happen, Intel also needs to lead in Europe, for which a European hub is critical to prepare for a growing semiconductor market with ample money to spend. If it plays its cards right, Intel can simultaneously increase its customer base and benefit from the EU's push to strengthen its semiconductor industry. This will require a skilled workforce and a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility with a strong gateway to Europe. As much as Ireland needs Intel, Intel needs Ireland.
Agriland
2 hours ago
- Agriland
Govt must 'lead a strong push' in Brussels for focus on food production
The government "will have to lead a strong push in Brussels" to focus the debate around food production, a farm organisation has said. Securing a "workable" Nitrates Derogation along with a strong Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) must be major priorities for the government, the Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) is urging. IFA deputy president Alice Doyle, speaking at the Virginia Show in Cavan today (Wednesday, August 20), said that farmers have "worked tirelessly to improve water quality and have adopted sustainability measures which will serve further improvements". However, they "need to be provided with certainty, and most importantly clarity on retaining the nitrates derogation", Doyle said. 'The recent issue regarding the Habitats Directive has served to further frustrate and confuse farmers on the current position of our nitrates derogation. 'IFA made it clear to the minister last month that we need far more clarity on this aspect of the government's plan, which farmers see as moving the goalposts." Doyle said CAP "remains absolutely vital" to the future of Irish farming, and the proposed CAP reforms announced by the EU Commission last month "cannot be allowed to become reality". Recent IFA analysis shows that in the counties of Cavan, Leitrim, Longford, Meath, Monaghan and Westmeath, CAP payments of €321m were received in 2024, "playing a pivotal role in the rural economy of the Ulster/North Leinster region". 'The government will have to lead a strong push in Brussels to focus the debate around food production and the two-pillar approach," Doyle added. 'Here at the Virginia Show, we see the importance of farming to the region with the best of what Irish agriculture has to offer being put on display. "It is vital we are able to maintain this, and the formation of the next CAP is pivotal to being able to do so." The deputy president said that the importance of food security is "not being grasped seriously by wider society". "Farmers can see the risks, the next generation are not returning to farming, and that will continue to have a negative effect on food production and people are beginning to see the effects of falling output with rising prices," she concluded.
