About the Collections
The National Archives, as the official repository of State records, holds a variety of documents relating to the foundational years of the Irish State. These include the proceedings of the first (1919-1921) and second (1921-1922) Dáil and related activities. The establishment of the Irish State, and the decisions of those formative leaders, can be examined in the records held by the National Archives.
These records chart the most tumultuous and significant period in our Nation’s history, providing evidence of the decisions which determined the establishment of the State.
As part of its ambitious plans for decade of commemoration activities, the National Archives, in collaboration with the Houses of the Oireachtas Service, has digitised the complete holdings of the collections known as DE/2 and DE/4.