Key Events in Irish History
1002
– Brian Boru becomes King of all Ireland.
1560
– Queen Elizabeth I of England declares the Anglican Church
(Church of Ireland) to be the official state church of
Ireland.
1605
– The Plantation of Ulster is started, bringing many Scots
to Ulster to supplant the native Irish and strengthen
English rule. These Scots-Irish settlers are primarily
Presbyterian.
1619
– The earliest known parish register was begun at the Church
of Ireland (Anglican) church in Dublin.
1637
– Presbyterian worship is suppressed by the Church of
Ireland.
1674 – The oldest known Presbyterian register
begins in Antrim, County Antrim.
1695
– 1728 – Penal laws against the Catholic majority are in
force. This means that the Catholic clergy were banished,
Catholic parish registers are forbidden, and Catholics are
deprived of the right to vote, own property, inherit
property, and hold office.
1717-
1775 – A large emigration of Scots-Irish to American begins
due to economic pressures and natural disasters. Over
250,000 Scots-Irish emigrate.
1750
– Some Catholic registers begin in urban areas.
1766
– A religious census is taken of all the heads of households
in Ireland. The records were later destroyed, however, some
transcripts survive.
1772
– 1795 – The Catholic Relief Acts gradually restore the
rights taken away by the Penal Laws.
1821
– The first census is taken in Ireland, however this and
later censuses are destroyed in 1922. Some fragments may
remain for specific areas.
1829
– Irish Catholics become free to practice their religion
without persecution, and many parish registers begin.
1823
– 1838 – The Tithe Applotment is taken. It is a tax enacted
on all heads of household to support the Church of Ireland,
no matter what their religion.
1845
– Civil registration for Protestant marriages begins.
1845 – The Irish
potato famine strikes Ireland. One million people die, and
more than two million people emigrate to other countries.
1848
– 1864 – Griffith’s Valuation is taken, listing the head of
household, and landowner for every piece of property. The
valuation is used to support poor law relief.
1864
– Civil registration of all birth, marriages, and deaths
begins.
1869
– The Church of Ireland is no longer recognized as the state
church of Ireland.
1901
– The census is taken in Ireland. This is the first complete
surviving census of Ireland.
1911
– The 1911 census is taken, and survives intact.
1916
– The Irish Rebellion begins, leading to the creation of the
Republic of Ireland, a free state, in 1921.
1922
– A civil war causes the creation of the Republic of Ireland
(the Irish free state), and Northern Ireland (a part of the
United Kingdom). The Public Record Office in Dublin is
burned during fighting in the civil war, resulting in the
loss of many key Irish records.
Sources:
Ireland Research
Guide (http://net.lib.byu.edu/fslab/researchoutlines/Europe/Ireland.pdf);
Grenham,
John, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors, Third Edition,
Genealogical Publishing Company, 2006.