In Ireland, these records were held in a single repository, the Public Record Office. In 1922, this was in two locations, the Bermingham Tower of
Dublin Castle and the
Four Courts on
Dublin's quays. However, the vast majority of records, particularly before 1790, were held in the Four Courts. When the Four Courts was occupied by
anti-Treaty forces of the
Irish Republican Army in April 1922, the
pro-Treaty forces came under pressure to remove them. Following the assassination of the British Field Marshal,
Henry Hughes Wilson by anti-Treaty forces on 22 June, the British government pressed the
Provisional Government to take action or else British forces, still occupying Ireland, would intervene. On 27 June,
Michael Collins, leader of the pro-Treaty IRA, gave the order to attack the occupying force in what is widely regarded as the opening shot of the
Irish Civil War. In the process,
whether by external artillery or internal sabotage, most of these records were destroyed. The Irish State Paper Office contains papers from the offices of: •
President of Ireland •
Taoiseach •
Oireachtas, i.e.
Dáil Éireann and
Seanad Éireann •
Departments of State There are papers also from former offices of state, including: •
King of Ireland •
Monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland relating to Ireland •
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland •
Chief Secretary for Ireland •
Under Secretary for Ireland •
Irish House of Commons &
Irish House of Lords •
House of Commons of Southern Ireland •
Attorney-General for Ireland •
Governor-General of the Irish Free State The Irish State Paper Office was formerly located in
Dublin Castle, while the Irish Public Records Office was located at the
Four Courts. In the late 1980s the distinction was abolished and both archives merged and moved to a new
National Archives of Ireland in Bishop Street in Dublin. ==United Kingdom==