Ireland Estate Records

Introduction
All land in Ireland was held by the Crown according to the feudal doctrine of allodial tenure and would revert (escheat) to the Crown in instances of attainder, felony or lacking a legal heir. Estate records are the land records for the common social classes in Ireland. The large landed estates were held by the upper social class who leased the property to tenants throughout Ireland. Some were absentee landlords, living elsewhere in the British Isles but holding property in Ireland. The overseer managed these properties on behalf of the landlord and had broad oversight for the lives of those living on the land. To search the Irish estate records, the researcher needs to identify the name of the landlord and if the records of that estate still survive. During the early twentieth century, many large landed houses and the records of these tenants were destroyed during movement for independence. Estate records may give names, relationships, ages, residences of emigrants and other details of value to the family historian.