The Great Parchment Book is a key source for the history of 17th century Ireland and the Plantation in particular. Also important are the 1641 Depositions – witness testimonies, mainly by Protestants, but also by some Catholics, from all social backgrounds, concerning their experiences of the 1641 Irish rebellion. This material provides a unique source of information for the causes and events surrounding the 1641 rebellion and for the social, economic, cultural, religious, and political history of 17th century Ireland, England and Scotland. The 1641 Depositions are held at Trinity College Dublin (Trinity College Dublin, MSS 809-841) and comprise 19,010 manuscript pages in 31 bound volumes.

Like the Great Parchment Book, the 1641 Depositions (as reported in a previous post More 17th century Irish history online) are also available online in a fully searchable digital edition including transcripts and images of all 8,000 depositions and associated material at www.1641.tcd.ie.

The 1641 Depositions have also been arranged for print publication in 12 volumes from 2014 onwards. The first three volumes have now been published by the Irish Manuscripts Commission as follows:

Volume I: Armagh, Louth & Monaghan

Volume II: Cavan & Fermanagh

Volume III: Antrim, Derry, Donegal, Down & Tyrone

Further details are available on the Irish Manuscripts Commission website.