Pocket diaries belonging to Michael Collins covering the years 1918 to 1922 have been presented to Taoiseach Micheal Martin.
The diaries, spanning the War of Independence, the Anglo-Irish treaty negotiations and the Civil War, were presented by members of the Collins family, ahead of the centenary of his death in August 2022.
They will be given to the National Archives on a long-terms loan, where they will undergo conservation and preservations treatment, and will be digitised to enable public access to the diaries.
I want to thank the Collins family for working with @NARIreland to ensure Michael Collins’ diaries are preserved for the future.
The public, researchers and scholars will be able to learn much more about one of the most turbulent periods in our history, from 1918 to 1922. pic.twitter.com/859BpJihV8— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) November 8, 2021
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Mr Martin said: “These diaries tell the story of one of the most turbulent periods in our history through the political and personal day-to-day life of Michael Collins from 1918 to 1922.
“There are many new discoveries that will be revealed through the diaries which will now become part of the national collection at the National Archives.
“This will allow the public, scholars and researchers learn much more about the events leading up to and following the foundation of the State.
“We want to thank the Collins family for their generosity in working with the National Archives to ensure the long-term preservation of the diaries.”
The diaries were presented to the State in a ceremony at Michael Collins’ birthplace in Woodfield, Clonakilty, Co Cork on Monday.
A spokesperson for the Collins family said: “These five work diaries of Michael Collins were given by our grandfather Johnny Collins (Michael Collins’ older brother) to his son, our father, Liam Collins.
“We are delighted on his behalf to give these important records to the Irish people through the good offices of the National Archives.
“The family hope to involve Clonakilty in the public presentation of these diaries. This would be very important to our father.
“We are honoured, on our father’s behalf, to hand over these historic records to An Taoiseach and to welcome him to Woodfield today, the birthplace of Michael Collins, which our father lovingly reclaimed and preserved and gifted to the State in October 1990.”
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said the diaries would provide “unique insight” about the life of Collins, one of the leading figures in the War of Independence.
Some of the details contained in the diaries have never been made public.
“These diaries will act as a major research asset for historians of 20th century Ireland about pivotal moments of change in Irish history, particularly in the context of the Cork Decade of Centenaries commemorations and the revolutionary period,” Mr Coveney added.
Helen & Maurice Collins, relatives of Michael Collins, kindly presented his pocket diaries (1918 - 1922) for long-term loan to @NARIreland
These precious diaries give special insight into such a turbulent time in Irish history.https://t.co/igO0G8Gdpd pic.twitter.com/vCIo4wAZV3— Catherine Martin TD (@cathmartingreen) November 8, 2021
Minister for Culture Catherine Martin said: “We get a special insight into such a turbulent time in Irish history through these precious diaries.
“I am also very grateful to the family for their kind loan and the diaries will now be deposited in the National Archives.
“They are an important legacy for the State in the context of the Decade of Centenaries marking such a significant figure in the history of the State.”
The Decade of Centenaries started in 2012, and marks a century since some of the most significant milestones in the foundation of the Irish State, including the 1916 Easter Rising, the War of Independence and the Civil War.
