Brian DONOVAN
Eneclann
Irish Land Records: the Landed Estate Court Rentals
The Incumbered Estates Commission was established in Ireland in 1849 to manage the sale of estates that had become severely indebted following the Famine. It was replaced by the Landed Estate Court (LEC) which existed until 1879. Around 3,000 estates were sold between 1849 and 1879 and it is the records relating to these estates that will be the focus of this presentation. The records (now housed in the National Archives of Ireland) include maps and descriptions of the estates concerned, details of the tenants and types of lease they held, plus occasionally illustrations of the property and details of its historical ownership. explains the background to the Landed Estate Court and, through examples, he demonstrates the importance of these records and the information that may be gleaned from them.