A screengrab of the cover page of Oscar Traynor’s statement to the Bureau of Military History.
I’m over the moon to see the Bureau of Military History statements from the revolutionary period have gone online as PDFs, making them accessible to the general public at the click of a button. You can access them by clicking here. Previously, you had to travel to the National Archives of the Military History Archives to view these priceless documents. They recall the recollections of participants in the revolutionary period, and were collected by the state between 1947 and 1957. As a primary source they are priceless, though it should be noted they are by no means the only such source, with Ernie O’Malley for example interviewing men and women about their involvement in the period too. Focusing on the period 1913-21, the BMH statements stop just short of the civil war in 1922, whereas O’Malley and others who have carried out such research tended to ask about that period of history too.
The statements can be searched for key words, or you can browse alphabetically. In addition to the Witness Statements, the BMH website has uploaded priceless audio interviews with some participants in the revolutionary period, including Maud Gonne McBride, William O’Brien and others. They can be heard here.
The site is also home to some rare images from the period, available to view in great detail. This image below shows a raid on Sinn Féin HQ on Harcourt Street in September 1919.
‘P11: (a) Raid by British Military on Sinn Fein H. Q., Harcourt St., Dublin, September 1919.’ (BMH)
The hosting of these statements online for the general public, making them accessible to people far and wide, is a great achievement and the BMH deserve credit for their efforts. In the run up to the centenaries of the Lockout, the Easter Rising and the War of Independence, these files are now where they belong at last.
Click on the book for more.
Click on the book for more.
Donal
Ciarán
Sam
Come Here To Me! 
I have been waiting for this and it’s wonderful! Thanks for the post! I will be in Dublin next month to research the 1916 Rising and, now that I won’t have to spend days at the National Archives, what would you recommend? I am already planning to take a Glasnevin Cemetery tour, the Rising walking tour and I will definitely go back to Kilmainham Gaol…
They’re all excellent. Another one to check out is the Pearse Museum and School, a bit out from the city but a great spot and only a bus trip away. Also, Dublin City Library and Archives(Pearse St) have all newspapers from the time on handy to use microfilm. Enjoy your trip. The 1916 tour with Lorcan Collins is a must do.
I have Lorcan Collins’ book and I am really looking forward to his tour! I didn’t know about the Pearse Museum. Is that where his St Edna’s school was located? I didn’t know about the city library archives either, just those at the National Library. I’ll add them to my list. Thanks again!
This is completely addictive. My favourite find so far is that the code-phrase to greet the arrival of arms on a Connemara beach near Inverin in the middle of the night via a German U-Boat was to be “It’s a fine night, glory be to God”, the correct response being “Seadh, maise, buidheachas le dia.” Amazing and addictive!
Hi Juliet! I recommend seeing Tom Clarke’s shop and also the Rotunda (ask Lorcan about it when on the tour…he’ll let you know where it is), 16 Moore Street, etc. St. Enda’s is indeed the Pearse Museum. Such an amazing place. Mount Street Bridge is also an important piece of this history, as well as Arbour Hill and the Barracks.
Thank you, Traci! Those ARE important and I didn’t even have the Rotunda on my list. I can’t wait…