Accessing the digitised Northern Ireland Troubles records

Thursday 23 Apr 2026 @ 12:15
National Archives

The Northern Ireland Digitisation Project is making material related to the Troubles free to view online. This blog post explains where to find these records, how they are organised in our online catalogue, and how the new Troubles subject tag helps users explore the collection as it grows.

The Northern Ireland Digitisation Project is opening up access to thousands of UK Government records relating to the Troubles, making material that was previously only available in person at The National Archives in Kew free to view online. The first release of almost 1,000 digitised files is now available through The National Archives’ website, marking an important step in broadening access to these historically significant records.

Explore the records

Orange folder from the Northern Ireland Office

Discover the first release of documents within the Northern Ireland Digitisation Project on Discovery, our online catalogue.

Where to find the records

All digitised records released as part of the Northern Ireland Digitisation Project are available through Discovery, The National Archives’ online catalogue.

When we refer to digitised records, we mean records that can be viewed on a computer screen, including on a desktop, laptop, tablet or mobile device. In most cases, users can download copies of these records to their own devices without needing to visit The National Archives in person.

Digital records are still free to access onsite at Kew and, for now, free to download at home for signed‑in users, subject to fair use. Digitised records display a ‘Download’ option on Discovery, allowing immediate access to the content.

Channel website: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

Original article link: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/explore-the-collection/the-collection-blog/accessing-the-digitised-northern-ireland-troubles-records/

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