The British Library

The British Library holds the largest collection of manuscripts containing Irish language material outside Ireland, totalling over 200 items. The manuscripts date from the 12th to the 19th centuries, with a wide range of genres represented, including medicine, religion, law, grammar, history, and poetry and prose literature. The earliest manuscript is probably the Gospels of Mael Brigte (Harley MS 1802), made in Armagh in 1138, which contains Irish colophons and poems on the Magi, Christ and the Apostles. Other highlights include a collection of medical tracts in Irish and Latin dated to 1459 (Harley MS 546) and a legal and grammatical miscellany compiled by Domhnall O Duibhdábhoirenn in the 16th-century (Egerton MS 88).

While Irish language manuscripts are found in all the British Library’s major collections, the largest group are the 121 manuscripts of the Irish historian and lawyer James Hardiman (1782–1855), which were acquired by the British Museum in 1832 using funds from the bequest of Francis Henry Egerton, eighth Earl of Bridgewater (1756–1829).

Detailed descriptions of the Library’s Irish manuscripts are published in: Catalogue of Irish Manuscripts in the British Museum, 3 vols (London: British Museum, 1926–1953), Vol. I by Standish Hayes O'Grady (1926), Vol. II by Robin Flower (1926), Vol. III by Robin Flower, revised by Myles Dillon (1953). The Library’s online catalogue for manuscripts and archives is available at https://searcharchives.bl.uk. Manuscripts may be consulted in person in the Manuscripts Reading Room. Details of how to apply for a reader pass can be found on the British Library’s website: https://www.bl.uk. For enquiries regarding access to the collection, please email mss@bl.uk.