The Decade of Centenaries - marking the role played by the Four Courts and celebrating 100 years of the Irish courts system.

Robert Emmet Day

Robert Emmet Day

Robert Emmet Day

On July 23, 2024, some 221 years after Robert Emmet’s unsuccessful rebellion, the Courts Service is hosting a special programme of events at Green Street Courthouse, the site where Emmet delivered his famous oration.

Robert Emmet Day

Courts of Justice Act,1924

Members of the High Court and Supreme Court in 1924

Courts of Justice Act,1924

2024 is the centenary of the Courts of Justice Act,1924 that established our modern Courts system

Courts of Justice Act,1924

Women in Law exhibition

Women in Law exhibition

Women in Law exhibition

We hosted an exhibition featuring pioneering women in the law in Ireland on the ground floor of the Four Courts in Autumn 2023. The women were the first to hold their roles and in the intervening years, we have seen more women succeed them in these and other roles.

The exhibition has been recreated online.

Women in Law exhibition

The Four Courts and the Civil War

The Four Courts and the Civil War

The Four Courts and the Civil War

The Four Courts played a major role at the start of the Civil War in 1922.

Read on to learn about the battle, Rory O'Connor and the O'Connor communiqué now on permanment display in the Four Courts.

The Four Courts and the Civil War

Constitution of the Free State 1922

The Constitution Committee

Constitution of the Free State 1922

To mark the centenary of the adoption of the Constitution of the Irish Free State (Bunreacht Shaorstáit Éireann) by Act of Dáil Éireann on 25 October 1922, the National Archives and the Courts Service of Ireland present a unique event: a dramatic re-enactment of the proceedings of the 1922 Constitution Committee, performed in the Constitution Suite of the Shelbourne Hotel where the committee met.

Click the link watch the reenactment video (hosted on YouTube).

Click the link watch the reenactment video (hosted on YouTube).

Four Courts 100

Four Courts 100

The Decade of Centenary Commemorations Committee commemorated the historic events of 1922. To find out more about the programme of events that took place, you can still download our Centenary Programme..

You can also access a day-by-day account of events during the occupation of the Four Courts in 1922 on our dedicated Twitter page @FourCourts100 which will continue to include other significant events following the battle for the Four Courts, the rebuilding and the new courts system that came into being in 1924. 

Four Courts 100 App

Four Courts 100 App

Our app is now available to download from the Apple Store and Google Play Store – to download, please click on the store names, or use the QR code to access the page on our App website..

The app provides a fascinating account of the tumultuous events in 1922 that helped shape the country.

From the moment it was first built to its reconstruction after the Civil War, this app lets you discover the story of the Four Courts no matter where you are. 

Four Courts 100 Lecture Series

Four Courts 100 Lecture Series

The Four Courts 100 Lecture Series took place in Spring/Summer 2022. Vist our Four Courts 100 Lecture Series page to access recordings of all lectures.

 

Speaker Date Time  Location Topic
The Hon. Mr Justice Gerard Hogan 28/4/22 6.30.p.m. Supreme Court The Count Plunkett habeas corpus application and the end of the Dáil Supreme Court
The Hon. Mr Justice John Hedigan and panel 12/5/22 6.00p.m. Court Of Appeal National Archives - The Memory of a Nation
Liz Gillis and Las Fallon 19/5/22 6.30.p.m. Supreme Court Unheard Voices: Civilians/Firemen and the Battle for the Four Courts
Prof. Diarmaid Ferriter 26/5/22 6.30.p.m. Round Hall Despair and Defiance: The Four Courts Crisis 1922
Prof. Eunan O’Halpin and Ruth Cannon BL 2/6/22 6.30.p.m. Supreme Court An all-island war? Ireland 1922-24 / Women and the Occupation of the Four Courts
Michael Fewer, Catriona Crowe and Ciaran O’Connor 24/6/22 6.00.p.m. Round Hall

Launch of the photographic exhibition - The Battle of the Four Courts - The first three days of the Civil War - Michael Fewer

Rebuilding the State: A Mosaic of Memories -Commemorating the people, the buildings and their story -Ciaran O’Connor , State Architect / Principal Architect OPW

Bláthna Ruane SC 7/7/22 6.30.p.m. Supreme Court Turned upside down: law, the judges, and the legal professions in 1922