"This is a collection of 9,000 wills of Irish soldiers in the British Army who were killed during World War 1 and today marks the launch of the first phase of this digitisation project. This significant collection is the only official collection in the National Archives which concerns the soldiers who fought. The content of the documents gives insight into the lives of the soldiers who died in the war. Many of the soldiers were young, too young to have wives and children and most of the bequests are to fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers or their comrades in arms."

The Minister acknowledged the ongoing work of the National Archives and the reputation the National Archives of Ireland has developed in the field of digitisation.

"This initiative along with the hugely successful online Census records of 1901 and 1911, not forgetting the Treaty Exhibition all combine to ensure that the online resources made available are easily accessible and user friendly, for researchers and members of the public alike" concluded Minister Deenihan.