The Irish Land Commission (or simply Land Commission) was created in 1881 as a rent fixing commission by the Irish Land Act 1881 for Ireland. Later the commission developed into a tenant-purchasing commission and assisted in the transfer of land from landlord to tenant, in this respect it transferred 13.5 million acres (55,000 km²). The commission was reconstituted by the Land Law (Commission) Act, 1923,[1] this law included the dissolving of the Congested Districts Board. In 1983 the commission ceased acquiring land; this signified the start of the end of the commission's reform of Irish land ownership. The commission was dissolved on March 31, 1999 by the Irish Land Commission (Dissolution) Act, 1992[2] and most of the remaining liabilities and assets were transferred to the Minister for Agriculture and Food, many historical records are held by the National Archives of Ireland. The commission, whilst often regarded as the champion of land ownership for those who used it, was not without controversy. In particular its subdivision of land into uneconomic units has been a lasting effect as well as the destruction of landlords residences such as Monellan Castle and Shanbally Castle on Irish Government approval.
