Domesday Book (1086) is the oldest and most famous public record, the 'jewel in the crown' of the National Archives. The history of the great majority of English towns and villages begins with Domesday Book which records - as one disgruntled contemporary complained - every sheep, cow and pig in the country, as well as every landowner, peasant and taxpayer and their resources. It is the most comprehensive collection of social and economic data of the pre-industrial world.

Electronic translations have become available in recent years, but at prohibitive cost; and the social and economic statistics simply did not exist. Now all of this data has been made freely available over the internet by a research team led by Professor John Palmer of the University of Hull - a project judged to be 'outstanding' by the Peer Review Panel which rates publicly-funded projects. It will be an invaluable resource for local and family historians and others interested in the early history of their country.

 

 

The data can be accessed through the Data Catalogue held at the UKDA. An Athens ID and password is needed to access the collection. For staff and students in UK higher and further education (HE/FE), and users from institutions listed at auth.athensams.net/orglist.php, Athens IDs are issued by their institution. For other users, including those not affiliated to any institution or organisation, a special UK Data Archive (UKDA) Athens account can be applied for by completing an Athens account registration form.

 

The next step is to register as a user with the UKDA. Once registered, a copy of the Electronic Edition of Domesday Book can be ordered via the 'Download/Order' link on the Data Catalogue record: www.data-archive.ac.uk/findingdata/snDescription.asp?sn=5694.

The data can be downloaded free of charge or delivered on CD for a fee.

This combination of Athens account and registration with the UKDA will also enable you to access, via the Data Catalogue, a large proportion of AHDS History and the Economic and Social Data Service's studies. Together these consist of over 5000 different datasets.

Note that the terms of the UKDA End User Licence indicates that your usage should be "only for the purposes of not-for-profit research or teaching or personal educational development".

Source: UK Data Archive 

• Domesday Explorer web site
• Electronic Edition of Domesday Book