Abdication secrets, Boyzone hysteria and Shannon as a NASA stop: Day One of the Irish State Papers

"The British Government asked Irish officials to withhold from public release any documentation relating to the dramatic 1936 abdication of King Edward VIII. Confidential files released as part of the State Archive revealed Britain's sensitivity to any documentation releases in respect of the Royal family despite the passage of almost 32 years since the King stepped down after less than a year on the throne in favour of his younger brother, King George VI, so he could marry an American divorcee."

"The Government examined a secret study in the 1970s whereby Northern Ireland could become a United Nations Trusteeship with its own UN force. The confidential study was so secret that one Government memo warned that it must be done without consulting the UN - or even Ireland's mission to the UN in New York. One potential model for the arrangement was the temporary administration of Jerusalem by the First Committee of the UN General Assembly."

Confidential state files show the British Government asked Irish officials to withhold documentation related to King Edward VIII's 1936 abdication. Files indicate British sensitivity about releasing Royal family records decades after the abdication, which saw Edward step down to marry an American divorcee. A secret 1970s study examined whether Northern Ireland could be placed under United Nations trusteeship with its own UN force and recommended avoiding consultation with the UN or Ireland's UN mission. A 1986 government briefing suggested sending cervical smears overseas for testing to save costs rather than training domestic laboratory engineers, noting testing delays and expenses.

Read at Irish Independent