Hi Ed

The first challenge is that a significant amount (most, according to some) records were destroyed in the Easter Uprising in Dublin in 1916. My maternal tree hits a brick wall for this reason. I reckon that parish records would fill significant gaps, provided you know the parish. For general ethnicity and geogpahy of the Maude surname, this is invaluable:
http://www.nationaltrustnames.org.uk/ Just click 'search for a surname' and you're away. You'll see it's an English name, and concentrated today in the same area as in the late 1800s (circa Leeds/Bradford, Yorkshire).

I wish you well in this fascinating yet frustrating game, especially given Maude is such a rare surname! Any info you pick up would be welcome.

Cheers, Chris