Foreign and Commonwealth records from 1782 - The National ...

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Enter your keyword (such as a country or person) and your chosen record series code You can further restrict your search by date Some record series have indexes and registers which may be more effective than a keyword search – see below for more information Please note that a number of the records described below have either been reproduced in published volumes, or more recently in commercial licensed digitisations (see Further reading). These may provide an easier method of accessing the records than consulting the original documents. 4. General correspondence: 1782 to the present 4.1 Searching general correspondence The general correspondence consists of the original papers accumulated in London: original despatches from British representatives abroad with any enclosures drafts of outgoing despatches; minutes domestic correspondence with foreign representatives in this country, with other branches of the British government and with private individuals and bodies. General correspondence covers a large number of record series. Until 1938 their catalogue descriptions are usually very basic, often giving nothing more than the surname of the relevant diplomatic representative (to 1905) or the name of the country (from 1906), but there are registers and indexes that can help. 4.2 General correspondence 1782-1905 Records before 1906 are in the series FO 1 to FO 82 and FO 99 to FO 110. For the most part, they are arranged by country. There are also some series of a general or miscellaneous nature not related to a particular country: FO 83 (General correspondence, Great Britain and other); FO 84 (Slave Trade department correspondence); FO 95 and FO 96 (Miscellanea); and FO 97 (supplements to general correspondence). To locate records within general correspondence 1782-1905, search our catalogue, or browse our catalogue from FO. For further details on the contents of each records series refer to the following registers and indexes: To 1891: Library series registers and indexes (FO 605). These are the best registers and indexes to access the major record series up to 1891. Registers and indexes arranged by country; consist of subject indexes which refer to registers which then refer to the records in FO 1 to FO 90 and FO 95 to FO 105 1891-1905: Indexes to departmental registers (FO 804). Arranged by country or subject; coverage is good but not comprehensive. Photocopies of selected volumes are in The National Archives' reading rooms (FO 738); they must be cross-referenced with departmental registers (see below) Departmental registers (FO 566). Registers of correspondence by department. Useful for an overview of correspondence up to 1890. 1891-1905 these are main form of reference, in conjunction with the indexes to departmental registers Note that reference conversions from old Foreign Office to current National Archives references will be necessary 4.3 General correspondence 1906-1966 From 1906 the general correspondence covering for all countries is arranged in a small number of subject series. Of these, the political correspondence (FO 371) is by far the largest and generally most important.
Description Catalogue reference Political correspondence FO 371 Africa correspondence to 1913 (from 1914 see FO 371) FO 367 Commercial and sanitary correspondence to 1920 FO 368 Consular correspondence FO 369 Treaty and protocol correspondence FO 372 Wartime departments (First World War) FO 382, FO 383 News, library, information, communications, cultural relations, publicity Claims correspondence from 1946 FO 950 To locate records within general correspondence 1906-1966: 1906-1920: Online catalogue descriptions are very basic, usually containing only a country's name; for search tips see section 2 above. For detailed searching refer to the following registers and indexes: Card index to correspondence 1906-1920 (FO 1111). Comprehensive card index to correspondence by name, subject and place. Located in the reading room at The National Archives. From 1906 to 1909 must be used in conjunction with departmental registers Departmental registers (FO 566). Registers of correspondence by department. Useful for an overview of correspondence 1920-1966: Online catalogue descriptions are very basic until 1939, and generally give only moderate detail thereafter; for search tips see section 2 above. For more detailed searching refer to the following indexes: Index to volumes of correspondence 1920-1953, 1959 (FO 409). Comprehensive index volumes to correspondence by name, subject and place. 1920-1951 volumes have been published: Index to Foreign Office Correspondence (Kraus-Thomson 1969-82, 131 volumes) The National Archives does not have any registers or indexes for 1954-1958 or from 1960 onwards. Researchers interested in these period should identify record series using this guide and then use a keyword search (detailed above) In the 20th century, and particularly after 1914, these registers and indexes often provide references to records since destroyed. Note that reference conversions from old Foreign Office to current National Archives' references will be necessary. 4.4 General correspondence after 1966 In 1967 the registries of the Commonwealth Office and the Foreign Office were merged, more than one year before they themselves were combined as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. From this point, the records are arranged in regional geographical groups or subject groups reflecting their departmental organisation. The geographical general correspondence series are: FO 395 , FO 370, FO 627, FO 850, FO 924, FO 953
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