History: primary source material
You will need to access primary sources, such as archives, as part of your research for projects or your dissertation. The University holds much primary source material ranging from the Record Society publications described in Series of books for history to the University of Reading's Special Collections service.
- Special Collections at the University of Reading
- Locating archives elsewhere: UK
- Locating archives elsewhere: Overseas
- Online primary source material
- Parliamentary publications
Special Collections at the University of Reading
Special Collections service is based at the Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) and is available for all students of the University. The wide range of subject interests available can be used to support your research, offering unique and rare primary source items. The following tips will help you make good use of the collections:
- Search the collections using the category or keyword search facility or browse the A-Z list of collections.
- Use the Undergraduate Dissertation Subject Explorers to find out more about using Special Collections for your dissertation.
- Contact the University Archivist or the UMASCS Librarian for help.
- Find out about using the collections and plan your visit in advance.
Locating archives elsewhere: UK
When searching beyond our Library, the following online sources may be useful.
AIM25
An online catalogue of archives held in over 100 higher education institutions, learned societies, cultural organisations and livery companies within the greater London area.
Archives Hub
A national gateway to descriptions of archives in UK universities and colleges
National Archives
The National Archives, based at Kew, is the official archive of the UK Government. There are many different ways to search this broad resource. Links to local repositories such as Access to Archives (A2A) and the Archon Directory are well worth looking at if you are studying specific areas, as are other repositories. From this site, it is possible to access the full text of the Cabinet Papers 1915-1978. There is also a growing collection of other online primary sources DocumentsOnline available to purchase.
Locating archives elsewhere: Overseas
If you are looking for records kept overseas, try:
- Archivi is the main site for information on Italian archives
- Archives de France contains plenty of information on French archives
- Bundesarciv is the website of the German federal archives
- UNESCO Archives Portal is a useful source of information on archives from across the world
Online primary source material
Medieval
Early modern
- British Newspapers 1600-1900 (cross-search the Burney Collection and 19th Century British Library Newspapers)
- 17th and 18th Century Burney Collection
- ECCO (Eighteenth Century Collections Online)
Modern
- 19th Century British Library Newspapers
- 19th Century British Pamphlets collection available on JSTOR
- 19th Century UK Periodicals
- BFI InView - video recordings from 1920 to 2005
- British Library Archival Sound Recordings
- Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports 1974-1996
- Gale NewsVault
- John Johnson Collection: an archive of printed ephemera
- London Broadcasting Company/Independant Radio audio archive
- MediaHub
- Newsfilm Online
- The Times Digital Archive
Parliamentary publications
Parliamentary publications are available from a number of sources:
Parliamentary rolls of medieval England (PROME)
The parliamentary rolls of medieval England from the reign of Edward I (1272), until Henry VII (1509) are displayed in translation alongside the original Latin, Anglo-Saxon and Middle English versions. Ask at the 4th Floor Information Desk for details of how to access.
House of Commons Parliamentary Papers (18th - 20th Century)
Full-text of House of Commons Parliamentary Papers from three centuries.
HANSARD 1804–2004
This experimental website gives access to Hansard's official reports of the Houses of Parliament. Eventually the site will go back to 1804, although it currently starts in the 1880s. Coverage ends in 2004. For reports on events subsequent to 2004, consult Contemporary Hansard on the UK Parliament website.
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