Posted on 26 August 2020
The Archives of the German Federal Foreign Office (Politisches Archiv) is marking the centenary of its establishment. As archival repository on German foreign policy, it is not only important for knowledge management at the Federal Foreign Office, but also as invaluable source for research into the history of diplomacy, international relations, and European integration.
The establishment of the main archives, which was given its present name Politisches Archiv, in 1923, was decreed in August 1920. Prior to that, the Foreign Office had only maintained records offices for current files and for inactive records that were no longer needed for daily operations. The holdings of the Politisches Archiv represent today over 27 kilometres of files, which also include the treaties concluded with other states.
The HAEU in Florence has collaborated actively over many years with the Politisches Archiv. In the framework of this cooperation and within a project of the European Union Diplomatic Archives Group EUDIA, the Politisches Archivmade available in 1998 to the HAEU a selection of microfiche copies of its AA/PA B 15 holdings on the negotiations of the Schuman Plan.
Read more on the centenary of the establishment of the Politisches Archiv and consult the inventory of the Politisches Archiv Schuman Plan collection at the HAEU.