Category Archives: For Undergraduate students

Welcome to Oxford! Library induction arrangements for new History undergraduates

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Long study desk in the Lower Camera with book shelves at the back and a window on the right.We warmly welcome all new History undergraduates starting in Oxford!

Libraries will play a big part during your time at Oxford, whether providing access to online articles on your reading list or helping you find that elusive book on the open shelves. There are over 100 libraries in Oxford and it can be quite confusing (and daunting) as you learn how to best use the libraries.

Within Bodleian Libraries, the main History collections for your study are available online 24/7 or are located in the Radcliffe Camera (which includes the History Faculty Library). College Libraries also have extensive collections for your course. To know where your books, journals and databases are, use SOLO which is Oxford’s discovery tool for libraries.

We also have organised a number of welcome sessions to help you get started:

Webinars

Webinars are taking place Wednesday to Friday of 0th Week (4 – 6 October) and have been scheduled into your timetable with further details provided by your college. If you miss your slot, you are very welcome to join any of the timetabled sessions. Further details (and MS Teams link) are available via Welcome to Bodleian Libraries webinars: Library – Induction and Information Skills training (ox.ac.uk)

Tours

We are running in-person tours for the Radcliffe Camera too but we have a booking system to manage capacity so spaces are limited. You can book via the following link Radcliffe Camera (incl. History Faculty Library) and are also very welcome to just come along to the library, as staff will be more than happy to help you if you have any questions.

Online guidance

There is also History Faculty Library-tailored information on Canvas, including:

Help

The libraries are here to help you in your studies. If anything is not clear or you are struggling to finding or accessing your readings, please do get in touch with library staff. You can do so in a variety of ways:

We wish you all the very best as you start a new chapter of your life in Oxford!

New: Women’s Studies Archive: Issues and Identities

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As we continue to grow our eresources collections on women’s history, we are pleased to announce that Oxford researchers now have access to Women’s Studies Archive: Issues and Identities.

Home page of the resource showing a search box and an image of a line of suffragettes holding a poster which reads "Mr Presidents, how long must women wait for liberty".

National Woman’s Party members picket outside the White House in 1917 with the message, “Mr. President, How long must women wait for Liberty” Source: Women of Protest: Photographs from the Records of the National Woman’s Party, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 12 © Gale Cengage

This collection traces the path of women’s issues in the 19th and 20th centuries, drawing on primary sources from manuscripts, newspapers, periodicals, and more. It captures the foundation of women’s movements, struggles and triumphs, and provides researchers with valuable insights. It focusses on the social, political, and professional achievements of women, the pioneers of women’s movements, and is useful to understand the issues that have affected women and the many contributions they have made to society.

It is, however, more generally also a useful resource to research WWI, WWII, social and economic conditions, and world events in the 20th century, as described and seen from women’s perspectives and revealed in periodicals, correspondence and papers.

Descriptions of daily life in e.g. letters also reflect on life, society and cultures across the world, including the Far East, Africa, and South America. Some biographical information of individual women and their families is also documented.

Excerpt of a letter reading: "The primary clases here in the school opened Veb [sic] 7, as well as course of admission given for those desireing to enter the hinasio (from the 5th grade through the 9th. The firls are lovely and many are from very fine families. The graduates from the colegio are in constant demand by government employers, business houses, post offices, etc. because the girls are so much better trained, more dependable, honest, efficient, and versatile. They are constantly raising the prestige of the school."

Excerpt of Letter of 6 March 1944 (Belo Horizonto, Brazil), The Gladys Oberlin Papers, 1943-1980, in Women’s Studies Archive: Issues & Identities. Source Library University of Oregon Library © Gale Cengage

Topics covered include

  • the history of Feminist theory and activism
  • domestic culture
  • lay and ordained church women
  • women in industry
  • women’s sexuality and gender expression
  • women’s education
  • women’s movement
  • women’s health and mental health
  • women and law
  • women and the control of their bodies
  • women’s roles and interactions within society.

The collections are:

  • European Women’s Periodicals
  • Malthusian, 1879-1921 (formerly Women and the Social Control of Their Bodies)
  • Women’s Lives
  • Women’s Labour League: Conference Reports and Journals, 1906-1977
  • Committee of Fifteen Records, 1900-1901
  • Grassroots Feminist Organizations, Part 1: Boston Area Second Wave Organizations, 1968-1998
  • Grassroots Feminist Organizations, Part 2: San Francisco Women’s Building / Women’s Centers, 1972-1998
  • Planned Parenthood Federation of America Records, 1918-1974
  • Herstory
  • Women and Health/Mental Health
  • Women and Law Collection
  • Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom: United States Section, 1919-1959
  • Collected Records of the Woman’s Peace Party: 1914-1920
  • Records of the Women’s Peace Union: 1921-1940
  • Women’s Trade Union League and Its Leaders

The sources comes from the New York Public Library, The National Women’s History Project, the London School of Economics Women’s Library, and many more.

Please note that many handwritten and type-script documents will be hard to read as the ink is faint in places.

While you are here, you might also be interested in:

New: Slavery and Anti-Slavery: A Transnational Archive, part II: Slave Trade in the Atlantic World

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We are delighted to announce that Oxford researchers now have access to Slavery and Anti-Slavery: A Transnational Archive, part II: Slave Trade in the Atlantic World.

This collection provides access to a wide range of materials to help understand the inception of slavery in Africa and its rise as perpetuated on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, with particular focus on the United Kingdom, France, and the United States.

It covers a wide spectrum of subjects related to the history of slavery: legal issues; economics; the Caribbean; children and women under slavery; modes of resistance; and much more, from 1490 to 1896.

Snippet from an 1851 court report, reading "Note. The following report is published at the request of numerous persons who are of opinion that all which is known of the operation of the Fugitive Slave Bill should be spread before the public. To the legal profession it will be of interest, as developing new points in the construction and application of a Statute, destined to be of great political importance now and in future history. They will be able to judge of the construction upon the Statute, and of the law of evidence, as laid down and applied by the Commissioner, and contended for by the representative of the Government. Not the profession alone but the public can judge of the temper and manner as to parties and witnesses in which the prosecution was pressed and the judicial duties performed."

Report of the proceedings at the examination of Charles G. Davis, Esq., on a charge of aiding and abetting in the rescue of a fugitive slave, held in Boston, in February, 1851 / Davis, Charles G. United States. Circuit Court (Massachusetts). Boston : White & Potter, printers, 1851
© Cengage

Sources

Sources include monographs and individual papers, account ledge books, diaries, names of slave ships, lists of captains and crews, details of slave ship seizures as well as description of slave conditions, company records, newspapers, and a variety of government documents.

The resource is also useful for finding European travellers and missionaries accounts (often the only records available to document the evidence of slavery in Africa) and European business records (particularly valuable for piecing together the many wars and commercial disputes among the African powers on the Gold Coast, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia area.

Geographical coverage

This resource is particularly relevant in its significant coverage of France, Haiti, Jamaica, Denmark, Portugal, Brazil, Senegal, and many other countries and regions.

Source institutions

The sources come from a variety of institutions including The National Archives (esp. Colonial Office records), Company of Royal Adventurers of England Training with Africa, British Library manuscripts, US Customs Service Records, and more. Material used in this collection include:

  • U.S. Customs Service Records: Port of New Orleans, Louisiana Inward Slave Manifests, 1807-1860
  • U.S. Customs Service Records: Port of New Orleans, Louisiana Outward Slave Manifests, 1812-1860
  • Exploration and Colonization of Africa
  • Selected Records of the Danish West Indies, 1672-1917: Essential Records Concerning Slavery and Emancipation
  • Appellate Case File No. 2161, United States v. The Amistad, 40 U.S. 518
  • Records of the U.S. District and Circuit Courts for the District of Connecticut: Documents Relating to the Various Cases Involving the Spanish Schooner Amistad
  • Records of the Spanish Governors of Puerto Rico, Registro Central de Esclavos, 1872 (Slave Schedules)
  • Company of Royal Adventurers of England Trading with Africa and Successors: Records
  • Heartman Manuscript Collection at Xavier University Library, New Orleans: Manuscripts on Slavery
  • Africa Squadron, 1843-1861; Letters Received by the Secretary of the Navy from Commanding Officers of Squadrons
  • The Yale University Collection of Latin American Manuscripts, Part V: The Caribbean
  • Oliver Pollock Papers, 1767-1788
  • Vernon-Wager Papers, 1654-1773
  • Jamaica Manuscripts Collection, 1774-1950
  • British Library Collections
  • Aaron Thomas papers, 1798-1799

Sensitive content

Please note that you may encounter harmful and/or offensive material during your research. It is important to approach sensitive topics with cultural awareness and respect for the lived experiences of marginalized groups and individuals.

Related resources:

Trial until 12 October: Records of Bethlem Royal Hospital 1559-1932

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Oxford researchers are invited to trial Records of Bethlem Royal Hospital 1559-1932. This resource is useful for the study of mental health care throughout the ages. It is relevant for the study of:

  • History of mental health, madness, lunacy, etc.
  • History oif mental health services and treatment
  • Lunacy Reform & legislative history
  • Social & family history
  • Military history (esp. First World War)
  • History of crime
Colour print of the Bethlem Royal Hospital building. Superimposed text reads: Mental health care throughout the ages This record collection provides extraordinary levels of detail about patients of the Bethlem Royal Hospital dating as far back as the 17th century, providing real insight into what life was like in this infamous institution.

© Images reproduced by courtesy of the Trustees of the Bethlem Museum of the Mind; © Findmypast Ltd.

Bethlem Royal Hospital is a psychiatric facility in London. It was established as a priory of the Order of St Mary of Bethlehem in 1247, before beginning to care for mentally ill patients sometime in the 14th century. Often referred to colloquially as ‘Bedlam’—and generally accepted to be the origin of the very same noun—past incarnations of the institution were infamous for their questionable diagnosis of mental illness and poor treatment of patients.

This collection contains four centuries’ and 130,000 images’ worth of records from Bethlem. The records are diverse in both form and subject matter. They include:

  • Admission, Discharge, and Death Registers, 1683-1919
  • Female Patient Casebooks, 1778-1913
  • Male Patient Casebooks, 1793-1913
  • Voluntary and Curable Patient Casebooks, 1816-1913
  • Criminal and Incurable Patient Admission Registers and Casebooks, 1778-1864
  • Patient Casebooks from the First World War, 1914-1919
  • Management of Bethlem Royal Hospital, 1559-1932 (incl. staff salary books, minutes of the Court of Governors)

All handwritten items have been fully transcribed.

Screenshot from CB-004: Female Patient Casebooks, 1793-1816, p66: 'Anne Fletcher, admitted June 15 1805.'

© Images reproduced by courtesy of the Trustees of the Bethlem Museum of the Mind; © Findmypast Ltd.

Scholars and students alike will find that, together, the records provide a unique insight into the evolution of so-called lunacy laws – from an early reliance on control of the mentally ill through coercion and restraint to the later emergence of doctrines of self-discipline and moral management.

The trial ends on 12 October 2023. Please email feedback to isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.

New eresources: more South Asian newspapers databases

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[posting on behalf of Emma Mathieson, Subject Librarian for South Asian studies]

We are very pleased to let historians know that Oxford now has access to two new South Asian newspaper databases.

The first is Readex’s South Asian newspapers : historical newspapers from South Asia.

Landing page of the database 'South Asian Newspapers: historical newspapers from South Asia', showing a asearch boxThis gives access to 10 publications, including Amrita Bazar Patrika, the Ceylon Observer, and the Madras Mail. The database provides scans of original pages and the contents can be searched by keyword or browsed by date. Unfortunately, keyword searching does not seem to be possible for the titles in South Asian languages. These are Amrita Bazar Patrika, Bankura Darpan and Kayasare Hinda and although full-text search is not available, browsing by date of publication is straightforward and readers can easily scroll through individual issues. I am following up the question of keyword searching for these particular titles with the supplier.

The dates of coverage are not the same for each title. The earliest issue available is the 30th November 1864 issue of the Ceylon Observer’s predecessor, the Colombo Overland Observer. The latest date covered is 31st December 1922, for which copies of four separate titles are available. Readers can see a full listing with dates. As with all these databases, some gaps are inevitable.

The other database is the near identically-named South Asian newspapers (to distinguish them on SOLO and Databases A-Z look out for the subtitle/lack of a subtitle).

The landing page of South Asian Newspapers (by Centre for Research Libraries) showing a search box and three photos, including a black & white photo of Ghandi and Nehru in discussion.

This is a new open access resource, hosted by East View in collaboration with the Center for Research Libraries, and it is part of East View’s Global Press Archive database. This collection complements nicely the Readex database, comprising a further dozen titles, including the Ceylon Daily News, the Malabar Herald and the Pakistan Observer. There are also three titles in South Asian languages, the Dainika Basumati (Bengali), Dnyanaprakasa (Marathi) and Samaja (Nepali).

The coverage of titles in this collection is wide-ranging and generally later than the titles in the Readex database. There are a couple of titles from the 19th century, but the majority are 20th century, and in fact most are post-1945. You can see a full list by going to the home page and selecting the “title navigation” link.

While you are here…

New: Central Asia, Persia and Afghanistan, 1834-1922: From Silk Road to Soviet Rule

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Oxford reseachers now have access to Central Asia, Persia and Afghanistan, 1834-1922: From Silk Road to Soviet Rule (Archives Unbound).

‘This collection of documents sheds a remarkable light on British and Anglo-Indian foreign policy and intelligence across the Persianate world – Russian Central Asia, Qajar Persia and Afghanistan. It contains a wealth of diplomatic correspondence and memoranda – much of it intercepted from Britain’s rivals and neighbours in the region – which include much ethnographic, religious and cultural material alongside the purely political. It will be an essential resource for scholars and students alike.’ Dr Alexander Morrison, University of Oxford.

Landing page for the resource. Image shows a colour print of an Oriental market scene.

Central Asia Persia and Afghanistan 1834-1922: From Silk Road to Soviet Rule © Adam Matthew Digital 2023

From Adam Matthew Digital:

“This collection of Foreign Office files explores the history of Persia (Iran), Central Asia and Afghanistan from the decline of the Silk Road in the first half of the nineteenth century to the establishment of Soviet rule over parts of the region in the early 1920s. It encompasses the era of “The Great Game” – a political and diplomatic confrontation between the Russian and British Empires for influence, territory and trade across a vast region, from the Black Sea in the west to the Pamir Mountains in the east.”

Included in the resource “are 188 volumes from FO 65 and all 11 volumes of FO 106, comprising original correspondence, drafts and enclosures which detail ‘Proceedings in Central Asia’ from 1858 to 1905; 30 volumes of general correspondence relating to Central Asia from FO 371, dated 1920-1922; and 118 Confidential Print files for Central Asia from the FO 539 series, covering 1820-1971. Maps previously included in these volumes and extracted to form part of the MFQ, MPK and MPKK series are also made available here.”

“The collection begins with materials relating to Britain and Russia’s relations with regional powers in the 1830s, and continues with volumes which can be used to explore the Anglo-Afghan Wars, conflicts between Russia and its neighbours to the south, the construction of strategic infrastructure, border disputes and confrontations including the Panjdeh Crisis, and continued competition between Britain and Russia for influence and territory into the early twentieth century, ending with documents which describe fears of Communist subversion in British India and growing Soviet influence over the governments of Afghanistan and Persia.”

Snippet from Affairs of Persia and Afghanistan Correspondence Part I page 3: Correspondence relating to the affairs of Persia and Affghanistan [sic]. No 1: Mr McNeilk to Viscount Palmerston (received April 28 1837). Described of transmitting a copy of a letter from the Indian government and discusses British intentions towards Afghanistan and Persia.

Affairs of Persia and Afghanistan Correspondence Part I page 3. 1837-1838, FO 539/1, in Central Asia, Persia and Afghanistan, 1834-1922: From Silk Road to Soviet Rule © Images including crown copyright images reproduced by courtesy of The National Archives, London,

The Foreign Office files contain:

  • Correspondence
  • Telegrams
  • Intelligence Reports and Agents’ Diaries
  • Newspaper clippings, and translations of Russian-language articles
  • Maps and plans
  • Government reports and memoranda
  • Copies of treaties and agreements
  • Photographs, sketches, and landscapes.

The documents are mostly in English though some French items are included. You can search and browse in various ways. Some documents are digitised manuscripts.

While you are here, you might also be interested in:

New: US Department of State documents relating to Middle and Near Eastern affairs

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Thanks to our colleagues, Oxford researchers now have access to 5 new databases providing accesss to important source materials for Middle and Near Eastern history in the 19th and 20th centuries. The sources are all drawn from the US Department of State so obviously present an interpretation of affairs from a US perspective. On the other, and by virtue of being in English language, this source material is easily accessible to those without the requisite linguistic skills.

These resources are useful to those researching:

  • the history of many Middle and Near Eastern countries, incl. internal and foreign affairs, economic and social history with US commentary.
  • Arab foreign policy and diplomatic relations
  • Arab-Israeli relations, Palestine conflict
  • the history of US diplomatic and foreign policy, foreign relations and the organisation and management of the diplomatic service.
  • the support by the Department of State given to US citizens living or travelling in the Middle and Near East.
  • the foreign policy of other Western powers
  • Western colonisation and de-colonisation of the Middle and Near East
  • Military history, Suez Canal Crisis 1956, etc.
  • Christian-Muslim relations and conflict
  • Biographical details of Middle and Near Eastern politicians, officials, political or religious activities.

The countries include Aden, Egpt, Iraq, Libya and Persian Gulf States and Yemen.

The records from the US Department typically include correspondence, field reports, intelligence reports, agents’ diaries, memos, dispatches, minutes, maps, and newspaper excerpts. They provide much insight and a huge amount of detail on people, events and places. They help to understand the development of foreign policy and read of frank and the confidential exchanges of views and thoughts between US officials.

Cover page from the American Consulate in Port Said, dated 7 Jan 1955, noting the enclosure of the dispatch of a compendium of biographic information on leading personalities in the Suez Canal Zone and the Sinai Peninsula.

Central File: Decimal File 774.521, Internal Political And National Defense Affairs., National Defense Affairs. Army, Navy And Air. (General)., Intelligence Activities. Subversive Activities., Biographical Data. (** Nationality Of Individual). January 7, 1955 – November 13, 1957. MS, Egypt: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1853-1962: Records of the Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs of Egypt (Decimal Files 774, 874, and 974), 1955-1959. National Archives (United States). Archives Unbound (accessed August 17, 2023). https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/SC5111706452/GDSC?u=oxford&sid=bookmark-GDSC&xid=a51625b1&pg=2.

In many instances, the documents include verbatim records of meetings and discussions, or transcripts from local or regional media. Digitised documents have captured handwritten or typed annotations and official stamps.

Typed list of Arab names with brief biographical details. 'Abed, Muhammed: wa'ez [sic] of the Canal. Prominent religious figure. Effective speaker of the old school. Tall, well set up. About 55. Used at most public gatherings in Port Said.

Central File: Decimal File 774.521, Internal Political And National Defense Affairs., National Defense Affairs. Army, Navy And Air. (General)., Intelligence Activities. Subversive Activities., Biographical Data. (** Nationality Of Individual). January 7, 1955 – November 13, 1957, p2. MS, Egypt: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1853-1962: Records of the Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs of Egypt (Decimal Files 774, 874, and 974), 1955-1959. National Archives (United States). Archives Unbound (accessed August 17, 2023). https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/SC5111706452/GDSC?u=oxford&sid=bookmark-GDSC&xid=a51625b1&pg=2.

1. Aden: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1880-1906 (Archives Unbound)

Aden’s strategic location long made it a strategic asset. The British captured Aden in 1839, and it served as a key port on the route from the Mediterranean to India via the Suez Canal. The documents in this collection are sourced from the Central Files of the General Records of the Department of State. The records are under the jurisdiction of the Legislative and Diplomatic Branch of the Civil Archives, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

2. Egypt: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1853-1962 (Archives Unbound)

This archive covers Egypt from the years before the opening of the Suez Canal through the era of British domination, Egyptian nationalism, and independence. The documents are sourced from the Central Files of the General Records of the Department of State. The records are under the jurisdiction of the Legislative and Diplomatic Branch of the Civil Archives, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

3. Iraq: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1888-1944 (Archives Unbound)

Iraq, from Ottoman rule through British colonial occupation and independence, is treated here from the perspective of the United States. The documents are sourced from the Central Files of the General Records of the Department of State. The records are under the jurisdiction of the Legislative and Diplomatic Branch of the Civil Archives, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

4. Libya: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1796-1885 (Archives Unbound)

This archive documents the American consulate in Tripoli. Included here are correspondences of Secretary of State James Madison during the Tripolitan War, 1801-1805, between the United States and the piratical North African Barbary States. Handwritten correspondences from Secretary of State William H. Seward in the Lincoln Administration, relating to the opening of the port of New Orleans in 1862, and exchanges from Secretary of State James G. Blaine, in the Garfield Administration, make this a rich resource in U.S. diplomatic history. The collection is sourced from the Central Files of the General Records of the Department of State. The records are under the jurisdiction of the Legislative and Diplomatic Branch of the Civil Archives, National Archives and Records Administration,

5. Persian Gulf States and Yemen, The, 1950-1959 (Archives Unbound)

This Archives Unbound collection of U.S. State Department Central Classified Files relating to the internal affairs of the Persian Gulf states and Yemen, contains a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats.

These documents highlight the structure and activities of the Persian Gulf States’ and Yemen’s political system, government, judiciary, laws, military, customs, economy, finance, agriculture, natural resources, industry, communications, and media. Because of the broad scope of these records, they both supplement and complement the coverage offered by the State Department’s Foreign Relations of the United States series.

While you are here, you may also be interested in:

Do you want to know which other resources are useful for your study? Check out our LibGuides:

Useful Oxford Libraries and subject specialists:

New: Napoleon – Letters and Papers: Sources of a Family

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The homepage of the resource, showing a brief introduction and a search box. The introduction reads: "About this database There is hardly any other family who influenced European history between the late eighteenth and early twentieth centuries as much as the Bonapartes did. From the French Revolution to the Treaty of Versailles, the members of this family influenced all spheres of public and private life in politics, art, literature, science, administration, the military, and even landscaping. To this end, they corresponded in writing with all important contemporaries. "Calling all Napoleon researchers and 19th century French historians! You will be pleased to know that a major resource Napoleon – Letters and Papers: Sources of a Family is available as an Open Access resource.

This database, published by de Gruyter, provides access to the Bonaparte family’s autographs and correspondence. It is a valuable source for the study of French and European history, science, and intellectual attitudes from the late 18th century to the early 20th century.

The project will at first publish the correspondence of Prince Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (who would later become Emperor Napoleon III) until 1838, thereby covering the period that the Bonaparte-de Beauharnais family spent in exile at Lake Constance. A 2023 database update will contain his correspondence until 1873. The database will, for the first time, compile his surviving autographs into a collection that will make it possible to reinterpret the emperor’s personality and biography.

Future plans include adding digitised letter and papers of:

  • Hortense de Beauharnais (launch planned for 2024)
  • Eugène de Beauharnais-von Leuchtenberg (launch planned for 2025)
  • Joséphine de Beauharnais (launch planned for 2026)

(Information has been taken from Overview.)

Image of the transcribed letter on the left with the manuscript letter on the right. The snippet reads: "Londres le 30 Juin 1831 Mon cher Général, Je vous remercie bien de votre aimable lettre. J’ai été enchanté d’apprendre que la Duchesse de Frioul avait uni son sort au vôtre, et comme j’ai une tendre vénération et un véritable attachement pour elle, et que j’éprouve pour vous une sincère amitié, je ne sais qui je dois féliciter davantage ; ou le Général Fabvier d’avoir épousé la Duchesse de Frioul, ou la Duchesse de Frioul d’avoir épousé le Général Fabvier. "

“Londres le 30 Juin 1831 […]” In Napoleon – Letters and Papers edited by Christina Egli and Dominik Gügel. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Oldenbourg, 2023. https://www.degruyter.com/database/NAPO/entry/nt_18300630_a/html

You can search full-text or browse the resource in various ways, including by place and person. Most of the letters will be in French. The correspondence stretches across Europe, esp. Germany, Switzerland, Italy and England.

The letters are transcribed and can be viewed side-by-side with the digitised manuscript letter.

Biographical annotations helpfully identify people mentioned, even if they used an alias.

While you are here, you might also be interrested in:

New: China and the Modern World: Imperial China and the West, Part I: 1815–1881

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Landing page of the resource with a searhc box and a thumbnail image of a historical map of China.Oxford researchers now have access to China and the Modern World: Imperial China and the West, Part I: 1815-1881.

This database is an essential primary source archive for researching the internal politics of China and Britain, their relationship, and the relationships between other Western powers keen to benefit from the growing trading ports of the Far East. The sources are all in English.

Digitized in two parts from the FO 17 series of British Foreign Office Files (The National Archives, UK) Part 1 of Imperial China and the West provides General Correspondence relating to China from 1815–1881. The FO 17 series provides a vast and significant resource for researching every aspect of Anglo-Chinese relations during the nineteenth century, ranging from diplomacy and war, to trade, piracy, riots and rebellions within China, international law, treaty ports and informal empire, transnational emigration, and translation and cross-cultural communication.

Start of a letter from Sir Henry Pottinger, written 5 Jan 1844, on the subject of British opium. The letter mentions that a report is enclised,.

From Sir Henry Pottinger. MSS: FO 17/78 5.Jan 1844. China and the Modern World, Gale/ Cengage

This archive is comprised of material digitized from collections held by The National Archives (Kew):

These hand-written documents have been opened up to scholars with the use of Handwritten Text Recognition (HTR) technology. The manuscripts are fully searchable and you can see the transcript together with the original manuscript.

While you are here, you might also be interested in…

New: C19: The Nineteenth Century Index

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Landing page of the resource, showing the search box, and various images in the background, such as Napoleon and Jane Austen.Oxford researchers now have access to C19: The Nineteenth Century Index.

This database is a bibliographic resource for 19th century research, comprising tens of millions of records and providing integrated access to finding aids for books, periodicals, official publications, newspapers, archives, and reference material.

Where do the citations in C19 come from?

The 25 million+ records in C19 Index to date are from the following sources:

  • American Periodicals
  • The “Bookman” Directory of Booksellers, Publishers and Authors
  • British Periodicals
  • Cotgreave’s Index
  • Cumulative Index to Niles’ Register 1811–1849
  • Dictionary of Nineteenth Century Journalism
  • House of Commons Parliamentary Papers
  • An Index to Legal Periodical Literature
  • The Nineteenth Century
  • Nineteenth-Century Short Title Catalogue
  • Palmer’s Index to The Times
  • Periodicals Index Online
  • Poole’s Index to Periodical Literature
  • Proceedings of the Old Bailey
  • Stead’s Index to Periodical Literature
  • The U.S. Serial Set
  • The Wellesley Index to Victorian Periodicals, 1824-1900 (previously held as a separate database)

Searching

Users can query its component indexes simultaneously or can conduct more detailed research using search pages for specific indexes or content types.

How do I find the full-text?

Once you have found a citation, you can then locate the full-text in SOLO. Archive.org and HathiTrust are also good resources to find out-of-copyright 19th century publications.

While you are here, you might also be interested in…