Research Guides: HST 390: Colonial Encounters, 19th and 20th Centuries : Finding Primary Sources

General Primary Source Collections

Research Guide: Primary Sources at ZSR
Browse primary source collections by subject.

Empire Online This link opens in a new window
Brings together manuscript, printed and visual primary source materials for the study of 'Empire' and its theories, practices and consequences. The materials span across the last five centuries and are accompanied by a host of secondary learning resources including scholarly essays, maps and an interactive chronology. Coverage: 1400s-present

British Parliamentary Papers This link opens in a new window
Provides complete online coverage of the sessional papers of the British House of Commons from 1695 to 2015 and the 19th Century House of Lords. It covers working documents of government for all areas of social, political, economic and foreign policy. Coverage: 1688-2015
Migration to New Worlds This link opens in a new window
Module I. This module covers all aspects of the migration experience, from motives and departures to arrival and permanent settlement. Significant material on the movement of Indian and Chinese indentured labourers is included from The National Archives. Coverage: 1800-1924
Empire Online This link opens in a new window
Brings together manuscript, printed and visual primary source materials for the study of 'Empire' and its theories, practices and consequences. The materials span across the last five centuries and are accompanied by a host of secondary learning resources including scholarly essays, maps and an interactive chronology. Coverage: 1400s-present
Times Digital Archive (1785-2014) This link opens in a new window
Searchable, full-text, page image access to the Times of London, sometimes called the "world's newspaper of record." Access goes back to the first issue.

Apartheid South Africa This link opens in a new window
Provides access to British government files from the Foreign, Colonial, Dominion and Foreign and Commonwealth Offices, including previously restricted letters, diplomatic dispatches, reports, trial papers, activists' biographies and first-hand accounts of events. Coverage: 1948-1980
African Newspapers, Series 1 (1800-1922) This link opens in a new window
Search the full text of English- and foreign-language titles from Angola, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Coverage: 1800-1922
Confidential Print: Africa, 1834-1966 This link opens in a new window
Complete volumes of all British Government Confidential Print for Africa. All items marked ‘Confidential Print’ were printed and circulated immediately to leading officials in the Foreign Office, to the Cabinet and to heads of British missions abroad. Coverage: 1834-1966

Struggles for Freedom: Southern Africa
The liberation of Southern Africa and the dismantling of the Apartheid regime was one of the major political developments of the 20th century, with far-reaching consequences for people throughout Africa and around the globe. This collection focuses on the complex and varied liberation struggles in the region, with an emphasis on Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

British Foreign Office Files for China (1919-1980) This link opens in a new window
Contains diplomatic dispatches, letters, and more that circulated between The British Foreign Office in London and British embassies and consulates in China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong between 1919 and 1980. Coverage: 1919-1980

ProQuest Historical Newspapers: South China Morning Post
Search the archives of the South China Morning Post newspaper (Hong Kong) from 1903-2001.

British Foreign Office Files for India, Pakistan and Afghanistan (1947-1980) This link opens in a new window
Contains diplomatic dispatches, letters, and more that circulated between The British Foreign Office in London and British embassies and consulates in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkima and Kashmir between 1947 and 1980. Coverage: 1947-1980
India, Raj and Empire This link opens in a new window
Explore the history of South Asia between the foundation of the East India Company in 1615 and the granting of independence to India and Pakistan in 1947.
Times of India (1838-2010) This link opens in a new window
Provides searchable, full-text, page image access. Founded in 1838 to serve the British residents of West India, The Times of India is now the largest English daily newspaper in the world. Access goes back to the first issue. Coverage: 1838-2010

Archives of Latin American and Caribbean History, Sixteenth to Twentieth Century This link opens in a new window
Provides access to primary source materials for Latin America and the Caribbean back to the colonial period, including original manuscripts, signed letters, expedition records, reports, maps, diaries, descriptions of voyages, ephemera, and more. Materials are sourced from archival collections in the United States and Europe.
Confidential Print: Latin America, 1833-1969 This link opens in a new window
Complete volumes of all British Government Confidential Print for Central and South America and the French- and Spanish-speaking Caribbean. All items marked ‘Confidential Print’ were printed and circulated immediately to leading officials in the Foreign Office, to the Cabinet and to heads of British missions abroad. Coverage: 1833-1969

British Foreign Office Files for the Middle East (1971-1981) This link opens in a new window
Contains diplomatic dispatches, letters, and more that circulated between The British Foreign Office in London and British offices in the Middle East. Three modules cover: the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Oil Crisis, the Lebanese Civil War and the Camp David Accords, and the Iranian Revolution and the Iran-Iraq War. Coverage: 1971-1974
Confidential Print: Middle East, 1839-1969 This link opens in a new window
Complete volumes of all British Government Confidential Print for the countries of the Levant and the Arabian peninsula, Iran, Turkey, Egypt and Sudan. All items marked ‘Confidential Print’ were printed and circulated immediately to leading officials in the Foreign Office, to the Cabinet and to heads of British missions abroad. Coverage: 1839-1969

Confidential Print: North America, 1824-1961 This link opens in a new window
Complete volumes of all British Government Confidential Print for the United States, Canada and the English-speaking Caribbean, with some coverage of Central and South America. All items marked ‘Confidential Print’ were printed and circulated immediately to leading officials in the Foreign Office, to the Cabinet and to heads of British missions abroad. Coverage: 1834-1961

Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS)
The Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity.

HeinOnline This link opens in a new window
Provides hundreds of millions of pages of law and law-adjacent periodicals, essential government documents (federal, state, and international), international resources, case law, and more. Coverage: 1776-