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her assassin jumping on her breast several times while he repeatedly stabbed her with his sword.’


Looking into the British archives to identify series of political reports from 1917 onwards we found reports and despatches sent from the British diplomatic representatives based in Petrograd and then Leningrad, and for a brief period during the Second World War from diplomats based in Kuibyshev, where most of the Russian government and all the foreign embassies were evacuated as a result of the Nazi advance on Moscow in the early stages of the German invasion of Russia in 1941. The documents also consist of reports and memoranda emanating from the Foreign Office in London, either in the Northern Department or in the Research Department (F.O.R.D.)., and during the confused period of the Civil War, when there were no British diplomatic representatives in (Bolshevik) Russia, there were reports from the War Office in London, military officers and diplomats attached to the various missions with the anti-Bolshevik forces, as well as from British Army General Headquarters in Constantinople. It was the first time these documents have been published in their entirety – with the


exception of two collections of reports about the confusing situation in Russia immediately after the Revolution and during the Civil War, which were published as British Parliamentary Command Papers in 1919 and 1921. This extract which follows is a superb example of a historical document that captures a moment in history, and at the same time


‘By scrutinising history which we could learn lessons that would make the future a more positive place’


provides the reader with a fine understanding of the contemporary significance conveyed by the tone of the writer. Extract from Soviet Union: Political Reports 1917–1970, Quarterly Report No. 54, 8 April 1953: ‘A quarter which began with the “doctor’s plot”, took in its stride Stalin’s death and his succession by Malenkov and ended with Chouen-Lai’s acceptance of the voluntary repatriation of Korean War prisoners, has claims to be historic.


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Is archive content relevant to current research and why is it still so valued in the ‘digital era’?


The growing value of video content in the modern academic library


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In an age when content is sourced through various media, and available on campus and remotely, video can assist the needs of the modern day researcher and lecturer, providing a means of accurate communication and digestible delivery.


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‘The apparent departure from attitudes which, while Stalin was alive, seemed immutable, is astonishing enough. But even more remarkable is that the process of change should have been initiated before he was cold in his grave, and by men whom we still have no reason to suppose were not, while he was alive, anything but his devoted associates.’ It can be seen from the documents showcased here that British government papers are a rich source of information and inspiration. While it is surely inevitable that all governments will have national interest at the heart of foreign policy, it is also certain that by scrutinising history which we could learn lessons that would make the future a more positive place.


It is a sad indictment of the moral and intellectual strength of contemporary politicians that the world is not in a better position already. We hope that we can look forward to a new generation of more globally- minded young people to reach out and create a stronger network of organisations and institutions of government, both nationally and globally.


Jessica Lagan is publisher at Cambridge Archive Editions, an imprint of Cambridge University Press


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