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Duration 36:08

An introduction to the first tranche of colonial administration records released at The National Archives

The National Archives is working with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to transfer and begin releasing colonial administration records, referred to as the ‘migrated archives’ between April 2012 and November 2013, in accordance with the published timeline on the FCO website. The collection will form record series FCO 141: Foreign and Commonwealth Office and predecessors: Records of Former Colonial Administrations: Migrated Archives. The records cover a wide range of subject matter relating to colonial administration. The material reflects events in the territories generally pre-independence and Her Majesty’s Government’s views at the time.

This release contains records from Aden, Anguilla, Bahamas, Basutoland, Bechuanaland, British Indian Ocean Territories, Brunei, Cyprus, Kenya, Malaya, Sarawak and Seychelles.

Following the release of the first tranche of records on 18 April, Principal Records Specialist Dr Edward Hampshire discusses the origins of the ‘migrated archives’ and explains how to get the most out of your research.

Guide to the records (PDF, 0.49Mb)