International Relations Archive

Identity Statement

Reference code(s)	: GB 0117 IR
Held at	: Royal Society   Click here to find out how to view this collection at https://royalsociety.org/collections/ ›
Full title	: International Relations Archive
Date(s)	: 1953-1989
Level of description	: Collection (fonds)
Extent	: 114 boxes
Name of creator(s)	: International Council of Scientific Unions
Detailed catalogue	: Click here to view repository detailed catalogue

Context

Administrative/Biographical history:

The Royal Society is the UK adhering body for the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU).

Content

Scope and content/abstract:

Correspondence and papers relating to the Royal Society relations with the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU), current files contain:
a) British National Committee for Geodynamics (BNC Geodynamics) 8 files, 1970-1980
b) International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) 24 files, 1963-1980
c) International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) loose papers, 1980-1982
d) International Union of Radio Science (URSI) 6 files, 1968-1976
e) International Biological Programme (IBP) 4 files, 1970-1975 (but a much larger collection of IBP papers from the Society's modern records centre has been microfilmed between 2001-2005 and the originals destroyed because of their poor physical condition). The archive holds mateial relating to the International Geophysical Year (IGY), 1957-1958, particularly the establishment, administration and scientific results from the Royal Society Base at Halley Bay, Antarctica.

Access & Use

Language/scripts of material:
English

System of arrangement:

As set out above in Scope and Content.

Conditions governing access:

30 year rule applies. Halley Bay papers closed until listed.

Conditions governing reproduction:

No publication without written permission. Apply to Archivist in the first instance.

Finding aids:

A brief handlist (prepared by Sally M. Grover) of the items (a) to (e), provides descriptions of individual files, old and new reference numbers, and chronological extent. An index appended to the Archive Card Catalogue gives the same information in alphabetical order of organisations and groups within each International Union. The Halley Bay papers have a short handlist; committee papers in the collection may be accessed via the lists of such papers in CMB/106 e-f.

Archival Information

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

Allied Materials

Related material:

The papers from the Royal Society Base at Halley Bay, Antarctica comprises 95 boxes of files and scientific data, 33 bound volumes and various artefacts. In addition, a substantial collection of the British National Committees papers have been transferred to the archive from the Society's modern records centre. The largest collection of papers are those of the British National Committee for Geodesy and Geophysics (13 boxes, 1956-1989) the British National Committee on Space Research (14 boxes, 1959-1983) and the British National Committee on Oceanic Research (6 boxes, 1960-1988).

Publication note:

Description Notes

Archivist's note:
Copied from the Royal Society catalogue by Sarah Drewery.

Rules or conventions:
General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal Place and Corporate Names 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions:
Feb 2009.