Lisicky Collection

Identity Statement

Reference code(s)	: GB 0369 SLIS
Held at	: School of Slavonic and East European Studies   Click here to find out how to view this collection at http://www.ssees.ucl.ac.uk/archives/ ›
Full title	: Lisicky Collection
Date(s)	: 1915-1948
Level of description	: Collection (Fonds)
Extent	: 20 boxes
Name of creator(s)	: Lisicky | Karel | fl 1918-1948 | diplomat
Detailed catalogue	: Click here to view repository detailed catalogue

Context

Administrative/Biographical history:

Karel Lisicky served in the Czechoslovak diplomatic service from its foundation in 1918 when Czechoslovakia gained her independence. He served in the Czechoslovak embassy in Paris, 1918-1926 and in Warsaw 1927-1931. From 1932 until 1936 he was part of the Czechoslovak delegation to the League of Nations. In 1936 he was appointed Counsellor of the Czechoslovak embassy in London. He remained in this position throughout the Munich crisis and World War Two, during which time Czechoslovakia was under German occupation and the Czechoslovak Government in exile was based in London. After the end of the war and the restoration of Czechoslovak independence Lisicky was posted to the Czechoslovak delegation to the United Nations where he was on a number of committees. Most notably he was chairman of the United Nations Palestine Commission which was set up to partion Palestine in 1948. Later in 1948 Lisicky resigned from the diplomatic service after the Communists took power in Czechoslovakia. He spent the remainder of his life in exile in Britain.

Content

Scope and content/abstract:

Correspondence and papers of Karel Lisicky on Czechoslovak foreign relations, 1915-1948, comprising:
Papers on the work of the Czechoslovak Embassy in Paris, Czechoslovakia's economic situation, Czechoslovak/Polish relations, Czechoslovak/German relations and the League of Nations, 1918-1937;
papers on the Munich agreement and its aftermath, 1938-1939, including including correspondence between the Czechoslovak embassy in London and the British Government, the British and Czechoslovak Governments and Wickham Steed, documents on the aftermath of the Munich Crisis including correspondence between the Czechoslovak embassy in London and Prague about refugees and propaganda funds and between the London embassy and the British Government; correspondence and papers on Czechoslovak resistance in exile, 1939-1945, including papers on the work of the Czechoslovak embassy in London, the formation, activities and financial situation of the free Czechoslovak movement, organisation of Czechoslovak resistance outside of Britain and the United States, organisation of Czechoslovak military forces in Britain and relations between the Czechoslovak and Polish Governments in exile; documents on the position of Sudeten Germans after German occupation, the attitude of the Czechoslovak Government in exile to future relations with West Germany, peace negotiations with Germany and Austria and situation in Czechoslovakia in the immediate post war period, 1938-1947 (mainly 1940-1947); papers on Lisicky's role as member of the United Nations 4th Commmittee on Trusteeship and the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine, 1946-1948; press cuttings on the Munich Crisis and the occupation of Czechoslovakia and assorted periodicals, 1915-1948

Access & Use

Language/scripts of material:
Czech, English, French, German, Polish and Russian

System of arrangement:

Papers arragged in six classes, as described in scope and content above.

Conditions governing access:

Unrestricted access. Researchers wishing to consult the archives or seeking further information should contact UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES) Library, 16 Taviton Street, London WC1H 0BW.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Copies, subject to the condition of the original, may be supplied for research use only. Requests to publish original material should be submitted to the Librarian.

Finding aids:

Online catalogue available on the UCL Archives website.

Archival Information

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

Allied Materials

Related material:

The Library also holds some papers of Jan Masaryk, (Czechoslovak ambassador to London 1925-1938 and Czechoslovak foreign minister 1940-1948)

National Register of Archives: Click here to view NRA record

Publication note:

Description Notes

Archivist's note:
Revised by Alan Kucia as part of the RSLP AIM25 Project.

Rules or conventions:
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description ISAD(G), 2nd edition 2000 and National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997

Date(s) of descriptions:
Revised Dec 2002