Commonwealth studies
The Library's holdings of Commonwealth related material are outstanding, offering an exceptional opportunity to study its development and history, member nations, and post-colonial studies.
Collections Development Coordinator: Julio Cazzasa
Email: Julio.Cazzasa@london.ac.uk
Schedule an online meeting to discuss your research or collection related enquiries.
Commonwealth studies
The Library's holdings of Commonwealth related material are outstanding, offering an exceptional opportunity to study its development and history, member nations, and post-colonial studies.
Collections Development Coordinator: Julio Cazzasa
Email: Julio.Cazzasa@london.ac.uk
Schedule an online meeting to discuss your research or collection related enquiries.
Introduction
The Commonwealth subject is particularly well represented in the Library. The material covers many important events and developments in the history of the organisation and is directly related to the Institute for Commonwealth Studies (SAS-University of London). Stressing in the post-colonial era the Library offers a unique opportunity to study the development and continuing history of this group of nations. Includes a rich collection of printed material, in particular pamphlets and ephemera relating to political activity, struggles for independence and the business of government across the Commonwealth. In this subject the Library maintain a sequence of Teaching Collection intended for the Institute students.
The archive material comprises the papers of individuals and the records of organisations. Themes include anti-apartheid movement, civil rights and liberties as well political activism (including women’s activists), journalism and communications, education, workers’ rights and trade unions, pressure and campaigning groups, independence movements and the relationship between Britain and these countries after political emancipation.
More information
Location
Commonwealth Studies books are located on the 6th floor.
Print periodicals
Most back issues of periodicals and some monographs are shelved in the stacks. These will display the location Stack Service [ICOMM]. Please request these in person from the Service Desk, 4th floor. Some books are also held in the Offsite Store.
Please note that Teaching Collection books and journals are kept in a separate sequence. This is a short loan collection for Institute of Commonwealth Studies MA in Human Rights students and is available for Reference use for other users.
Finding articles
- A first approach can be done using Encore in the Library’s Online Catalogue. Also, ou can search multiple journals at once using electronic resources such as the Bibliography of British and Irish History, or Historical Abstracts 1955-, and back runs in JSTOR: Scholarly Journals online (full text) or the Periodicals Index Online.
- A - Z Databases at LibGuides.
- Ruth First papers.
- African National Congress papers.
- The Nelson Mandela Trials collection.
- More material is possible to be found in Special Collections. Including: Latin America Political Pamphlets, the Goldsmiths’ Library of Economic Literature (early travel accounts, items on slavery and early economic literature), and the Heisler Collection.
- Link to the Commonwealth Institute website?
Note: The archive material as well as the rare books and ephemera are consulted in the Special Collections Reading Room.
Image credit
Simon Berry, CC Wikipedia.
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Suggest a book
We are always happy to review suggestions for new items to add to the collections.