English Historical Documents
English Historical Documents is a comprehensive, annotated collection of documents on British history. Conceived during the Second World War with a view to ensuring the most important historical documents remained available and accessible in perpetuity, the first volume came out in 1953, and the most recent volume almost sixty years later. English Historical Documents is now available in its entirety online.
The sources include treaties, statues, declarations, government and cabinet proceedings, military dispatches, orders, acts, sermons, newspaper articles, pamphlets, personal and official letters, and diaries. Each section of documents, and many of the documents themselves, are accompanied by editorial commentary. The sources cover a wide spectrum of topics, from political and constitutional issues to social, economic, religious as well as cultural history.
On this page you can find out more about the key features of English Historical Documents, view our online tour video and request more information.
Key features
Each document has been individually classified and indexed by experts at the Institute of Historical Research.
Quick and advanced search functionality.
Enhanced browsing options, including by theme, date, subject, people and place.
Print, share and citation tools.
All documents available in PDF to download and/or print.
Timeline.
Institutional access via Shibboleth (UK only).
Institutional account management functionality.
COUNTER-reports available.