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Middle East: primary sources

British government

British policy in Asia: India Office memoranda [microform]
Microfiche 669
39 microfiches
Printed guide: DA47.9.I4B74
Consists of memoranda prepared by the Political and Secret Department of the India Office for the information of policy makers. The material is noteworthy in part because it documents the opinions of India Office staff in the field. We have vol. 1: The Middle East 1856-1947.

Confidential Print, Middle East, 1839-1969
Reproduces records relating to the countries of the Arabian peninsula, the Levant, Iraq, Turkey and many of the former Ottoman lands in Europe, Iran, Afghanistan, Egypt and Sudan from the British Foreign and Colonial Offices in the UK National Archives.

Oriental question, 1840-1900 [microform]: files from the Royal Archives, Windsor Castle.
Microfilm 05589
38 reels
Printed guide: DA550.L47
Material from the Royal Archives on British involvement in the Middle East during the decline of the Ottoman Empire.

British documents on foreign affairs is a multivolume printed edition of records from the British Foreign Office Confidential Print. These records are diplomatic papers and reports originally published for the British government. See the Main Catalog record for this title for a list of countries and dates of coverage in each volume. See also http://www.lexisnexis.com/academic/2upa/Isiaas/ BritishDocumentsForeignAffairs.asp

British documents on foreign affairs: reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. Part I, From the mid-nineteenth century to the First World War. Series B, The Near and Middle East, 1856-1914
Oversize JX632 .B745 1984q

British documents on foreign affairs--reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. Part II, From the First to the Second World War. Series B, Turkey, Iran, and the Middle East, 1918-1939
Oversize DS63.2.G7 B75 1985q

British documents on foreign affairs--reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. Part III. From 1940 through 1945. Series B. Near and Middle East
JZ632 .B762 1997q

British documents on foreign affairs--reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. Part IV, From 1946 through 1950. Series B, Near and Middle East, 1946
Oversize JZ632 .B772 1999q

British documents on foreign affairs--reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. Part V, From 1951 through 1956. Series B, Near and Middle East, 1951
Oversize JZ632 .B77962 2005q

The papers of Sir Mark Sykes, 1879-1919 : the Sykes-Picot Agreement & the Middle East  British Online Archives

Topical collections

Historical photographs of the Middle East: from the Middle East Centre, St. Anthony’s College, Oxford
MICROFICHE 833
190 fiches
Printed guide: DS44.5.S72
Reproduces a substantial collection of photographs of the Middle East, now held at the Middle East Centre. Arranged by country, but the guide includes indexes to places, persons and subjects. See also http://www.sant.ox.ac.uk/mec/mecaphotos.html

Western books. The Middle East from the rise of Islam
Available through interlibrary loan from the Center for Research Libraries.
"This set includes over 3,000 titles filmed from the collections of the Harvard University Library and the School of Oriental and African Studies Library at the University of London. It includes works printed between the sixteenth and the early twentieth century. Over half of the titles filmed for this collection are printed in English, with the remainder in other Western languages including French, German, Italian and Spanish. It includes memoirs, travel literature, biographical and bibliographical works, guide books, historical studies and texts."

Muslim world: including the Searight collection of drawings and prints and material from the Drawings, Prints and Drawings Department and the National Art Library at the Victoria and Albert Museum
Available through interlibrary loan from the Center for Research Libraries.
"The collection records all aspects of life in the Muslim world of the Middle East, as seen through European eyes. The collection contains paintings, colored and black and white prints, drawings and designs, and costumes and ornaments. Works of over five hundred travellers and artists, dating mainly from the 18th and 19th centuries are included in the collection. The collection includes works by artists of many nationalities and well-known names include Amadeo Preziosi, Luigi Mayer, David Roberts, Edward Lear, William Muller, Adrien Dauzats and Alexandre Decamps. The collection contains @10,000 images on either color or black-and-white microfiche."

United States government

Despatches from United States Consuls in Aden, 1880-1906
RECAP 1096.406.92.12
3 reels
Printed guide: none
Originals held by National Archives as part of Record Group 59, General Records of the Dept. of State, Consular Correspondence. See http://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/059.html#59.2.2

Confidential U.S. diplomatic post records [microform]: Middle East
Microfilm 01085
136 reels
Printed guide: E744.C66
Material from the National Archives, Record Group 84, Records of the Foreign Service Posts of the Department of State. See http://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/084.html. We have pt. 1. Iran, 1925-1941 (reels 1-39); pt. 2. Iraq, 1925-1941 (reels 40-63); pt. 3. Beirut, 1925-1941 (reels 64-84); pt. 4. Jerusalem, 1925-1941 (reels 85-96); pt. 5. Aden, 1925-1941 (reels 97-105); pt. 6. Iran, 1942-1944 (reels 1-15); pt. 7. Iraq, 1942-1944 (reels 16-24); pt. 8. Lebanon 1942-1944 (reels 25-31).

Records of the Joint Chiefs of Staff [microform]: Middle East
Microfilm 11959
2 reels
Printed guide: UA23.G842
This collection "includes the intelligence gathering, military reporting, and various draft plans out of which U.S. military and political policy arose." Note that we also have the rest of this collection.

O.S.S./State Department intelligence and research reports [microform]: Middle East
RECAP Microfilm 05132
6 reels
Printed guide: D839.3.G84
Comprises reports prepared by the Office of Strategic Services and the Dept. of State to inform U.S. policy. See http://www.lexisnexis.com/academic/2upa/Isiaas/OSS.asp. Covers 1941-61.

U.S. Intelligence on the Middle East, 1945-2009
Contains full-text documents from U.S. intelligence agencies covering the Middle East and North Africa from the end of WWII to 2009. Includes CIA reports and briefings.

CIA research reports [microform]: The Middle East, 1946-1976
Microfilm 01861
3 reels
Printed guide: D839.3.C52
Comprises reports and memos prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency to inform U.S. policy. See http://www.lexisnexis.com/academic/upa_cis/group.asp?g=440

Middle East special studies
See below
Printed guide: DS62.M522
This collection comprises studies prepared by a variety of government and non-governmental organizations to inform U.S. policy making.
1970-1980 Microfilm 05107 (18 reels)
1980-1982 Microfilm 05244 (3 reels)
1982-1985 Microfilm 05858 (8 reels)
1985-1989 Microfilm 08409 (8 reels) DS63.1 .M5455
1989-1991 Microfilm 08940 (10 reels) DS63.1 .M5456
1992-1994 Microfilm 10576 (15 reels) DS63.1 .M5457
1995-1997 Microfilm 11629 (14 reels)
1998-2003 Microfilm 11854 (14 reels) DS63.1 .M546

The Persian Gulf States and Yemen, 1950-1959 Archives Unbound

Based on Record Group 59, Records of the Department of State, Central Files: Kuwait (86D), Muscat and Oman (86E), Qatar (86F), the Trucial Sheikhs (86G), and Yemen (86H). The internal affairs decimal numbers include: 786D.OO-786D.56; 786E.OO-786E.5811; 786F.OO-786F.11; 786G.OO-786G.5441; 786H.OO-786H.58; 886D.OO-886D.572; 886E.OOTA-886E.49; 886F.OO-886F.55; 886G.OO-886G.55; 886H.OO-886H.572; 986D.OO-986D.8294; 986E.34-986E.714; 986F.724-986F.734; 986G.OO; 986H.OO-986H.73  in the U.S. National Archives.

John F. Kennedy National Security Files, 1961-1963, Middle East AND John F. Kennedy National Security Files, 1961-1963, Middle East: First Supplement History Vault
Replaces RECAP Microfilm 06144
This collection comprises documents on U.S. foreign policy and international relations from the John F. Kennedy Library, including correspondence and reports.

Lyndon B. Johnson National Security Files, 1963-1969, Israel AND Lyndon B. Johnson National Security Files, 1963-1969, Middle East History Vault

Replaces RECAP Microfilm 06143
This collection comprises documents on U.S. foreign policy and international relations from the Lyndon B. Johnson Library, including correspondence and reports.

U.S. State Department Office of the Executive Secretariat, Crisis Files, Part 2: The Middle East Crisis, 1967 History Vault

Richard M. Nixon National Security Files, 1969-1974, Middle East AND Richard M. Nixon National Security Files, 1969-1974, Middle East Negotiations History Vault
Replaces RECAP Microfilm 11970
This collection comprises documents on U.S. foreign policy and international relations from the National Archives, including correspondence and reports.

Gerald R. Ford National Security Files, 1974-1977: The Middle East and South Asia, Presidential Country Files History Vault

U.S. Middle East Peace Policy and America's Role in the Middle East Peace Process, 1989-1993 Archives Unbound
"This collection contains Bush Presidential Records from a variety of White House offices. These files consist of letters of correspondence, memoranda, coversheets, notes, distribution lists, newspaper articles, informational papers, published articles, and reports from the public, the Congress, Bush administration officials, and other various federal agencies primarily regarding American Middle East peace policy and the United States’ role in the many facets of the Middle East peace process."