Diplomacy and Foreign Policy

Links to the Secretary of State and Department of State, as well as other sites related to foreign policy issues. See Bibliography of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations Resources for a selection of related materials in ALIC.

NARA Resources

"American Film Propaganda in Revolutionary Russia"
This Prologue article by James D. Startt discusses American propaganda efforts during World War I.

"Diplomacy and Duels on the High Seas: Littleton Waller Tazewell and the Challenge of HMS Euryalus"
Stuart Butler's Prologue article about a planned battle between two ships are upset by the outbreak of peace in the War of 1812.

"The Diplomats Who Sank a Fleet: The Confederacy's Undelivered European Fleet and the Union Consular Service"
Kevin J. Foster recounts how a small group of State Department employees worked to prevent the Confederacy from acquiring all the ships it needed in this Prologue article.

Foreign Affairs and International Topics
Guidance for locating NARA records dealing with foreign affairs and diplomacy.

Foreign Policy Community
Information about Department of State and Associated Agency Records at NARA.

"Funding Foreign Policy: General Records of the Department of the Treasury Pertaining to American Foreign Policy"
Article from NARA publication The Record by Kenneth Heger

Gifts of State
This page from NARA's Tokens and Treasures exhibit presents images and descriptions of a selection of gifts presented by foreign heads of state to U.S. presidents.

"Letters from the Middle Kingdom: The Origins of America's China Policy"
David Gedalecia's Prologue article about the 1834 observations on the U.S. role in China made by John Shillaber, who hoped to become consul to China.

"Mission to Štechovice: How Americans Took Nazi Documents From Czechoslovakia—and Created a Diplomatic Crisis"
Prologue article by T. Dennis Reece.

"'No Little Historic Value:' The Records of Department of State Posts in Revolutionary Russia"
In this Prologue article, David A. Langbart describes how war, revolution, and natural disaster took their toll on U.S. embassy and consular records.

"Race Relations in the United States and American Cultural and Informational Programs in Ghana, 1957-1966"
This Prologue article by Kenneth W. Heger describes the U.S.'s effort to improve America's image in Africa.

"Strategies for Reconstructing Careers of Foreign Service Officers, 1869-1887"
Prologue article by Kenneth W. Heger.

"'Tear Down This Wall:' How Top Advisers Opposed Reagan's Challenge to Gorbachev — But Lost"
Peter Robinson's Prologue article about the writing of Ronald Reagan's most notable foreign policy speech.

Other Resources

Department of State
The State Department's official web site. It offers links to information about and issues concerning the Department.

Secretary of State
Current events and issues concerning the Secretary of State.

Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST)
This organization "advances understanding of American diplomacy and supports training of foreign affairs personnel."

Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an independent think tank concerned with foreign policy. Included among the various resources is Backgrounders, which consists of articles that explain complex foreign policy issues in simplified form.

Diplomacy & Foreign Policy
The Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress has an extensive collection of diplomatic correspondence.

The Electronic Embassy
Information on all of the embassies of Washington, D.C., as well as business directories, news, and resources.

Foreign Affairs Oral History Project
This site contains a finding aid for Georgetown University Library's Foreign Affairs Oral History Project.

Foreign Policy Association
The mission of this organization is "to serve as a catalyst for developing awareness, understanding, and informed opinion on U.S. foreign policy and global issues."

Foreign Relations of the U.S. (FRUS)
State Department page that describes FRUS, gives information about accessing the material, and some related links. Volumes published since 1945 are available online from the State Department. Full-text volumes of FRUS from 1861-1960 are offered by the University of Wisconsin Libraries in collaboration with the University of Illinois at Chicago Libraries. There are gaps in this collection that are being filled in as missing volumes are acquired. The Avalon Project at the Yale Law School also offers selected material from the Foreign Relations of the United States.

History of U.S. Foreign Policy
C-Span video of a forum in which "Scholars examine the history of U.S. foreign policy and the United States’ status among the international diplomatic community...This program was part of a conference hosted by Oregon State University on American Military and Diplomatic History."

House Committee on Foreign Affairs
This site provides news, statements, and information about issues, hearings and actions, and legislation.

IIP Digital
This site is maintained by the Department of State. It contains information America, civic affairs, economic growth and development, science and technology, peace and security, and events.

Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations
This website from the U.S. Department of State's Office of the Historian "provides a general overview of the history of U.S. engagement with the world through short essays on important moments, or milestones, in the diplomatic history of the United States."

The National Security Archive
Hosted by the George Washington University's Gelman Library, the National Security Archive maintains an extensive archive of declassified U.S. documents, some of which are available online.

PolicyArchive: International Relations
A digital archive of public policy research created by the Center for Governmental Studies. This page deals with International relations.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Information about the activities of the Committee, including hearings, publications, treaties, and legislation.

A Short History of the Department of State
This State Department website traces the history of American foreign affairs from the Revolutionary War era through the end of the Cold War.

Timeline of U.S. Diplomatic History
An interactive chronology provided by the U.S. Department of State.

U.S. Department of State Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
In addition to information about the DepartmentÂ’s FOIA program, this site also includes the Virtual Reading Room where users can search for documents or browse the Document Collections.

U.S. Department of State: Office of the Historian
The purpose of the State Department’s Office of the Historian website is to provide better access to official historical documentary records of U.S. foreign policy. Available on the site are historical documents, information about diplomatic history with various countries, history of U.S. foreign relations, and more.

U.S. Diplomacy
"This site provides general audiences, as well as entry-level practitioners of diplomacy, with reliable information on U.S. diplomatic history, dimensions of contemporary diplomacy and the domestic and foreign activities of the State Department."

U.S. Diplomatic History: A Web Guide
The College Board provides links to vetted websites with balanced content dealing with the history of American diplomacy.