ACCESS TO COLLECTIONS IN THE ROYAL ARCHIVES
Access to the records held in the Royal Archives is granted solely at the discretion of The Keeper of The King's Archives.
The Royal Archives is subject to the Data Protection Act and General Data
Protection Regulation (GDPR). For access to personal information about
yourself (‘subject access’) in the Royal Household, including in the Royal Archives,
application should be made to The Data Protection Manager, Information
Assurance, Buckingham Palace, London, SW1A 1AA.
The Royal Household is not a public authority, as defined by the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 and the Freedom Information (Scotland) Act 2002, and as
such the Acts do not relate to access to records held in the Royal Archives.
Also, the records in the Royal Archives are not defined as public records under
the terms of the Public Records Acts.
Although exempt from FOI requirements, the Royal Household is committed to
transparency, and to making information available for research, where
appropriate.
Regarding the papers it holds of government business, it is the policy of the
Royal Archives to follow voluntarily the regulations on closure and release to
which counterpart papers in The National Archives are subject.
Where material is available for access it may be available as a digitised image in Royal Archives Online, or via external resources for which links are provided in this catalogue.
Where a ‘file’ or ‘item’ is not available to see as a digitised image in Royal Archives Online,
whether it is possible to view the material in the Royal Archives research room will depend on the access
conditions noted in the catalogue record:
- ‘Available for research’ means that the records can be seen in the research
room. If you would like to make an appointment to visit the the research room
please contact the Royal Archives at [email protected] with information
about your research, citing the references of the records you are interested in.
- ‘Unavailable for research as awaiting conservation’ or ‘cataloguing’ means
that the records cannot be seen in the research room as they require
conservation or cataloguing work.
- ‘Unavailable for research [for a set period of years]’ means that the records
cannot be seen in the research room now as the information they contain is
sensitive or restricted. They will be available for review from the date given.
- ‘Unavailable for research’ means that the records cannot be seen in the
research room as they belong to restricted categories of sensitive records
such as medical records.
When contacting the Royal Archives about records you would like to see in the research room quote the 'Reference', 'Title' and 'Date' displayed in the catalogue record, as in the following examples:
- RA SP/M/15/23: Mary of Modena to Le Comte de Soissons, 26 March 1685
- RA MP/1/4: Letter from Francis Baring to Lord Melbourne, 21 June 1837
- RA VIC/MAIN/F/47: Correspondence about Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee, June - December 1887
- RA VIC/MAIN/EVIID/1901: Engagement diary of Edward VII, 1901
General information about access to the Royal Archives
When considering public requests
for information from, or access to, its historic collections the Royal Archives
applies four principles:
- Information First: Access to the collections is on the basis of information
sought.
- Unique Content: Consideration will be given to applications where the
material or content can be found only in the Royal Archives.
Where it can be accessed elsewhere (for example, online or in other libraries or
archives), external researchers will be expected to have consulted those
sources first.
- Historical Research: Access is granted for the purpose of ‘historical
research’. This term is widely defined, and recognises the huge range of
subjects and themes and the myriad ways in which research is conducted.
- Equitable Access: The Royal Archives aim to provide access to a wide
range of applicants, and this may mean that, from time to time, repeat applicants
may be rejected in favour of those applying for the first time.
The Royal Archives has limited researcher facilities and pre-visit security clearance is necessary, therefore appointments should be made well in advance. If you are travelling from abroad, please contact us well ahead of your visit in order to reserve a research room space.
All media requests for access to the Royal Archives should be directed to
the Royal Collection Trust Press Office in the first instance.
As the Royal Archives receives a significant number of enquiries
and requests for research access every week, there may be some delay in
the receipt of a full reply to your enquiry. We therefore request your
patience, and assure you that we will reply as soon as we are able.