LibGuides: History Resources: Europe

Primary Sources for European History

British and Irish Women's Letters & Diaries This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*Women's diaries and letters spanning more than 300 years.
Cecil Papers This link opens in a new window
The Cecil Papers are a privately held archive of 16th- and 17th-century manuscripts, consisting principally of the correspondence of William Cecil, Lord Burghley (1520-1598), and his son Robert, the 1st Earl of Salisbury (1563-1612). These two men dominated the administration of government during the reign of Elizabeth I and the first eight years under her successor. Spanning the period 1520-1668, the Cecil Papers offer insights into the marriages of Henry VIII, the reign of Elizabeth I, and the clandestine plans to facilitate James I/VI's accession upon Elizabeth's death, as well as foreign policy matters including the Tudor reconquest of Ireland, the Anglo-Spanish War, the loss of Calais to the French, and the early settlement of America.
Parliamentary Papers: House of Commons & House of Lords This link opens in a new window
Coverage of the sessional papers of the British House of Commons and the 19th Century House of Lords. Includes detailed primary sources for the history of Britain, its colonies, and the wider world. Covers working documents of government for all areas of social, political, economic, and foreign policy.
Revolution and Protest Online This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*Access to resources related to political revolutions, protests, resistance and social movements from the 18th century through the 21st century

Collections on the Web:

British Museum
Search portal to the British Museum's massive collection. Not all records include digital images of the item, but those that do offer great opportunity for primary source research.
EuroDocs: Online Sources for European History
From Brigham Young University, this is a portal to open access primary source documents in European history. "Links connect to European primary historical documents that are transcribed, reproduced in facsimile, or translated. In addition, you will find video or sound files, maps, photographs or other imagery, databases, and other documentation. The sources cover a broad range of historical happenings (political, economic, social and cultural)."
Europeana
"Europeana works with thousands of European archives, libraries and museums to share cultural heritage for enjoyment, education and research. This website gives you access to millions of books, music, artworks and more – with sophisticated search and filter tools to help you find what you’re looking for."
European History Primary Sources
EHPS "provide[s] an easily searchable index of scholarly digital repositories that contain primary sources for the history of Europe." From the European University Institute in Florence, Italy.
German History in Documents and Images
“German History in Documents and Images (GHDI) is a comprehensive collection of primary source materials documenting Germany's political, social, and cultural history from 1500 to the present. It comprises original German texts, all of which are accompanied by new English translations, and a wide range of visual imagery. The materials are presented in ten sections, which have been compiled by leading scholars. All of the materials can be used free of charge for teaching, research, and related purposes; the site is strictly intended for individual, non-commercial use.”
World Digital Library
Digitized primary source documents, images, and more from libraries and cultural heritage institutions from across the globe. "Launched in 2009, the World Digital Library (WDL) was a project of the U.S. Library of Congress, with the support of UNESCO, and contributions from libraries, archives, museums, educational institutions, and international organizations around the world."

European Newspapers and Magazines

British Periodicals (1681-2005) This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*Full access to 500 +British periodicals from the 17th to the 20th century
Guardian and the Observer (1791-2003) This link opens in a new window
Full-text of two major daily British newspapers: The Guardian and The Observer.
Irish Times & Weekly Irish Times (1859-2022) This link opens in a new window
Full-text coverage of the Irish Times and Weekly Irish Times.
Scotsman (1817-1950) This link opens in a new window
The Scotsman is a Scottish newspaper first established as a radical political paper in 1817. It began daily publication in 1855.
NewspaperArchive This link opens in a new window
NewspaperArchive is a collection of smaller newspapers from around the world. Most global papers are in the local language (not English). To limit to papers from Europe, click "Go to Advanced Search" then use the "Narrow by Location" feature.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Nexis Uni provides full-text access to over 15,000 news, business, and legal sources, including access to international news. To narrow your news results to sources from a particular country, go to the grey sidebar on the left of your search results. Under "location by publication," select "international," then the continent/region, then the name of the country.

OnlineNewspapers.com: European Newspapers
This website collects various European newspaper sources. Click the name of the country you are researching to find a list of newspapers with links to their websites. The language(s) of each paper is indicated.
Historical Worldwide Newspapers Online: Europe
This LibGuide from Bowling Green State University links historical European newspapers that are free online.

United States Newspapers

Historical New York Times (1851-2017) This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*Full coverage is from 1851 to 2017
*For more recent coverage, go to US Newsstream
Historical Chicago Tribune (1849-1997) This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*Full coverage is from 1849 to 1997
*For more recent coverage, go to US Newsstream
US Newsstream This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*Full coverage from national and international newspapers from 1980 to present
*Newspapers include, but limited to:
1. Boston Globe
2. Chicago Tribune
3. Denver Post
4. Los Angeles Times
5. New York Times
6. Washington Post
7. Wall Street Journal

Early English Books Online This link opens in a new window
What's included?
*146,000+ early printed eBooks in English, from before 1700

In addition to the digitized books in Early English Books Online (above), Tredway Library and I-Share have a large variety of books--both print and electronic--that you may wish to consult as primary sources. In OneSearch (below), begin at the Advanced Search screen and limit to "Local only" for books at Augustana or "All I-Share libraries" to search across Illinois.

Search by title to find a specific book whose title you know. Example:

Screenshot of a search at the Advanced Search screen. "Candide" is typed in the top box. "Title" is selected in the first drop-down menu.

Search by author to find works by a prominent historical figure. Example:

Screenshot of a search at the Advanced Search screen. "Elizabeth I" is typed in the top box. "Author/Creator" is selected in the first drop-down menu.

To find an edited collection of primary sources on a historical topic, search the topic in one or two boxes (keep the topic broad!) and the word "sources" as a Subject in the other box. Example:

Screenshot of a search at the Advanced Search screen. "Germany" is typed in the top box. "Unification" is typed in the box below. "Sources" is typed in the third box, with "Subject" selected from the second drop-down menu to the left.