Sub-Fonds - Political Section

Identity area

Reference code

Title

Political Section

Date(s)

  • 1919-1946 (Creation)

Level of description

Sub-Fonds

Extent and medium

298 boxes

Context area

Name of creator

Administrative history

The Political Section used to act as a Diplomatic Service within the Secretariat.

It had two main categories of responsibilities:

  • to deal with international tension affairs under the competency of the League of Nations;
  • to deal with the admission and withdrawal demands to the League of Nations.

Moreover, the Political Section dealt, on an information basis, with many various affairs.

The League of Nations' more specific political work has mainly been carried out in five directions:

  • the improvement of the instrument of peace entrusted to it. (Refers to the 1919 Covenant of the League of Nations organised by a powerful group of States determined to prevent the repetition of such a calamity as the Great War. The idea was that of organizing the world justly and fairly. Gradually, between 1920 and 1932, the great majority of neutrals and all the former enemies of the founder States became Members of the League of Nations);
  • the reduction of armaments (see Disarmament Section);
  • the supervision of the territories placed under the mandate of various States (see Mandates Section);
  • the execution of minority obligations assumed by treaty (see Minorities Section);
  • and the settlement of the various international disputes between 1919 and 1935.

In 1933, because of the creation of a "Central Section", the Political Section was no longer in charge of the admission and withdrawal demands to the League of Nations, as well as some diplomatic or formal responsibilities.

In 1934, the Information Section was merged into the Political Section headed by
J. Nogueira and was responsible for Latin America questions and for Administrative Commissions.

In 1939, the Political Section officially disappeared and its activities were transferred to Department I.

Archival history

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Public

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      Existence and location of originals

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      Related units of description

      • Secretariat Fonds: General Sections of the Registry, Administrative Commissions and Minorities Section, Legal Section, Information Section, Nogueira's Papers of the Latin America Section files;

      • Refugees mixed archival group (Nansen fonds): see section 45, Russian Refugees, of the 1919-1927 Registry, first produced by the Political Section;

      • Upper Silesia files of the League of Nations External Fonds;

      • Collections of Conventions, Ratifications and other Diplomatic Instruments;

      • Private Fonds: see the files of P.J. Mantoux, E. Drummond and J. Avenol.

      Related descriptions

      Notes area

      Note

      Protection period to: 1986-12-31

      Alternative identifier(s)

      Scope ID

      410

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      Rules and/or conventions used

      Status

      Completed

      Level of detail

      Dates of creation revision deletion

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          Sources

          Archivist's note

          Protection period duration: 40

          Archivist's note

          Protection period note:

          Archivist's note

          Permission: No permission necessary.

          Archivist's note

          Physical usability: Without limits

          Archivist's note

          Term of protection: None

          Accession area