Central Archives of Historical Records

Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw
52°15′00″N 21°00′30″E / 52.250078°N 21.00841°E / 52.250078; 21.00841
Alternative namePolish: Archiwum Główne Akt Dawnych
Location7 Długa Street, Śródmieście, Warsaw, Poland
EstablishedSeptember 2, 1808 (1808-09-02)
Websiteagad.gov.pl

Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw (Polish: Archiwum Główne Akt Dawnych w Warszawie, AGAD) is one of Poland's three national archives. It holds records ranging from 12th century until World War I. The current headquarters are located in the Raczyński Palace at 7 Długa Street in Warsaw.

History

The AGAD was founded in 1808.

An example document from the archive: Act by Sigismund III Vasa granting to Albrycht Stanisław Radziwiłł the title of Lithuanian Chancellor

A large portion of the AGAD's holdings were intentionally destroyed by Nazi Germany during World War II in 1939 and in 1944. In the aftermath of the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising of 1944, the archives were not only deliberately set ablaze, but the Nazi German troops also entered each of the nine accessible fire-proof vaults in the underground shelter and meticulously burned one after another (the entrance to the 10th was blocked by rubble, thus saving its contents).

Official names

The archive went through several name changes:

Archive Directors

See also

Further reading

References

  1. 1 2 Archiwum Główne Akt Dawnych (2007). "Historical Sketch of Archiwum Główne Akt Dawnych" (in Polish). Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  2. ↑ Strebel, Adam (1948). "Archives of Warsaw following the war" (PDF). Przegląd Historyczny. 37: 357–373. Retrieved 22 July 2021.