International Relations Subject Guide 

Check out the resources on these guides, compiled by the Yale librarians for British History and American History.

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CATALOGS: for books, government/IGO/NGO documents, archival material, and more.

• Orbis (or Yufind, which is Orbis with a different interface)
• MORRIS (Yale Law Library catalog)
• WorldCat (use Borrow Direct or Interlibrary Loan to request materials not held at Yale)

Search databases to cast a wide net for journal articles, book chapters, dissertations, working papers, conference reports, government documents, and other materials. Databases provide citations and sometimes full text (or links to possible sources of full text – look for the Yale Links button in the search results).

CSA Illumina
Single search of several databases, including:

• IBSS (International Bibliography of the Social Sciences)
• PAIS International
• EconLit
• Worldwide Political Science Abstracts

...and more. Use the “descriptors” (i.e., subject headings) to focus searches or launch new searches—but note that descriptors may vary from database to database.

EBSCO databases

• America:History and Life (includes Canada)
• Historical Abstracts (world history except U.S. and Canada)
• International Political Science Abstracts

...and more. Choose one of these databases, then click the "Choose Databases" link to select others and search them simultaneously. Use “narrow results by subject” (on left side of results screen) to refine search results; or click on title of a search result to see its subject terms, and then click a subject to launch a new search.

JSTOR
Full text of journals in a wide range of disciplines, including political science and history. JSTOR’s mission is to provide a trusted archive of scholarly journals; it is not a database for current journal issues. There is typically a gap of one to five years between the most recently published journal issue and the back issues available in JSTOR. Useful features: “Articles citing this article” and “Related articles.”

Praeger Security International
Full text books, encyclopedia articles, and analytical reports.

European Sources Online
EU-focused; includes news (articles from the Economist, the European Voice, and the Financial Times), analysis, and information guides.

Dissertations and Theses
Search for words in “Citation and abstract” field. To narrow search results, add a “Subject name/code” (e.g., political science). Many titles published since 1997 are available in full text; for earlier years, use Interlibrary Loan.

Want more databases? From the library's Databases & Article Searching page, you can

• browse the A-Z list of databases
• search by database title
• click “Other Options” tab and search “Any Word” to find relevant databases (e.g. search for “britain” or "international relations").

To find manuscript and archival material in the Yale Library's collections, search the Orbis library catalog in the following way:

1) From the initial search screen, click the MORE LIMITS button (lower right corner of screen).

2) On the limits screen, scroll down to the "Item Type" section, select "Archives and Manuscripts" (the first two items in the menu), and click "Set Limits":

3) Click on the "Advanced Search" tab. You'll get best results by searching for words or phrases within the "Subject" field, particularly if you are searching by name of country. Note that the catalog uses "Great Britain" as the subject heading (not "United Kingdom"). For example:

Note that manuscript and archival material may be in various Yale Libraries, including the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Manuscripts and Archives (in the Sterling Memorial Library), on microform in the Sterling Memorial Library, or at the Library Shelving Facility (in which case the material can be requested for use on campus).

LexisNexis Academic and Factiva have the broadest U.S. and international coverage.

ProQuest Newspapers offer full text articles from major American newspapers. Dates of coverage vary by newspaper. Within Proquest, click “Selected Databases” to switch to searching historical newspapers.

The Times Digital Archive 1785-1985

ProQuest Historical Newspapers The Guardian and The Observer (1791-2003)

British Newspapers (from the Yale Library British History subject guide)

Want more news resources? Check out the list on the Political Science subject guide and/or browse this even longer list of the Yale databases that have news content.

Documents on British Policy Overseas: Diplomacy in the twentieth century
Full text, primary source documents from Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Selected and edited by the official historians of the FCO; includes many documents specifically declassified for inclusion in the series.

Foreign Relations of the United States
Official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity. Produced by the State Department, includes declassified documents from all the foreign affairs agencies.

LexisNexis Congressional
U.S. Congressional hearings, reports, and other publications.

House of Commons Parliamentary Papers
Includes sessional papers from the 1801-2003/04 sessions.

Hansard (Debates)

See also these guides to collections in the Yale Libraries:

• U.S. Federal Government Documents
• British Government Publications and Parliamentary Publications