Tocsin-Bang Archives

On this page you will find key documents related to civil defence and the cold war, held on this server (except where stated otherwise). In most cases they are .pdfs of the original documents, a few are .pdfs of reproductions where the originals did not scan well. Other documents may be found on other pages, in particular those related to specific services or equipment.

UK Cabinet Papers (National Archive)

Despite their titles all of the following contain direct references to civil defence. For copyright reasons, these documents are held on the server of the National Archive. 

• Cabinet Memorandum. Scale of Air Attack against the United Kingdom. 27 October 1944 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Standing Down of the Civil Defence Service. 17 April 1945 
• Cabinet Conclusion 10. The Future of Civil Defence. 2 January 1945
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Civil Defence. 25 April 1945 
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Civil Defence. 30 April 1945
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Civil Defence. 23 August 1945 
• Cabinet Memorandum. International Control of Atomic Energy: Prime Minister's Memorandum. 5 November 1945  
• Cabinet Conclusion 4. Atomic Energy. 8 November 1945
• Cabinet Conclusion 4 App 1. Atomic Energy. 8 November 1945 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Atomic Energy - International Control. 15 November 1945
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Atomic Energy - Prime Minister's mission to Washington. 22 November 1945
• Cabinet Memo. Implementation of the Fusion Arrangements in the British and United States Zones of Germany.
• Memo by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 30 April 1947  
• Cabinet Conclusion 8. Germany: Fusion of British and United States Zones. 1 May 1947  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Germany: Fusion of British and United States Zones. 13 May 1947
• Cabinet Memo. Possibility of a Three-Power Treaty on German Disarmament. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 10 December 1947  
• Cabinet Memorandum. The Brussels Treaty. 24 March 1948  
• Cabinet Memorandum. North Atlantic Treaty and Western Union. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 2 November 1948 
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Germany: Situation in Berlin. 24 June 1948
• Cabinet Conclusion. Foreign Affairs. 26 July 1948
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Preparations for Defence. 28 August 1948 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Foreign Affairs Germany. 10 September 1948
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Foreign Affairs Germany. 22 September 1948
• Cabinet Memorandum. North Atlantic Pact. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 18 February 1949  
• Cabinet Memorandum. North Atlantic Pact. Note by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.21 February 1949
• Cabinet Conclusions. North Atlantic Security Pact. 22 February 1949  
  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. North Atlantic Security Pact. 10 March 1949 
• Cabinet Conclusion 6. Germany. 5 May 1949 
• Cabinet Memorandum. The Berlin Airlift. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 15 July 1949
• Cabinet Conclusion 4. Korea. 27 June 50 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Economic Action Arising Out of the Korean Conflict. Memorandum by the Minister of State. 3 July 50
• Cabinet Memorandum. Formosa. Memorandum by the Minister of State. 3 July 50  
•  Cabinet Memorandum. Control of Strategic Exports to China and North Korea. Memorandum by the Minister of State. 3 July 1950
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Korea. 4 July 50  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Korea. 6 July 50 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Korea. 25 July 1950  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Defence Expenditure. 25 July 1950 
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. China. 13 November 1950 
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Korea. 29 November 1950 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Korea. 30 November 1950 
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Defence. 25 January 1951 
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Civil Defence. 5 February 1952 
• Cabinet Conclusion 4. Atomic Energy. 11 February 1952 
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Korea. 28 July 1953
• Cabinet Conclusion 7. Civil Defence. 10 August 1953 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Civil Defence. 13 April 1954 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Shelter Policy. 14 April 1954 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Civil Defence. 15 April 1954 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Intermediate range ballistic missiles. 11 February 1958 
• Cabinet Conclusion 5. Ballistic missiles. 12 February 1958 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Ballistic missiles. 18 February 1958 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Ballistic missiles. 20 February 1958 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Intermediate range ballistic missiles. 24 February 1958   
• Cabinet Memorandum. Anglo-American Relations. 10 April 1958 
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Nuclear Energy: amendment of United States legislation. 1 July 1958  
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Nuclear Energy. 3 July 1958.  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Germany: Situation in Berlin. 18 November 1958 
• Cabinet Memorandum. Berlin. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 5 December 1958
• Cabinet Conclusion 5. Foreign Affairs: Europe. 10 December 1958  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Foreign Affairs: Germany. 23 December 1958  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Europe. 3 February 1959
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Prime Minister's Visit to Moscow. 26 February 1959. 
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Prime Minister's Visit to Moscow. 27 February 1959.
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Prime Minister's Visit to Moscow. 4 March 1959.
• Cabinet Memorandum. Foreign Ministers' Conference. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 13 June 1959  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Germany. Foreign Ministers' Meeting. 15 June 1959  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Germany. Foreign Ministers' Meeting. 30 June 1959  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Defence White Paper 1960. 8 February 1960  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Nuclear weapons. 13 April 1960  
• Cabinet Conclusion 5. Germany. 11 May 1961  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Meeting of Heads of Government, 1960. 20 May 1960  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Skybolt. Note by the Minister of Defence. 20 June 1960  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Nuclear weapons: Skybolt and Polaris. 20 June 1960  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Blue Streak: space research. 19 July 1960  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Blue Streak: note by the Prime Minister. 20 July 1960 
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Space research: Blue Streak. 21 July 1960  
• Cabinet Conclusion 7. Germany. 6 June 1961  
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Germany: Berlin. 19 September 1961  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Berlin. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 26 July 1961  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Berlin. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 27 July 1961  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Berlin. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 21 November 1961
• Cabinet Memorandum. Berlin. Note by the Prime Minister. 28 November 1961  
• Cabinet Conclusion 8. Space research: Blue Streak. 30 November 1961  
• Cabinet Conclusion 6. Civil Defence. 13 February 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Bermuda meeting 1961. 3 January 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Bahamas meeting. 21 December 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Prime Minister's visit to Canada and the United States April 1962. 3 May 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 1. Foreign Affairs: Cuba. 9 October 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Cuba. 23 October 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 3. Cuba. 28 October 1962  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Cuba. 29 October 1962  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Cuba: Threat posed by Soviet Missiles. Note by the Acting Secretary of the Cabinet. 26 October 1962  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Cuba: Memorandum by the Lord Chancellor. 25 October 1962  
• Cabinet Memorandum. NATO Nuclear Force and European Policy. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 11 March 1963  
• Cabinet Conclusion 4. NATO Council Meeting. 14 March 1963  
• Cabinet Conclusion 4. North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. 23 May 1963  
• Cabinet Memorandum. NATO Nuclear Force: Mixed Manned Component. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 28 May 1963 
• Cabinet Memorandum. NATO Nuclear Force: Mixed Manned Component. Memorandum by the Minister of Defence. 28 May 1963  
• Cabinet Conclusion 5. Defence and Oversea Policy. 26 November 1964  
• Cabinet Conclusion 2. Prime Minister's Visit to Washington and Ottawa. 11 December 1964  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Atlantic Nuclear Force. Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. 26 March 1965  
• Cabinet Memorandum. Home Defence and the Territorial Army. 29 June 1965  
• Cabinet Conclusion 6. Home Defence and the Territorial Army. 1 July 1965

  Other UK Government Documents

  The following lists are of UK documents that have generally not been digitised and cannot therefore be downloaded, however they may be obtained in most cases, from the National Archives by ordering. Those that have been digitised may be downloaded, but you will need to search the National Archives. They may also be viewed by visiting in person. You do need to be aware that some files are "closed", in other words they are not available to the public, in some cases for many years yet to come. The year indicated at the end of each entry is the last year in which material was added to the file. Generally speaking files prior to 1945 are not listed. Some files only contain material covering a very short period - in some cases only days - in other cases material covers a period of years. As there are  many thousands of documents listed they have been split among a number of pages. Each page represents a file series, the initial part of the reference indicates the originating department or ministry, as follows:

• ADM - Admiralty and Navy Department of the Ministry of Defenc

• AIR - Air Ministry and Air Department of the Ministry of Defence

• HO - Home Office

• MAF - Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

• MH - Ministry of Health

• OS - Ordnance Survey 

• ADM 1 Admiralty and Ministry of Defence: Registered Files. Only files related to UK civil defence of the Cold War period are included.

• AIR 2 Air Ministry and Ministry of Defence: Registered Files. Only files related to the Royal Observer Corps, UKWMO and RAF Fylingdales are included in this list. The series comprises policy, case, committee and miscellaneous papers and reports. With the unification of the Ministry of Defence in 1964, the Air Ministry became the Air Department of the Ministry of Defence, its registered files are generally to be found thereafter in DEFE 71, but there is some overlap with the series. None of the contents of DEFE 71 relate to the ROC or UKWMO.

• AIR 28 Air Ministry and Ministry of Defence: Operations Record Books, RAF Fylingdales.

• HO 225  Home Office: Scientific Adviser's Branch: Reports (originally identified as the CD/SA Series. This series of reports is concerned with scientific aspects of the possible threat to the civil population posed by a future war using atomic or thermonuclear weapons, and the consideration of measures that might be employed to mitigate the effects of enemy attack. The earlier papers presuppose a major threat from atomic weapons of the kind used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, whereas those of later date deal with the more serious threat arising from thermonuclear weapons. These reports do not at any point define government policy on the subjects discussed. They formed part of the input of the Scientific Adviser's Branch to the policy-making process, and/or suggested areas where further research was necessary.

• HO 226  Home Office: Scientific Adviser's Branch: Reports (originally identified as the R and M Series). The R and M series reports are primarily concerned with the possible threat to the civil population posed by a future war, and the consideration of measures that might be employed to mitigate the effects of enemy attack. They are mainly the work of individual scientists.

• HO 227  Home Office: Scientific Adviser's Branch and successors: Reports (originally identified as the SA/PR Series). Reports dealing with the protection of civilians from the effects of a possible nuclear war. Topics studied include casualty assessment, the effects of radio-active fallout, shelter survival requirements, and Fire Service equipment and organisation. The series also includes notes of discussions with allied civil defence authorities. This series of reports, dating from 1950, deals with the protection of the civil population against the effects of a possible nuclear war. Topics studied include casualty assessment in a variety of circumstances; the effects of radioactive fallout and possible counter-measures; shelter survival requirements; and Fire Service equipment and organisation. The series also contains notes of discussions with civil defence authorities in the USA, Canada, and the Federal German Republic.

• HO 228  Home Office: Scientific Adviser's Branch: Reports (originally identified as the Z Series). The Z series of reports deals with the effects of a possible nuclear war on the civil population and measures intended to mitigate those effects. The majority of the pieces are, in fact, collections of papers given to Civil Defence Regional Scientific Advisers at their annual conferences or at other meetings called to discuss specific topics.

• HO 229  Fission Fragments: Journal of Home Office Scientific Advisers's Branch and successors. The Journal Fission Fragments was produced for distribution to volunteer local authority scientific advisers, originally called 'Scientific Intelligence Officers'. It contains articles on all aspects of civil defence against conventional, nuclear, chemical and biological warfare. The journal Fission Fragments was first published by the Scientific Adviser's Branch in 1961, and continues to be produced today by the present Scientific Research and Development Branch, for distribution to the volunteer local authority scientific advisers, originally called 'scientific intelligence officers'. Articles in the journal are written mainly by members of the branch, but have also been contributed by local authority scientific advisers and by the former Civil Defence Department of the Home Office: they range across all aspects of civil defence against conventional, nuclear, chemical and biological warfare. Publication was at irregular intervals, depending upon the availability of material and the importance of its early circulation.

• HO 284  Home Office: Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Northern Ireland (CIM Symbol Series) Files. Files from the Home Office CIM (Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Northern Ireland) series. They relate to constitutional and other matters respecting the Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Northern Ireland. Only files related  to civil defence matters are included here.

• HO 312  Home Office: Civil Defence Circulars. Circulars issued by the Home Office as successor to the Ministry of Home Security, to local authorities and Civil Defence officers, concerning civil defence. The HSC series of Home Security Circulars ( HO 208/3 -7) was then continued as Civil Defence Circulars having the reference CDC, and the HSR series of Home Security Regional Circulars ( HO 204/1 -5) was continued as Civil Defence Regional Circulars with the reference CDR. When the Ministry of Home Security was dissolved in May 1945, the Home Secretary took over the responsibilities of the Minister for Home Security. Civil Defence Circulars were issued to the responsible officers in local authorities, the police and the civil defence corps. Civil Defence Regional Circulars were issued to principal officers at Regional Civil Defence Headquarters until 1955, and thereafter to Regional Directors. The circulars dealt with the dismantling and disposal of shelters, the de-requisitioning of property, gratuities and other personnel matters, and similar post-war actions. From 1971, circulars concerning civil defence matters were retitled Emergency Services Circulars.

• HO 322 Home Office: Civil Defence (Various Symbol Series) Files. This series contains files of the Civil Defence Department from the following file series: CDA: Civil Defence Administration CDI: Civil Defence Intelligence CDP: Civil Defence Planning CDS: Civil Defence Shelters CDT: Civil Defence Training CEM: Civil Emergencies ECE: Civil Defence Equipment: Policy ECO: Civil Defence: Co-ordination of Equipment and Transport ECT: Civil Defence Transport. They also deal with regional organisation (including minutes of the conferences of regional directors) and the Civil Defence Corps.

• HO 338  Home Office: Scientific Adviser's Branch and successors: OSA, SAC, SAF, SAG, SAN and SC Symbol Series Files. Registered files of the Scientific Adviser's Branch and its successors relating to the provision of scientific advice within the Home Office and to other Departments involved in civil defence, the sponsoring of scientific research, the training of scientific intelligence officers, the development of computer projects for scientific research, and liaison with civil defence regional scientific advisers. Subjects covered include the effects of radiation and bomb blasts, and equipment for fire fighting. Reports of the Branch are in HO 225 - HO 229.

• HO 353  Home Office: Police, War Emergency Matters (WEM Symbol Series) Files. Files from the Home Office WEM (War Emergency Matters) symbol series, dealing with police involvement in civil defence arrangements and war planning. From 1947, responsibilities for the matters dealt with in this series lay with various 'F' Divisions in the Home Office Police Department. In 1970, the responsibilities were assumed by F6 Division: that Division became part of the Fire and Emergency Planning Department in 1984, and in July 1989 was re-named EP Division.

• HO 357  Home Office: Civil Defence Joint Planning Staff: Papers. Minutes and papers of the Civil Defence Joint Planning Staff and its working parties on civil defence policy and planning. The Civil Defence Joint Planning Staff was established in 1948 as an inter-departmental body, administered by the Home Office and reporting to the Cabinet Civil Defence Committee. Its terms of reference were: "Subject to the general direction and guidance of the Civil Defence Committee, (a) to examine and report on matters of civil defence policy, (b) to co-ordinate the preparation of detailed civil defence plans." In 1955, the CDJPS was reconstituted as the Civil Defence Planning Committee, which operated within the Cabinet Committee structure.

• HO 393  Home Office: UK Warning and Monitoring Organisation (WMO Symbol Series) Files. This series contains files regarding the UK Warning and Monitoring Organisation.

• MAF 355  Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food: Emergency Services Division: Registered Files: Agricultural Defence Planning (Z Series). This series contains records produced by the various divisions of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food concerned with defence planning for agricultural produce.

• MH 131  Ministry of Health: Civil Defence, Registered Files (P(H) and CD(H) Series). This series contains files covering the whole range of the Ministry of Health's civil defence activities, in particular the National Hospital Service Reserve. Section 1 of the Civil Defence Act 1948 made it 'part of the functions of designated Ministers to take such steps as appear from time to time to be necessary or expedient for civil defence purposes.'  This included the National Hospital Service Reserve which was established by the minister to provide a trained and organised body of men and women available to meet the needs of an expanded hospital service in the event of war.

• OS 69  Ordnance Survey: Trigonometrical and Levelling Divisions: Triangulation Stations, files. The records in this series relate to the retriangulation of Great Britain begun in 1935, and constantly updated since, until finally superseded in the late 1990s. The series contains the triangulation station files. A limited number of ROC posts were co-sited with  Triangulation Stations, the files listed relate to such situations.