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Alexander Frese

Thanks to a CREEES Travel and Research Grant, in August 2008 I was able to conduct preliminary research in the Political Archives of the German Foreign Ministry, Berlin, for my dissertation.

My interest in Soviet foreign policy during the Stalin years focuses on styles of diplomatic conduct by Soviet representatives in meetings with representatives of other countries. How things were transacted – rather than just what was decided (or not) – is in my opinion an excellent window into the cultural contexts out of which the diplomats and politicians emerged. The behavior staged by Soviet representatives in meetings with foreign dignitaries also shaped the perceptions of the latter. Their reports of negotiations with the Soviets are, as documenting their perceptions, particularly instructive. Thus it is possible to situate diplomacy culturally and to investigate afresh the significance of personal encounters in diplomacy.

Based on published documents I had conducted an analysis of Soviet diplomacy along these lines earlier, focusing on Soviet diplomatic contacts with American and British officials in the 1940s. My archival research was part of my research to do a similar analysis on the Soviet-German diplomatic contacts in the 1930s up to 1941, based on the holdings of the German Foreign Ministry.

Many important reports and other relevant documents have been published in the Documents on German Foreign Policy, 1918-1945, and I was curious to see what the archives contain beyond these known sources. I looked at files that remained in the Moscow Embassy collection (located in the section “Papers of representations abroad”), but also examined those received in the Foreign Ministry itself (usually considered to be the more important ones, and held in the “Papers of the Old Office” section of the archive). Towards the end of my stay, I was also able to begin research on several personal papers of former German diplomats.

The collections of the Political Archives are huge. Only after my first few days in the archive did I begin to understand the sheer amount of documents produced by Germany’s representations in the Soviet Union during the 1930s. A systematic examination of these holdings will certainly require more time and further visits to the archive. Yet despite the relatively short duration of my research stay, I was able to locate many relevant and quite revealing documents. While the reports relating to high-level diplomatic conversations are largely published, the archival files contain numerous unpublished documents on low-level interactions with Soviet representatives, as well as background reports on the Soviet leadership, internal developments, and other diplomats. For my research interest, these sources contain information which often turned out to be as significant as the documents related strictly to diplomatic talks themselves.

Working conditions in the archive were excellent. The ordering of files was easy, and with the permission of the archive I could use a camera rather than having to rely on photocopies. The archival staff were very friendly and helpful.

I am obliged to CREEES for having supported my research in the Political Archives. For my future dissertation, this was a productive and inspiring first step.