Guide to the Records of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, 1933-1997

Summary

Collection number:

MS 2821

Creator:

Australian Institute of International Affairs

Extent:

20.55 metres and (1 medium folio box + 134 ms boxes)

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Records of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

MS 2821 comprises the records of the Commonwealth Council including correspondence files of the secretary, director, Research Committee chairman and treasurer, minutes and agenda, speeches of R.G. Casey and financial records. The records relate to the major functions of the Institute including administration of the Dyason and Roy Milne lecture series, the Reciprocal Exchange Programme, Foreign Affairs Club and the Research Programme; liaison with state branches, the Institute of Pacific Relations, Royal Institute of International Affairs and other bodies; and, production of Australian outlook and other publications. Some records of the Canberra and New South Wales Branches of the Institute are also contained in the collection (127 boxes, 6 cartons, 1 fol. box).

Biographical / Historical:

The Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) is an independent, non-political body which was founded in 1932 to stimulate interest in and understanding of international affairs among its members and the general public. Other functions of the AIIA include organising annual national conferences and occasional international conferences, sponsoring various lecture series and carrying out an extensive research and publications program.

The AIIA is financed mainly from membership subscriptions and has benefited from time to time from donations for research, government subsidies and occasional private sector benefaction including the Carnegie Corporation, the Rockefeller Foundation and the Ford Foundation. The Institute launched major appeals for funds in 1964 and 1972.

The AIIA was formed as a result of the amalgamation of the Australian Branch of the Royal Institute of International Affairs and the Victorian and NSW Branches of the Institute of Pacific Relations. The constitution of the AIIA was finalised at a conference on 17 August 1932. According to the constitution the AIIA consisted of Commonwealth Executive Officers, a Commonwealth Council and State Branches. The AIIA would retain its affiliation with the Royal Institute of International Affairs (which had its headquarters at Chatham House, St James Square, London) and become the Australian Group of the Institute of Pacific Relations.

In 1932, only the Victorian, Queensland and New South Wales State Branches existed. They were joined by the Canberra Branch in 1936 and the Tasmanian, Western Australian and South Australian Branches in 1947. Later additions include the Northern Territory Branch, the New England Branch and the North Queensland Branch. In 1932 the Victorian Branch consisted of two distinct bodies: the Victorian Group of Australian members of the RIIA and the Victorian Group of members of the IPR. Each State Branch had its own meetings program and its own constitution.

The Commonwealth Council was established as the governing body of the AIIA. The 1933 constitution specified that the Commonwealth Council would consist of representatives of each state branch and would hold an annual general meeting in August of each year. A second meeting was also held to consider policy matters, usually in February. An Executive Committee acted for the Council between meetings on administrative matters and general policy and a Research Executive Committee acted on research matters. The first meeting of the Council was on 20 February 1933.

The Commonwealth Executive Officers were elected from the Council annually to execute decisions of the Council. The officers comprised a President, two Vice Presidents, a Secretary and a Treasurer. In 1940 a Research Chairman was added to the Executive Officers, as was the Editor of Australian outlook.

In 1969 the Articles of Association of the AIIA were adopted. The first annual National Conference was held in 1971.

From 1932 to 1950 the Commonwealth Secretariat was based in the New South Wales Branch headquarters at 365 George Street Sydney. In 1951 the Secretariat was transferred to Dyason House, the office of the Victorian Branch of the Institute at 124-126 Jolimont Road, East Melbourne. The Secretary of the Victorian Branch, with some additional assistance, took on the duties of the Commonwealth Secretary in addition to those of Victorian Secretary until her retirement in 1975. The Secretariat files were then transferred to Canberra to the office of the then Director, Dr T.B. Millar. From 1987 the National Headquarters were located at Stephen House, 32 Thesiger Court, Deakin, ACT.

The AIIA quarterly journal, Australian outlook began in March 1947 and succeeded The Austral-Asiatic bulletin which had been published by the Victorian Branch from 1937-46. From 1959 it was published three times a year. The publication ceased in Dec. 1989 and was renamed the Australian journal of international affairs.

See also 'The role of the Institute' by T.B. Millar in Australian outlook vol. 30, no. 1 April 1976: 3-15

Immediate Source of Acquisition:

The records were donated by the Institute in two instalments in 1970, 1994 and 2002. Some financial records were returned to the Institute.

Conditions Governing Access:

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn562312).

Conditions Governing Use:

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Records of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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