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British Online Archives: Homepage

Making Humanities Accessible

Hosting over six million records covering over 500 years of history, BOA's extensive digital archive offers unique insights into global events, trends, and themes.

Latest Collections

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Licensed to access Illustrated London News, 1842–2003

1842   2003
Illustrated London News logo
Coloured illustration of a British town being bombed. On the left a black and white soldier points to the sky.

Licensed to access Britain Under Threat: Civil Defence in the Era of Total War, 1914–1989

1914   1989
The National Archives (UK) logo
Illustration of The View of Cape Town, Table Bay

Licensed to access British Colonial Rule in the Cape of Good Hope and Basutoland, 1854–1910

1854   1910
British Foreign & Commonwealth Office logo
Painting by artist Thomas Luny in 1788 of East India Company's Ships

Licensed to access British Mercantile Trade Statistics, 1662–1809

1662   1808
The National Archives (UK) logo
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Latest Posts

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A graphic with a gold ornamental moon, stars, flowers, and lanterns on green background. Above the moon, Eid-al Fitr is written.

Eid al-Fitr 2025

British Online Archives
Published 31st March, 2025 1 min read
Neat cursive handwriting written in thick black ink, making up the body of a letter.

Document of the Week: Mico Charity Schools in Trinidad, 1839

Mary Wills
Published 31st March, 2025 3 min read
A photo of Brighton pier set against a vivid blue sky. Overlayed on the image, there is a purple text box. There is a title UKSG Conference & Exhibition 2025.

British Online Archives Exhibiting at UKSG 2025!

British Online Archives
Published 28th March, 2025 2 min read
The front cover of the Protect and Survive leaflet. Beneath the title, there is a logo of a family stood inside a hollow circle.

Britain Under Threat: "Protect and Survive"

Dr Charlie Hall
Published 27th March, 2025 1 min read

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If you are a librarian, or an academic, who would like your university to either trial or purchase any of our collections, then please get in touch.

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If you are a student or researcher who would like to access one or more collections for a short period, then please explore our collections.

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About us

British Online Archives (BOA) is one of the UK’s leading academic publishers and online repositories. 

Hosting over six million records, carefully sourced from private and public archives, such as The National Archives (UK) and British Library, BOA’s specially curated primary source collections cover over 500 years of world history. They boast extensive documentation from across the globe, providing invaluable source material for students and researchers working within a wide range of scholarly disciplines, including history, politics, sociology, and international relations. Our unique digital holdings offer insights into global historical events and trends, typically through a British lens. They serve to broaden our understanding of history, and help us to make sense of contemporary social, cultural, economic, and political landscapes.

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