On the Record at The National Archives

• Secrets of the Prize Papers: The Science of History

  The National Archives holds over 4,000 boxes of letters, papers, and artefacts from ships captured by the British between 1652 and 1815. In the second episode of our three-part series on the Prize Papers collection, Oliver Finnegan explores the scientific techniques and conservation skills used to analyse these items. Guests Marc Vermeulen and Marina Casagrande discuss examining and reading letters without opening them and the discovery of a well-preserved centuries-old knitted jumper. For a transcript and information about the documents used in this episode visit our show notes: https://bit.ly/PrizP2

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• Secrets of the Prize Papers: Trade, Loot and Letters

  Across more than 4,000 boxes in The National Archives sits a significant collection of letters, papers and artifacts from ships captured by the British between 1652 and 1815. In this first episode of a three-part series, Chloe Lee meets Oliver Finnegan, a specialist in what is known as the Prize Papers collection. Oliver tells Chloe about some of the most fascinating items in the collection, providing insights into global trade, warfare, and the everyday lives of the people who lived during the Age of Sail. For a transcript and information about the documents used in this episode visit our show notes: https://bit.ly/PrizP1

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• Trailer: Secrets of the Prize Papers

  Join us for our upcoming podcast mini-series, where we delve into a remarkable collection of letters, papers, and artefacts from ships captured by the British between 1652 and 1815.

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• Second World War - Legacies, Language and Diaspora

  With recruits from across its empire, Britain’s troops in the Second World War were a multi-lingual, multi-ethnic force. Among those involved were more than a quarter of a million soldiers from East Africa and 2.5 million from South Asia, whose contributions to the Allied forces were absolutely essential to the outcome of the war. In this episode of On the Record, host Chloe Lee speaks with Iqbal Singh and Liz Haines, specialists at The National Archives, and writer Sharmila Chauhan about a collection of records relating to the recruitment of soldiers from across Britain’s colonies. Focusing on the languages mobilised in these documents, they discuss records that range from the speeches of British commanders in (romanised) Hindustani, to recruitment posters featuring Swahili and Nyanja. For a transcript and information about the documents used in this episode visit our show notes: https://bit.ly/SwwLLD  

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• Trailer: Second World War - Legacies, Language and Diaspora

  In this episode of On the Record, we take focus on the lesser-told history of the colonial troops, from East Africa and India, that fought for Britain during the Second World War.  

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