Library
The Federal Archives makes over two million publications available to staff and users in seven offices, with the most extensive inventory being 1.6 million volumes in Berlin-Lichterfelde. These mainly include historical monographs, biographies, works on the history of administration and important historical and archival journals, but also official printed archives from the federal agencies for the transmission of whose current records the Federal Archives is responsible.
Library holdings in the Federal Archives:
- Administrative literature for the execution of official duties
- Official printed archives
- Grey literature from parties, organisations, associations and trade unions
- Literature on the workers and trade union movement
- Research and specialist literature
- Legal deposits of research publications from the archive reference service
- Specialist archival literature and publications from other archives, printed inventories, guides.
Bibliography informationen
Research options
- Catalogue of the Library of the Federal Archives
- Kooperativer Bibliotheksverbund Berlin-Brandenburg
- ARGUS (Archive Good Search)
- Official printed archives
- Library holdings on German film
- Library holdings on the military
Advices for reference
Regulations governing the use of the reference service are contained in the Federal Archives Act, the Federal Archives access regulations, the Federal Archives cost regulations and the reading room regulations of the Federal Archives.
Reference locations
The library holdings at the offices in Bayreuth, Berlin-Wilmersdorf, Freiburg, Koblenz, Ludwigsburg and Rastatt are reference stock. They may only be used in the Federal Archives; it is not possible to take them out on loan.
The library holdings from the Foundation Archives of Parties and Mass Organisations of the GDR in the Federal Archives are available to everyone. Holdings dating from the year of publication 1955 can be borrowed in Berlin-Lichterfelde via the local lending and interlending services. The terms and conditions of using the reference service are governed by the access regulations dated 24 January 1994. Staff from the reference department or the library information service will be pleased to provide details on the conditions of use and the catalogues, as well as ordering and borrowing literature.