General information
At the individual locations, we focus on collecting literature corresponding to the respective local departments of the Federal Archives:
- Berlin-Lichterfelde / SAPMO: German history 1495-1945, GDR, labour and trade union movement, history of German film
- Koblenz: Federal Republic of Germany
- Berlin-Lichtenberg / Stasi Records Archive: GDR, MfS, secret services
- Freiburg: German military history
- Bayreuth: flight and expulsion at the end of the Second World War
- Ludwigsburg: Investigation of Nazi crimes
- Rastatt: History of freedom movements in Germany
- Berlin-Tegel: First and Second World War
At each location, we supplement the subject-specific literature with general reference works and specialised archival literature. The libraries acquire current research and specialist literature and expand their holdings with official publications, grey literature and library materials from archive department acquisitions. They also collect user copies from work produced from the archives.
Detailed information can be found in the library’s collection profile.
The library at each location consists of a joint specialised academic library and a service library for employees. The library of the Foundation Archives of the Parties and Mass Organisations of the GDR (SAPMO) is organisationally part of the Federal Archives.
Using the Archives
The majority of the holdings can be searched online via the library catalogue. The data from the online catalogue can also be viewed in the Kooperativer Bibliothekverbund Berlin-Brandenburg (KOBV) and the Karlsruher Virtueller Katalog (KVK).
With the exception of the Berlin-Lichterfelde library, all libraries are reference libraries whose holdings can only be used in the reading rooms.
Access to selected electronic databases is available in all reading rooms.
The library staff will be happy to assist you with any questions you may have about the library’s holdings, conducting research or ordering literature.
Library of the Stasi Records Archive
The library of the Stasi Records Archive (in German only) is a specialized scholarly library. It contains publications on subjects relevant to the reappraisal of the East German secret police. Although the library primarily supports the work of the agency’s staff, it is open to anyone interested in this subject.