Until 1943, the Department of External Affairs used a ?self-indexing? alphabetical system for its records. There were only two sections, one dealing with political/geographical matters and one with international cooperation, which included the League of Nations, the International Labour Office, and the Permanent Court of Justice; legal and constitutional matters, including treaties and agreements; international conferences; and consular matters. The increase in staff and workload brought about by World War II led to the introduction of a multiple number system.
Correspondence and dispatches continued to be received and distributed by the Library, which listed incoming letters, dealt with routine queries and kept runs of information material, such as Foreign Office prints. It seems likely that only after all action was completed were files transferred to the Registry for indexing.
This series was raised in the Department of External Affairs [II] during World War II and relates to both the administrative and information gathering functions of the Department. The series is controlled by a multiple number system consisting of a year prefix followed by a classified number control system. An examination of the Department's file list for the series indicates that, as is common with subject-classified systems, some file headings allocated by the registry were not used.
Generally, the series is concerned with a wide range of matters relating to Australia's relations with other countries, specifically in the context of World War. A number of these responsibilities would now be under the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs. [Note: DFAT still has sections dealing with immigration, refugees and nationality as at 22/6/00]. Subjects of files variously include: Aliens, Australian Trade Commissioners, Aviation, International Conferences, Consular Representatives of other nations in Australia, Deportations, Nationality and Naturalisation, International Organisations, Passports and Landing Permits, Publications, Refugees, Treaties, the League of Nations, and the International Labour Organisation. Also included are information files on a large number of countries and, in keeping with the Department's consular responsibilities, files relating to Australian representatives and Consuls overseas.
This series also contains material relating to Defence, both external and internal. In relation to Defence, the Department clearly exchanged information on the subject of possibly subversive or undesirable persons or aliens with the information gathering agencies of other nations, particularly the United States of America and Britain. British Foreign Office reports on various countries or the international situation are also contained in the series. Much of this material was classified at the time as 'secret' and 'most secret'. In relation to Defence, and to the Department's consular responsibilities for Australian nationals overseas, the series is also concerned with censorship, enlistment, waging political warfare with Japan, and with Australian citizens stranded in occupied countries. There are also files relating to waging political warfare with Japan, a function of the Political Warfare Division based in Melbourne (CA 8344).
A considerable quantity of material on postwar reconstruction is included in the series and relates to: International Economic and Industrial Reconstruction, Relief and Rehabilitation, International relations, and other matters.
The series also contains material relating to the Australian Antarctic Territory.