The United States has formal diplomatic relations with most countries, including all United Nations member states, as well as with the European Union, the Holy See, and Kosovo. Recent global actions of the United States have made headlines: the decision to withdraw from the Paris Accord, the stated refusal to certify Iran’s compliance with the Iran Nuclear Program, and escalating tensions and repeated threats of military action against North Korea, among several others.

HeinOnline contains an essential collection of documents useful for forming a detailed understanding of the history of today’s foreign policies and international relations. The Foreign Relations of the United States series, originally published by the Government Printing Office, presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity. The series began in 1861 during the Lincoln administration and was originally titled Papers Relating to Foreign Relations of the United States. It continued until the administration of Ronald Reagan.

The Foreign Relations volumes contain documents from various presidential libraries, the Departments of State and Defense, the National Security Council, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Agency for International Development, and other foreign affairs agencies as well as the private papers of individuals involved in the creation of U.S. foreign policy.

Access and Search the Foreign Relations Series

Enter HeinOnline and select Foreign Relations of the United States from among the available databases. The content is listed in chronological order beginning with Abraham Lincoln and ending with Ronald Reagan. Click any president’s name to view available volumes.

Use the main search bar to search across all content in the series. For example, search for “Bay of Pigs” AND Cuba. Results include volumes from the Johnson, Nixon/Ford, Eisenhower, and Kennedy administrations. Note that text matching the search query is highlighted in yellow. Results may be sorted by relevance, date, or title. Facets on the left side of the page may be used to refine results by date, document type, section type, or title.

In addition to the Foreign Relations volumes, this database also includes additional key historical materials on the topic of international relations.

• American State Papers: This set from the Commission on the Organization of the Government for the Conduct of Foreign Policy contains the legislative and executive documents of Congress during the period 1789 to 1838. The collection includes documents that cover the critical historical gap from 1789 to the printing of the first volume of the U.S. Serial Set in 1817.
• Compilation of Reports of Committee on Foriegn Relations, United States Senate: This 8-volume set covers the years 1789 through 1901 and includes claims of citizens against foreign governments, documents on tariffs and diplomatic relations, and more.
• Correspondence Concerning Claims Against Great Britain: This 7-volume set covers 1869-1871.
• Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution: This 12-volume set includes correspondence from familiar revolutionary leaders such as Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, John Jay, and countless others.
• Diplomatic Correspondence of the United States: Inter-American Affairs: This 12-volume set covers 1932-1939 and includes diplomatic transmittals between the United States and countries such as Argentina, Mexico, Spain, and many more.
• Historical Register of the United States: This 4-volume set covers 1812-1814.
• Index to United States Documents relating to Foreign Affairs: This 3-volume set covers 1828-1861.
• Legislation on Foreign Relations: This substantial set covers more recent history (1997-2008).
• Memoirs of John Quincy Adams: This 12-volume set includes passages from Adams’ diary from 1795-1848.
• Revolutionary Diplomatic Correspondence: Edited by Francis Wharton, this set is composed of 6 volumes.
• State Papers and Publick Documents of the United States, from the Accession of George Washington to the Presidency, Exhibiting a Complete View of our Foreign Relations since That Time (3rd ed.): This set includes 12 volumes of documents on treaties and other international correspondence.
• Survey of American Foreign Relations: This 4-volume set by Charles P. Howland covers the years 1928-1931.
• United States Legislation on Foreign Relations and International Commerce: This 10-volume set is compiled by Igor Kavass.
• Works of Benjamin Franklin: This 10-volume set contains  historical tracts and many official letters.
• Scores of additional treatises and monographs!

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Complete your print set through Hein!

The entire Foreign Relations series is also available in print. Use the incredibly handy checklist in this brochure to compare your library’s holdings and fill in missing volumes.

For help using this series in print or online, contact holsupport@wshein.com, call (800) 277-6995, or chat with us!