Special Collections on Peace, Politics and Social Change

This is our largest subject area and may be our best known internationally.

Bradford itself has long been seen as a radical city, its rapid development in the 19th century driving pressure for improvements to society. The University was thus a natural home for a new chair in Peace Studies in 1973. The department thrives to this day and in its turn attracted a unique independent library which provides resources on nonviolent social change: Commonweal. Our extensive peace-related collections came to us through these organisations and their networks of links in academia and activist groups.

Our collections tell the story of peaceful protest in the 20th century. Particular strengths include archives of late 1950s and early 1960s nonviolent anti-nuclear campaigning, 1980s peace camps, and initiatives based in the University and its region.