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War Resisters' International Records

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Held at: Swarthmore College Peace Collection [Contact Us]500 College Avenue, Swarthmore 19081-1399

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Swarthmore College Peace Collection. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

The War Resisters' International was founded at Bilthoven, Netherlands, in 1921 by representative pacifists from that country, Germany, Austria and Great Britain. The name originally chosen for the new movement was "Paco," which is the Esperanto word for peace.

For two years the work was directed from Bilthoven, but in 1923 all papers were transferred to Enfield, England, and H. Runham Brown was appointed as Honorary Secretary. At the same time the new name was adopted.

H. Runham Brown remained as the directing and guiding force of the movement until his death in 1949. His first move was to establish contact with individual pacifists and groups of pacifists in all parts of the world. By 1925, when the first international conference of the War Resisters' International was held (in Hoddeston, England), there were 42 affiliated groups of war resisters in 19 countries and individual resisters were associated with the movement in almost every country.

From the beginning the structure of the War Resisters' International was similar to that of the International Fellowship of Reconciliation, which had preceded it by two years. The War Resisters' International was never more than a coordinating body in its relationship to affiliated groups. No group and no individual was ever committed to a majority point of view or decision. Few decisions were in fact ever made by either the International Council or by conferences of the movement. Nothing more was required of anyone than that s/he subscribe to the following declaration: "War is a crime against humanity. We therefore are determined not to support any kind of war and to strive for the removal of all causes of war."

It must also be observed that although some groups were sponsored or inspired from Enfield, the main organizations connected with the movement were born independently. The No More War movement in Great Britain came into being in the same year as the War Resisters' International and sent a delegation to the Bilthoven gathering at which Paco was founded. The War Resisters League in the United States organized shortly afterwards. Both of these bodies were completely autonomous; the latter still exists, while the former merged in 1937 with the Peace Pledge Union, which in turn became the British Section of the War Resisters' International.

From the beginning the governing body of the War Resisters' International has been the International Council, which has varied considerably in size through the years. Members of the Council are elected for a period of three years at the international conferences and are not strictly representatives with delegated powers from member organizations. They are elected purely for their personal qualities.

It will be recognized that the main function of the War Resisters' International -- apart from bringing the various pacifist groups of the world together -- has been and continues to be the encouragement and sometimes the support of the individual war resisters in the remoter pars of the world. Its literature has usually been directed toward that aim.

The bulk of the material in SCPC pertains to two time periods, 1923-1949, and 1960-1976. The collection includes scattered minutes, correspondence, form letters and memoranda sent to members of the War Resisters' International International Council and to Sections in various countries, War Resisters' International publications, press releases, lists of imprisoned war resisters, and material relating to annual conferences.

Gift of the War Resisters' International Office in Great Britain.

Checklist prepared by Michael Sorensen, 1979; updated by Anne Yoder, January 1995; checklist prepared by Chloe Lucchesi-Malone, August 2009. Reprocessed by Anne Yoder, 2023. This finding aid was updated March 2024.

All material not pertaining directly to War Resisters' International has been removed and filed in the Collected Document Groups under the organization's country.

The War Resisters' International periodicals, War Resistance and War Resister, as well as their newsletters have been moved into the retired periodicals collection.

For Magazines/Newsletters see Periodicals Collection For photographs see Photograph Collection [see also photographs and lantern slides in the Devere Allen Papers (DG 053): Photographs]

Publisher
Swarthmore College Peace Collection
Access Restrictions

None

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendents, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Use Restrictions

None

Collection Inventory

Archival Resource Key. History; policies and principles, undated.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Constitution (and revisions), 1964-1975.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Lists of Council and Executive Committee members; 1972-1973; nominations, 1972-1973, 1975, 1979.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Council meeting minutes, 1927-1947, 1950, 1958.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Council meeting minutes, 1964, 1970-1975, 1981, 1989.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Executive Committee meeting minutes, 1963-1964, 1966.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Executive Committee meeting minutes, 1970-1972.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Executive Committee meeting minutes, 1973-1975, 1979.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Finances, 1924-1951.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Finances, 1972-1984.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Fundraising: financial appeals, circa 1934-1962.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. Fundraising in the United States: correspondence, lists, 1943-1948.
Box 1
Archival Resource Key. General correspondence, 1924-1938.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. General correspondence, 1945-1974.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with government officials re: conscientious objectors in other countries, 1929-1949.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with the War Resisters League, 1933-1973.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Jessie Wallace Hughan (WRL), 1925-1939.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Jessie Wallace Hughan (WRL), 1940-1947.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Jessie Wallace Hughan (WRL) [includes ms. of practical peace proposals by the WRI], January 24, 1940.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Abraham Kaufman (WRL), 1933, 1937-1943.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Abraham Kaufman (WRL), 1944-1947.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Frances R. Ransome (WRL), 1944-1946.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Frances R. Ransome (WRL), 1947.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with the Women's Peace Union, 1925-1932.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Correspondence with Elinor Byrnes (WPU), 1925-1926, 1931.
Box 2
Archival Resource Key. Lists of publications by the WRI, undated.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1921-1929.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), circa 1920-1939.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1930-1935.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1936-1939.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1940.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1941.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1942.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1943-1944.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1945.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1946-1949.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1950-1959.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1960-1969.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1970-1979.
Box 3
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), 1980-2010.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication): "Refusing to Bear Arms: A World Survey of Conscription and Conscientious Objection to Military Service", 1997.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by date of publication), undated.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature in Esperanto [some not by WRI?], circa 1928-1947.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature in German [some not by WRI?], circa 1931-1948.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Background Paper" (no. 1, 3-8, 10), 1969.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Background Paper" (no. 1-3, 10-12), 1972.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Background Paper", 1973, undated.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Circular Letter of the Youth Groups of the War Resisters International" (November 1931 – December 1933); "Circular Letter of the Pacifist Youth Secretariat of the W.R.I.," (1934 [June?]); "Circular Letter of the International Bureau of Pacifist Youth" (September 1936), 1931-1936.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication" (resumé for no. 12-20; 22-23, 27-28; resumé for 27-29), 1926; (no. 49), 1928; (no. 82), 1929, 1926-1929.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication" (no. 129-132), 1931.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 136-137, 140-141, 143, 149), 1932.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 154-155, 158-161, 163), 1933.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 167-168, 170-171, 173), 1933.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 182-183, 192-195, 197-199), 1935.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 200, 202-208, 210, 212-213, 217-220, 222), 1936.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 223-228, 230-233, 235-241), 1937.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 242-251, 253-267, 270), 1938.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 271-277), 1939.
Box 4
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 278-281, 283, 285-286, 288-289, 292-293, 295, 297-299, 301, 304), 1940-1942.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 305-306, 308-309, 311, 315, 317, 319), 1943.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 324-327), 1944.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 328-333, 335-336, 338-340, 342-343, 346-360), 1946.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 361, 371, 373-376, 378-382, 385, 388), 1947-1948.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 390, 392-394, 396, 398), 1949.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 402-405, 408, 410-416), 1950.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "International Council Communication," (no. 418-429, 431-432), 1951.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Introductory Letter" and Letter No. 1 – Letter No. 4 [re: Disarmament Conference], 1932.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1927-1929.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1930-1931.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1932.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1933-1934.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1935-1936.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1937.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1938-1939.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1940-1948.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1949.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Sections", 1950-1975.
Box 5
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Council and Sections", 1940-1949.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Council and Sections", 1950-1954.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "Letter to Council and Sections", 1960-1988.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Literature (by title): "W.R.I. Correspondence", 1979.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend [or Comrade]", 1923-1929.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend [or Comrade]", 1930-1939.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend", 1940-1949.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend", 1950-1956.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend", 1960-1967.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend", 1970-1989.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend", 1995-2013.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Form letters: "Dear Friend", undated.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. "News Release" (no. 11-49), December 15, 1949 - December 18, 1951.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. "News Release" (no. 50-68), January 1952 - December 1954.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. "News Release" (no. 2-34) [missing no. 3, 15, 18, 22-26, 31-33], May 1962 - December 1964.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Press releases, 1932-1938, 1946-1949.
Box 6
Archival Resource Key. Press releases, 1956-1975.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Section lists; affiliated groups, undated.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Australian Section, 1967.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Belgian Section, 1975.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. British Section (No More War Movement), circa 1931-1932.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Danish Section, 1940, 1950.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Finnish Section, 1938.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. France-Sud-Est Section, circa 1930-1931.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. French Section: l'Internationale des Resistants a la Guerre, 1920-1929.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. French Section: l'Internationale des Resistants a la Guerre, 1930-1939, 1946.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. German Section: Deutsche Friedensgesellschaft, circa 1974-1984.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. German Section: Internationale der Kriegsdienstgegner, circa 1926-1970.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. German Section [West Germany]: Verband der Kriegsdienstverweugerer [acc. 63-87], 1962-1964.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Italian Section: l'Associazione dei Resistenti alla Guerra, circa 1944-1947.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Japanese Section: Japan Group, 1976.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Netherlands [Dutch] Section: Internationale van Oorlogsbestrijders and Nooit-Meer-Oorlog-Federatie, 1933.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Norwegian Section: Folkereisning mot Mot Krig, 1963.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Norwegian Section, Krigsmotstandernes Interasjonale, 1946-1984.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Polish Section, 1948.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Spanish Section: La Section Espagnole de l'Internationale des Resistants a la Guerre, circa 1938-1980.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Sri Lankan Section, 1983-1984.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. Swedish Section, 1947-1985.
Box 7
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Hoddesdon, London (England), July 3,1925; International Conferences, 1926-1927.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Sonntagsberg (Austria), July 26-31, 1928.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference (5th), Den Haag (Netherlands), May 18-19, 1929.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Lyon (France), August 1-4, 1931.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Digswell Park, Welwyn (England), July 26-30, 1934.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Copenhagen (Denmark),, July 23-26, 1937.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conferences: addresses / messages given by Jessie Wallace Hughan, William Floyd, John Nevin Sayre and Frank Olmsted, circa 1930-1939.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, New York City (New York, USA) / simultaneous regional conferences [includes reports of Minersville CPS Camp and letter from Walter Gormley], February 22-23. 1946.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Basle [Basel] (Switzerland), July 26-29, 1947.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Shrewsbury (England), August 5-11, 1948.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference, Braunschweig (Germany), July 27-31, 1951.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Congress (10th), Gandhigram (India), December 21-27, 1960.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. International Conference (11th), Stavanger (Norway), July 26-31, 1963.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference, April 7-10, 1966.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (13th), Haverford (Pennsylvania, USA), August 25-31, 1969.
Box 8
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (14th), Sheffield (England), July 22-27, 1972.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Congress (15th), Noordwijkerhout (Netherlands), July 12-15, 1975.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Congress (16th), Sondenberg (Denmark), August 12-18, 1979.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (17th), Perugia (Italy), July 26-30, 1982.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (18th), Vedchhi (India), December 31, 1985 - January 6, 1986.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (19th), Mariehamn Aland (Finland), June 18-24, 1988.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (22nd), Poreč (Croatia), September 18-24, 1988.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Triennial Conference (23rd), Dublin (Ireland), August 3-10, 2002.
Box 9
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1925-1929.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1930-1939.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1940-1949.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1950-1959.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1960-1969.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1970-1979.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1980-1989.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, 1990-current.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Miscellaneous material by/about the WRI, undated.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Co-sponsorship of the International Anti-War Conference, Amsterdam (Netherlands), November 10-12, 1962.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Study Conference, France, 1963.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Youth Secretariat, 1926-1933.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. List "W.R.I. Contacts in Central and South American Countries", 1946.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Conscientious objection/objectors, circa 1927-1984.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Conscientious objectors in prison, circa 1930 - January 1956.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Plight of Nazarenes and Jehovah's Witnesses in Yugoslavia, 1928-1965.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Picketing of the French Consulate re: treatment of French conscientious objectors, 1955-1956.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Prisoners for Peace Day / Prisoners for Peace Day Honor Roll, 1956-2012.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Prisoners for Peace [lists], 2013-2017.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Stuart Morris' proposed visit, 1946.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Reports by Devi Prasad re: his international trips, 1973-1975.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Reference material: miscellaneous, undated.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. Reference material: typescript "A Dialogue With Western Pacifism" by Rajiv Vora (India), undated.
Box 10
Archival Resource Key. "A Guide to the Microfiche Edition of the Archives of the War Resisters' International" by Research Publications.
Box 11
Archival Resource Key. Microfiche 2.1 - 2.103 [in microfiche box within box 11]: The Archives of the War Resisters' International deposited at the International Institute of Social History (in 1985), 1921-1974.
Box 11

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