The Peace Archives

The Swedish Peace Archives collect material about Swedish international peace support operations. The material contains documentation from Swedish authorities, non-governmental organizations, and personal archives from individuals who took part in such operations.

The collections include government and organization archives, such as Swedish Armed Forces United Nations operations, the Swedish Red Cross operation “White busses”, and international operations conducted by the Swedish Police.

The collections also include personal documents from Raoul Wallenberg, Dag Hammarskjöld’s civil service file and a rich collection of personal archives from individuals whose service includes the UN mission in the Congo, the Swedish contribution to the League of Nations force in Saar in 1934 and civilian observer missions. This material reflects individual stories and experiences and is a valuable complement to the more dominant government authority perspective.

The Swedish Peace Archives digitize the material of other archive holders and gather the digital material in a searchable data base. The data base is accessible online to the public after applying for a username and a password. The Swedish Peace Archives also produce digital exhibitions, which in several cases are also available in English.

The Swedish Peace Archives were created in 2006 to facilitate research, studies and education about Sweden's participation in peace support operations. Academics and students gain access to a rich source of material for studying historical peace operations. The Peace Archives also give the general public an opportunity to familiarize themselves with previously difficult-to-access material.

The Peace Archives are financed by the Folke Bernadotte Academy (FBA). Over the years, the Swedish Central Bank’s Jubilee Fund, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Swedish Arts Council, the Västernorrland County regional growth programme and the Swedish Armed Forces have also contributed to financing activities.

Between 2015 and 2019, the Swedish Central Bank’s Jubilee Fund financed a special project to collect stories and personal files from operations between 1934 and 1979. The digitized documents have been added to the Peace Archive’s collections.