Records of the The National Archives UK Relating to Nazi-Era Cultural Property

The British records available through this portal are held by The National Archives in London, the repository since Domesday of all British government documentation. They represent records from all government departments involved in countering the Nazi spoliation of Europe and in resolving restitution and reparation claims arising after the war.

The records highlight the wartime policy initiatives taken by the British government including the Inter-Allied Declaration against Acts of Dispossession Committed in Territories under Enemy Occupation and Control, issued in London on 5 January 1943, and the establishment of the Vaucher Commission in April 1944 and the Macmillan Committee in May 1944.

Both during and after the war, the UK committed efforts and resources to establish collecting points and restitution commissions in Europe and effected the return of looted property to countries across Europe.

Documents range from policy proposals to forms submitted by claimants seeking post-war restitution, as well as photographs of missing works of art and lists of individuals involved in the looting and damaging of cultural property. One of the distinctive features of this collection is the focus on losses from both public and private collections in countries such as Belgium, France, Hungary, Italy, Malta, The Netherlands and Yugoslavia.

For more information about The National Archives of the United Kingdom, visit the National Archives of the United Kingdom website.
For more information about the Commission for Looted Art in Europe, visit the Commission for Looted Art in Europe website.

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