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Ministry of Supply Files

Description and record details

Reference SUPP 14
Title Ministry of Supply Files
Date 1917-1958
Description

This series mainly consists of files opened and closed in the Ministry of Supply for the period of its existence from 1 August 1939 to October 1959. The files principally concern the supply of materials, both raw and manufactured; various firms, committees and factories; overseas trade; and such international bodies as the Economic Commission for Europe and the Organization for European Economic Co-operation.

Control of raw material other than iron and steel passed to the Board of Trade on 1 April 1946; iron and steel followed in 1955. Control of non-ferrous and light metals went to the Ministry of Materials on 12 July 1951. Some files contain material added in these departments. There are also a number of files which originated in the Board of Trade before the Ministry of Supply was set up.

The series also contains a set of minutes and papers of the Explosives Development Policy Committee.

Arrangement

This series contains files from the first two of three different file registration schemes used by the Ministry of Supply between 1939 and 1959. The first scheme from 1939 used prefix numbers between 200 and 321.

The second scheme from 1946 used prefix numbers between 1 and 12.

Related material

For other files on the scheme from 1946 which used prefix numbers between 1 and 12 see:

Related iron and steel records are in BE

For other files in the scheme using prefix numbers between 200 and 321 see AVIA 22 AVIA 46 AVIA 49 AVIA 50 AVIA 51 AVIA 52 AVIA 53 AVIA 54 AVIA 55 AVIA 56 AVIA 57

Ministry of Supply, Private Office papers are in AVIA 11

Separated material

For records re-registered by the Ministry of Power and its successors relating to minerals and metals see

BT 255

Held by The National Archives, Kew
Legal status Public Record(s)
Language

English

Physical description 1366 file(s)
Access conditions Subject to 30 year closure