Archivo Histórico de Cancillería Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Argentina

History and Founding

The Archivo Histórico de Cancillería, officially known as the Archivo del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Internacional y Culto, has its roots in 1810, when Mariano Moreno led the Secretaría de Gobierno y Relaciones Exteriores of Argentina's first patriotic government. As an organized institutional archive, it dates from 1867, though two successive fires in that year destroyed most of the documentation accumulated to that point. The surviving records, damaged by fire, water, and mud, were deposited in the vaults of the Aduana Vieja. Over nearly two centuries the archive has held various names before arriving at its current designation. Since the early 2020s, the archive has been active on social media to promote its collections.

Collections and Holdings

The archive holds approximately 10,400 linear meters of documentary patrimony covering Argentine foreign affairs from 1810 to the present. Its holdings include: missions sent by the Junta Provisional Gubernativa del Río de la Plata (1810–1812) and successor governments; documentation of the colonial-era Archivo de Indias; records of the Estado de Buenos Aires; Rosas-era government materials; correspondence from the Civil War period; materials from both World Wars; diplomatic, consular, and embassy records; international organizations documentation; as well as a Mapoteca and Fototeca. Access hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, 10:00–17:00.

Access and Usage

Researchers must submit a note with their personal details, research topic, and purpose to the Director for approval. No official letter of introduction is required. The archive currently operates within the Instituto del Servicio Exterior de la Nación. Its physical location is in the former Contaduría General de la Nación building at Puerto Nuevo, constructed in the 1950s as the only building in Argentina specifically designed and built as an archive.