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War Cabinet Minutes (HMSO), 1939-1945 is a themed microfiche collection containing copies of the minutes of the War Cabinet Meetings, Sep 1939-Jul 1945, and Cabinet Conclusions and Confidential Annexes, 1941-1945. Meeting minutes include British plans to create discord amongst the German High Command, Nov 1939; criticism of the military campaign in Norway, May 1940; First Lord of the Admiralty Winston (Leonard Spencer) Churchill's criticism of the Allied propaganda campaign in France, May 1940; speculation on the ability of the German population to sustain prolonged war, May 1940; reaction to the Allied withdrawals in France and Belgium, May 1940; the debate over the possible compromise peace with Germany, 26-28 May 1940; the decision to intern all enemy aliens in the United Kingdom; May 1940; Churchill's reaction to American isolationism, May 1940; the seizing of French warships in British and Egyptian harbours and the sinking of French warships at Mers-el-Kebir, Egypt, 23 Jun 1940; straining Anglo-French relations, Jul 1940; the Anglo-American 'destroyers for bases' agreement, Aug 1940; Churchill's attempt to take to court the Sunday Pictorial and the Daily Mirror over the newspapers' alleged anti-Government editorials, Oct 1940; preparations for the possible German invasion of the Britain, 1940; civil defence precautions in Britain, 1940; the British intervention in Greece, 1941; speculation on Soviet military collapses following the invasion of the Soviet Union by German armed forces, Jun 1941; Churchill's appeals to US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt for American intervention in the war, 1941; reaction over the fall of Singapore and Malaya to Japanese armed forces, Feb 1942; Anglo-American preparations for the invasion of North Africa, 1942; naval and air operations against France, 1943; the 'Beveridge Report' on social security in Britain, 1943; reports on Allied conferences at Casablanca, Jan 1943, and Washington, May 1943; the Allied decision to invade France made at the QUADRANT Conference, Quebec, Canada, Aug 1943; the planning and conduct of Operation OVERLORD, the Allied invasion of France, Jun 1944; the effect of the bombardment of London by German V1 pilotless aircraft and possible RAF reprisals against German civilian targets, Jun 1944; post-war reconstruction and rehabilitation in Europe, Jul 1944; plans for the Allied occupation of Germany and Austria, Nov 1944; British intervention in Greece in order to prevent a Communist take-over of the peninsula, Nov 1944; the establishment of the United Nations, 1945; arrangements for celebrating the end of the war in Europe, May 1945; the British General Election, Jul 1945.

The collection covers Pyman's career from 1937 until 1963 when he suffered a severe stroke which forced his retirement in 1964. The earliest papers date from Pyman's work with the Royal Tank Cadre in converting the 17/21 Lancers from a cavalry to an armoured regiment. There are also papers from Pyman's period as an instructor at the Staff College in Quetta, India, 1939-1941. Pyman was involved in the World War Two campaigns by the 8 Army in the Western Desert, in 1941 as General Staff Officer with 7 Armoured Div, 30 Corps and in 1942-1943 as Commander of the 3 Royal Tank Regiment, 10 Armoured Div, 30 Corps. The papers consist mostly of Pyman's assessments of lessons learned from the ongoing campaigns particularly with regard to tanks and armoured units. In 1944-1945 Pyman was Brigidier General Staff, 30 Corps, 2 Army in the Normandy landings and the invasion of Northern Europe, with particular responsibility for organisation and planning of the Rhine crossing and advance to the Baltic. This is reflected in the papers which largely consist of planning studies and reports for the operations involved, this section also contains maps used in the campaign. Pyman's next appointment was as Chief of General Staff, Allied Land Forces, South East Asia, 1945-1946 which is documented by a series of diaries which reflect the tasks faced by Pyman in this command including dealing with the build up of tension between newly liberated former colonies keen to assert their right for independence and the former colonial powers such as France and Netherlands. Pyman spent 1946-1949 as Chief of Staff, Middle East Land Forces and kept monthly diaries which form the bulk of this section of the collection. The diary entries and additional papers reflect the debate over policy in the Middle East in the British Government and Military command, they include detail on the British withdrawal from Greece, the problem of illegal Jewish immigrants and their internment in Cyprus, the end of the British mandate in Palestine and the the effect of this on relations between Britain with Egypt and the other Arab states and the subsequent Arab Israeli conflict. This section of the collection also contains correspondence between Pyman and Maj Gen Sir Miles Christopher Dempsey on personal matters and on the Middle East. There are also papers from Pyman's work at the Ministry of Supply as Director General of Fighting Vehicles, 1951-1953, Director of Weapons Development, War Office, 1955-1956 mostly brief diary entries and lecture texts. Pyman was also General Officer Commanding, British Army on the Rhine, 1953-1955 and General Officer Commanding, 1 British Corps, 1956-1958 and the papers relating to these commands consist mostly of lectures, reports and directives reflecting his interest in armoured divisions and training. There are some papers, mostly personal correspondence and press cuttings, from Pyman's final command as Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Northern Europe in North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). The collection also contains correspondence relating to Pyman's role as Colonel Commandant of the Royal Tank Regiment and The Royal Armoured Corps and a series of letters covering the reorganisation of the Berks and Westminster Dragoons, of which he was Honorary Colonel. The rest of the collection consists of diaries, correspondence, speeches, writings including the draft copy and papers relating to his autobiography, some preparatory work on a history of the 2 Army and reference works. The collection also includes the Boer War diaries and other papers of Col James Redmond Patrick Gordon who commanded the 1 Cavalry Bde of the South African Field Force 1900-1901 which were given to Pyman by a friend.

Comprising copies of journals, maps, newspaper cuttings and supporting printed literature relating to politics, trade, international development and relations between nations in North Africa and the Middle East, 1959-1993; notably including personal papers and notes compiled by George Joffé for Menas (Middle East and North African Studies Press) Ltd, and in the course of his work as a journalist, principally correspondence with publishers, consultants and experts in the oil industry relating to legal action over disputed damages estimates, 1978-1986, papers on Project Profile Ltd, a consultancy company established in 1982; cuttings and typescript articles and lecture texts by Joffé mainly on Morocco and North Africa delivered to the African History seminar at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London, and Institute of Commonwealth Studies, 1976-1977 (Ref: Joffé 1/1-3); research papers compiled for Menas, mainly correspondence with experts on the various arbitration and court proceedings between international oil companies and national governments with which Menas was involved, including on Iran, the Iranian oil industry, economy, borders and politics, 1966-1993, Libya and Malta and the 'Continental Shelf Case', 1983-1990, Saudi Arabia and Yemeni border issues, 1991, disputes concerning international water resources, 1982-1986, cost analysis, accounting standards and background articles on the Khemco and Phillips oil cases, 1985-1988, notes on Morocco including offprints, press cuttings, national economic statistics and statistics of neighbouring countries in North Africa, 1974-1988 (Ref: Joffé 2/1-8); typescript court reports, claimants' and respondents' submissions, evaluations, expert testimony and supporting evidence in a number of international disputes aired at the Iran-US Claims Tribunal, The Hague, Netherlands, and International Chamber of Commerce Arbitration, concerning several major international oil companies or local subsidiaries including Phillips Petroleum, Amoco, Mobil Oil, Arco, Gatoil, Lapco and Khemco in their claims against Iran, 1983-1989, the Saudi Arabia-Yemen boundary dispute, 1991-1992, Mobil Oil Libya v Libya, 1982-1986, Libya-Malta Continental Shelf Case with extracts from numerous Maltese parliamentary papers and Mediterranean geological studies, 1966-1983 (Ref: Joffé 3/1-14); Menas publications, notably on Iran, Libya, Morocco, international boundaries and water resources, 1979-1991 (Ref: Joffé 4); on the politics, economies and international relations of numerous North African or Middle Eastern countries and regions including Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Europe, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Middle East, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, and on various topics such as oil, Islam and the Salman Rushdie affair, 1980-1989 (Ref: Joffé 5/1-4); Economist Intelligence Unit publications, mainly Special Reports on countries, industries, trends and energy reviews, 1983-1993 (Ref: Joffé 6/1-3); copies of various journals and periodicals including International Affairs , 1980-1986, The Middle East Journal , 1980-1987, Third World Quarterly , 1981-1984, 1986-1987, Cedies informations , 1983-1987, Middle East Business Weekly , 1985-1990, Middle East Economic Survey , 1987-1989 (Ref: Joffé 7); statistical publications on various Middle East and African countries including Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Morocco, company reports, OPEC reports, 1959-1990 (Ref: Joffé 8/1-5); copies of maps, mainly topographical and geological, of Iran, [1950-1985] (Ref: Joffé 9); diverse bibliographies including on Afghanistan, uranium, Africa and the International Court of Justice, 1979-1980 (Ref:Joffé 10); copies of archival documents used in research undertaken by Menas and in court and arbitration proceedings, employed to establish historical precedents and resolve boundary disputes, on Malta, including copies of documents in the Archives of the Knights of St John, Public Record Office (PRO), London, and the State Archives in Venice, in Italian, French and English, [1728-1950], Israel-Jordan water resources mainly from the US National Archives' Eric Johnson manuscripts, Public Record Office (PRO) Colonial Office and Foreign Office documents on the same subject, 1876-1959], Saudi Arabia-Yemen territorial dispute copies of diplomatic records from the Public Record Office, India Office and Ottoman Archives, Istanbul, [1890-1930], copies of treaties mainly on the Mediterranean and Morocco, in French, [1761-1985], Libya disputes with Chad and Malta, French plans for Libya and the former Italian colonies, including PRO Foreign Office 371 and 146, and the Rennell papers, Nuffield College, Oxford, [1883-1991], Iraq-Kuwait territorial claims including PRO Foreign Office 371 documents and India Office papers, [1909-1956] (Ref: Joffé 11/1-6).

Papers relating to Crick's service in the Western Desert, 1941-1943, as Instructor, War Intelligence Course, School of Military Intelligence, Matlock, Derbyshire, 1943-1944, and with Operational Intelligence, G2 Division, Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces (SHAEF), 1944-1945, including copy of War Diary, General Staff Intelligence Branch, Headquarters 8 Army, 25 Sep-31 Oct 1941; typescript memorandum by Crick 'The possible effect of CROSSBOW on OVERLORD', on how Operation CROSSBOW, (Allied countermeasures against German V-weapons), could influence Operation OVERLORD, (the Allied invasion of occupied Europe), Mar 1944; typescript memorandum by Crick 'The heart of Germany', on the importance of the Ruhr industrial region to Allied strategy, Mar 1944; typescript report by Crick on visit to OKW (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, the German Armed Forces High Command), Flensburg, Germany, 11 May 1945. Papers relating to Crick's service with the British Joint Services Mission, Washington DC, USA, 1953-1956, including typescript text of lecture by Maj Gen Sir Kenneth William Dobson Strong, Director of Joint Intelligence Bureau, on UK and US Intelligence collaboration and spheres of influence [1953]; typescript memorandum 'Probable Bloc preoccupations in Asia, including Middle East, until mid 1955' [1953]; papers relating to the reorganisation of the Economic and General Division of the Joint Intelligence Bureau, 1956. Papers relating to the Imperial Defence College tour of Pakistan, India, East Pakistan, Ceylon and Aden, Aug-Sep 1960, including itineraries, travel arrangements, three photographs, invitations and a printed map of the Middle East showing oil wells, refineries and pipelines, 1960. Manuscript and typescript notes for a lecture by Crick entitled 'A career in Intelligence', given at Intelligence Corps course, with one audio tape of 20 minute lecture by Crick on interrogation techniques, Ashford College, Kent, Oct 1984. Edition of In the caves of the mind. Poems by Alan Crick (Privately published, Rye, Sussex, 1992). Newspaper cuttings, photographs and publications, 1938-1959, including German newspaper cuttings relating to the visit to Danzig by Rt Hon Alfred Duff Cooper, First Lord of the Admiralty, Aug 1938; three editions of Battledress. The Cadet magazine, Feb-Jun 1940; nine editions of The Crusader Eighth Army Weekly, Oct 1942-Apr 1943; sixteen editions of 'Interim. British Army of the Rhine Intelligence Review', Jun 1945-Apr 1946; three editions of 'Occupation. British Army of the Rhine Intelligence Review', May-Jul 1946. Edition of '21st (British) Army Group in the campaign in North West Europe 1944-1945. Lecture by Field Marshal Sir Bernard L Montgomery to the Royal United Service Institution, London, October 1945'; six photographs and five copies of photographs of Crick, Western Desert and Germany, 1941-1945, and two group photographs, Staff and Students, Joint Services Staff College, 1948, and Military Attachés Conference, Episkopi, Cyprus, 1959.