Holdings of the Rhineland Division
The holdings of the Rhineland Division are structured as follows:
- Authorities and holdings prior to 1816
- Administrative authorities of the Düsseldorf and Cologne administrative districts
- Judicial and financial authorities of the Düsseldorf and Cologne administrative districts
- Supreme and higher state authorities
- Non-governmental and non-written archive material
- Rhineland civil registry archive
- Cross-departmental holdings
A reference library is also available.
1. Authorities and holdings prior to 1816
The holdings from the period before 1816 consist of the formerly independent archives of the sovereign states of Kurköln, Jülich-Berg, Kleve-Mark, Moers, and Geldern, the files of the Reichskammergericht (Imperial Chamber Court), holdings from monasteries and foundations secularized during the French period, and extensive registries from the French administration between 1794 and 1813. In addition, there are important manuscripts, historical maps, and seal collections.
2. Administrative authorities of the Düsseldorf and Cologne administrative districts
Under this heading, you will find archival files from the central and subordinate authorities in the administrative districts of Aachen (until 1972), Düsseldorf, and Cologne from the beginning of Prussian rule (1815) to the present. These include the relevant district governments and their subordinate authorities, the district offices, and the police authorities. Their records also include the personal files of the Düsseldorf Gestapo office, which represent the largest collection of Gestapo files preserved in Germany. This group of records also includes the authorities responsible for labor, mining, settlement, economic, cultural, and social administration, as well as the former railway and postal administration. Finally, there are extensive collections of cadastral maps and personnel files.
3. Judicial and financial authorities Administrative districts of Düsseldorf and Cologne
In addition to the administrative authorities, you will also find documents from intermediate and subordinate authorities in the areas of justice and finance. These include, for example, correctional facilities, documents from notaries, public prosecutors' offices, local courts, social courts, and higher regional courts. In the area of finance, there are also customs offices, tax offices, the State Office for Frozen Assets, and higher tax offices.
4. Supreme and higher state authorities
The documents of the supreme state authorities, as well as those of the judicial authorities operating at state level, the higher state authorities and the state institutions, are summarised under this heading. This includes documents from the state government (cabinet files), the State Chancellery, the ministries, the State Audit Office, the Constitutional Court, the Higher Administrative Court, the State Social Court, as well as state-owned enterprises and institutions. Of particular importance is the extensive collection of denazification files from all parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
5. Non-governmental and non-written archival material
Non-governmental and non-written archival material, such as documents from political parties, associations, and federations, from legal entities under public law, as well as estates, private archives, contemporary history collections, photos (including Germany's largest publicly accessible aerial photo archive), film and sound recordings are also part of the Rhineland Division's holdings.
6. Rhineland Civil Registry Archive
The focus of the holdings of Department R4 of the Rhineland Division is on church records from the period 1571 to 1798/1809, duplicate church records created between 1815 and 1874 under the General Land Law for the Prussian States, and duplicate civil and civil status registers from 1796/ 1798/1810 to June 1938/1980 with the associated supplementary files (1796-1875). In addition, there are reproductions of church records that serve to supplement the holdings, films, microfiches, and digitized materials, as well as name directories. These are the registers of the civil registry offices in the administrative districts of Düsseldorf and Cologne. The holdings are supplemented by non-governmental documents such as collections, estates, and genealogical materials.
7. Cross-departmental holdings
Some collections cannot be clearly assigned to a specific section. These can be found in this area. This also includes the reference library and the collection of printed works.