Diplomatic Service Administration Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Communications...

This series contains records of the Communications Department of the Diplomatic Service Administration Office and its successor in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office dealing with security of communications (Queen's messengers, diplomatic bags, the diplomatic wireless service, telecommunications and cyphers) between London and Britain's overseas diplomatic posts and representatives in the Dependent Territories.

By former file reference within each accession

For earlier records see FO 850

• Diplomatic Service Administration Office, Communications Department, 1965-1968
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Communications Department, 1968-1973
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Communications Operations Department, 1973-1990
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Communications Planning Staff, 1973-1990

From 2000 Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Topics

International

Radio and television

Communications

The specialist function of maintaining and securing communications between London and overseas posts of the Commonwealth and Foreign Offices had been the function of the Communications Department of the Diplomatic Service Administration Office from its establishment in January 1965. This department was absorbed unchanged into the unified Foreign and Commonwealth Office on its creation in October 1968.

In 1973 the Communications Department was split into various functional units: the Communications Administration Department; the Communications Engineering Department; the Communications Operations Department; the Communications Planning Staff and the Communications Technical Services Department. Each of these units continued using a common file registry series, though the registry code was changed from 'XY' to 'Y', and selected files continue in this series.