Top of page

Category: International History

A bending river with a boat on the water in the foreground. On the shore in the foreground, men in hats, a cannon. In the background, smoke rises from an explosion.

Of Note: A Manifesto’s Lasting Legacy

Posted by: Julie Miller

Filipino politician Apolinario Mabini’s “Manifesto Regarding the American Occupation and the Philippine Insurrection,” 1902, provides insight into the shifting political landscape of the Philippines after the conclusion of the Philippine-American War and the subsequent annexation of the archipelago by the United States.

Film poster with red background, showing Freud looking to camera

Made at the Library: “Outsider. Freud,” In-Person Film Screening and Conversation with Director Yair Qedar

Posted by: Josh Levy

Join us in person for a “Made at the Library” film screening of “Outsider. Freud” (2025) and conversation with filmmaker Yair Qedar. Qedar takes the viewer on a journey into the life and work of Sigmund Freud, set in four acts and combining animation, dreams, and insights from leading psychoanalysts incorporating the Library’s Sigmund Freud Papers and other collections.

A black and white allegorical print referencing the Treaty of Ghent which ended the War of 1812, showing Minerva dictating the terms of peace, which Mercury delivers to Britannia and Hercules compels her to accept.

Behind the Scenes with the Treaty of Ghent: The Library of Congress Acquires Unpublished Correspondence Between Henry Clay and William Harris Crawford

Posted by: Julie Miller

The Library of Congress has just received a group of thirteen letters, mostly from Henry Clay to William Harris Crawford, six of which are unpublished. These document the work of the American commissioners who negotiated the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812, and the subsequent commercial treaty signed with Britain.

A black and white etching of an enclosed stage coach.

Margaret Hunter Hall: Reluctant Traveler to the Antebellum United States

Posted by: Julie Miller

In letters to her sister, Margaret Hunter Hall (1799-1876), wife of the popular British travel author Basil Hall (1788-1844), recorded her impressions of the United States during a trip the couple took in 1827-1828. These are available for research in the Margaret Hunter Hall Papers in the Library of Congress Manuscript Division.

Full body shot of Cannon standing on deck of ship

An American Tourist in Nazi Germany

Posted by: Josh Levy

Wendell Cannon, a high school teacher from Illinois, toured Europe during his summer break in 1936. His journal, photographs, and other souvenirs capture familiar tourist activities such as a visit to Paris’s Arc de Triomphe as well as the unique experience of visiting Nazi Germany and witnessing Jesse Owens win gold in the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics.

Desert landscape with road at left, gray storm clouds above with blue sky. showing between them. In foreground two men in red shirts with donkeys and carts.

New “By the People” Crowdsourcing Transcription Campaign: A Journey Across Mexico in 1849: The Journals and Sketchbooks of Benajah Jay Antrim

Posted by: Julie Miller

Benajah Jay Antrim’s journals and sketchbooks document an American artist’s journey across Mexico in 1849. As of January 29, 2025, you can volunteer to transcribe them as part of the “By the People” crowdsourcing project from the Library of Congress.

Men and women seated and standing around a table, with one man standing and pointing at something unseen at left, frescoes and heavy curtains in background

Intern Spotlight: The Shifting Reputation of Christopher Columbus as Seen in the Christopher Columbus Collection at the Library of Congress

Posted by: Julie Miller

The Christopher Columbus collection at the Library of Congress includes a rare and valuable copy from 1502 of a group of documents known collectively as the “Book of Privileges,” purchased by the Library in 1901. The larger collection also contains additional copies in various formats the Library acquired from the 1890s through the 1940s. Junior Fellow Molly Williams explores the history of these documents.