State Archives of Brest Region

Historical background

The State Archives of Brest Region was established under the jurisdiction of the People’s Commissariat of Internal Affairs on February 11, 1940.

In February 1940, the Archives acquired records of the liquidated Polish government institutions that operated in the Polesie voivodeship during 1919-1939, as well as records of all social, political, estate and other organizations, military authorities, public and private institutions and enterprises, and estates.

In June 1941, when the war began, it was impossible to remove the archives from Brest. During the German occupation some records were taken away by the Nazis, many of them were badly damaged and the finding aids were destroyed.

In the second half of the 1940s the Archives acquired records of the German administration and other institutions that operated in the area during the Occupation (June 1941-July 1944).

In the 1950s, the Archives began to acquire the documents of the Soviet organizations of the Brest region.

In 1992, the Archives acquired the fonds of the former Communist Party Archives of the Brest Region. These fonds contain information dating from 1939-1941 and 1944-1991.

Documents written in Russian, Belarusian, German, Ukrainian and Polish are preserved at the Archives.