Statement of Purpose

The purpose of the Imperial War Museum is to collect, preserve and display material and information bearing upon the two World Wars and other military operations since 1914 in which Great Britain or other members of the Commonwealth have been involved. Other museums, both national and provincial exist, but the Imperial War Museum, alone in the country, is solely concerned with all aspects of war, military and civil, allied and enemy in this, the age of the two greatest wars in history.

This statement is the most concise statement of purpose which the Museum possesses. The Department of sound Records has no separate brief other than its responsibility as a national sound archive.

However, further amplification of the particular responsibilities of the Department of Sound Records can be gleaned from study of the original intentions of the General Committee appointed by the War Cabinet to consider a scheme for a National War Museum in 1915 which reported to the Cabinet in 1917. Documents issued by the Committee bearing the names of Sir Martin Conday the first Director General and Sir Alfred Monk the Chairmen state the following:

“The Imperial War Museum should have a more intimate personal interest for the individual than any museum that has ever been contemplated, for it is proposed to show not only the work of the fighting forces, but also the manner in which the whole Empire responded to the call in munitions work, women’s substitution, and work in the land, in fact it is proposed to record the whole life of the Empire as changed and revolutionised by the war.

The individual will find the work of himself and his family exhibited for all time.

Much that would have been of great value to the National Collection is already, destroyed, more is in imminent peril of destruction. A general co-operation is needed to preserve everything that can be saved.”

Consideration of the points raised in these statements lead to the conclusions that:

The Sound Records Department must collect, preserve and display all recordings and transcripts (when available) bearing upon the two world wars and other military operations since 1914 in which Great Britain or other members of the Commonwealth have been involved.

The department has a particular responsibility to preserve the individual viewpoint of the events, which form the brief of the Museum. The recording medium is particularly effective in preserving this viewpoint both accurately and evocatively.

The department has a particular responsibility to record those elements of the Museum’s brief which by their nature are less fully documented but which are of equal importance in understanding how the whole life of the country was changed and revolutionised by war.

The department has a responsibility to preserve everything that can be saved.