Provenance/Processing
| Historical Sketch | Scope and Content
| Container List
The Assembly of Captive European Nations was a coalition of representatives from nine nations who found themselves under the yoke of Soviet domination after World War II. Membership in the organization consisted of former government and cultural leaders from Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Romania. Founded on September 20, 1954, the ACEN was established to "symbolize in one name both the plight and the aims of the Central and Eastern European nations," which were either unrepresented or misrepresented in the United Nations. Its founding came on the heels of a number of human rights declarations signed as a result of World War II.(1) Working together to give power to their individual voices, representatives of these nine captive nations aspired to become the authorized source of information about conditions behind the Iron Curtain and become the forum through which views and actions could be put forth and discussed. In their own words, the goals of the ACEN were as follows: to provide liberation from communist dictatorship by peaceful means, to educate public opinion on the actual situation behind the Iron Curtain, and to enlist the cooperation and assistance of governmental and non-governmental institutions.
The ACEN undertook a number of activities to accomplish its goals. With funding from the Free Europe Committee, the organization was able to establish a main office in New York, as well as offices in Paris, Bonn, and London and delegations throughout the world.(2) The generous funding allowed the ACEN to sponsor symposia and exhibitions in addition to mailing thousands of letters and reports to government officials. ACEN-published materials were distributed throughout the United States and abroad, provided free of charge to libraries, schools, and institutions.
Membership and Structure
Membership in the ACEN was confined to national committees and councils, the political purpose, character, structure, and bylaws of which were consistent with those of the ACEN. Member organizations were classified at three levels: national, associative, and consultative. National member organizations were existing national committees or councils representing the interests of each captive nation. The nine organizations selected sixteen delegates each to participate in the executive functioning of the ACEN. The members included the National Committee for a Free Albania, Bulgarian National Committee, Council of Free Czechoslovakia, Committee for a Free Estonia, Hungarian National Council, Committee for a Free Latvia, Committee for a Free Lithuania, Romanian National Committee and, adding eight delegates each, the Polish Democratic Committee and the Polish Council of National Unity. Associative level members were international organizations based on major political parties, such as the International Peasants Union and the Christian Democratic Union of Central Europe. Four delegates from each group participated in the assembly, but did not possess voting privileges. Consultative member associations were international organizations formed by exiles for the purpose of defending the rights or voicing grievances of special sections or groups. Their contribution to the ACEN was in providing alternative viewpoints on issues raised in the assembly.
Using the United Nations as their structural model, the principal organs of the ACEN were the Plenary Assembly, General Committee, working committees, and Secretariat. The Plenary Assembly convened every September in New York and functioned as the supreme consultative and statutory body of the ACEN, laying down general policy through series of resolutions and selecting the General Committee. The Plenary Assembly met once a year, usually on the same date as the United Nations, and was attended by delegations appointed by members and associate members. Special sessions were held outside of the regular meetings to address specific issues; beginning in 1956, annual special sessions began in Strasbourg, France.
The General Committee acted in the name of the ACEN between plenary assemblies, scheduling press conferences, drafting protests, visiting heads of governments, and generally working to keep open lines of communication with government officials. General Committee representatives were elected to one year positions and counted among their responsibilities proposing dates for assembly meetings, electing officers for the organization, supervising the work of the Secretariat, directing and executing the budget, coordinating work of the working committees, and making decisions regarding membership issues.
Working committees were established to divide up the chore of compiling the information required to back up the arguments of the ACEN. The reports, statistics, and surveys produced by the working committees in turn became the appeals, declarations, and resolutions of the ACEN. Often, drafts of the official proclamations were produced within the committees and presented to the General Assembly for approval.
Of the original six committees, only four were active by the late 1960s due to the merging of interests and information. The Political Committee produced documents and reports on issues such as the extent of Soviet aggression and the ACEN's ongoing request to include the captive nations in the United Nations. The Political Committee eventually merged with the Legal Committee, which reported on Soviet violations of international human rights laws and the illegal incorporation of the nations into the Soviet Union. The Social Committee tackled such issues as the treatment of women, religious persecution, and genocide, later merging with the Economic Committee, which focused its efforts on drafting resolutions and reports on issues including East-West trade and various economic injustices. The Information Committee dealt with issues pertaining to the freedom of information (or lack thereof) and later combined efforts with the Cultural Committee, responsible for monitoring the cultural aspects of Soviet colonialism.
The ACEN Secretariat was responsible for carrying out decisions made by other organs of the ACEN, subject to the instructions of the General Committee. The Secretariat was comprised Of the Secretary General, Deputy Secretary General, and various staff and personnel required to fulfill duties, such as running Plenary and General Committee meetings and compiling annual reports on ACEN activity to the Plenary Assembly.
Activities and Publicity
Following the initial establishment of the organization, efforts turned to publicizing its aims. Members serving in every branch of the ACEN managed to produce a copious amount of written material having to do with the state of the captive nations-reports, resolutions, informational pamphlets, books, and an endless stream of correspondence. ACEN members traveled and met with international heads of state. Their representatives participated in symposia and conferences, offered their services through a comprehensive speakers' bureau, and generally involved themselves to varying extents in a myriad of issues concerning communism and human rights. The information generated by the working committees was used in newspaper articles and television and radio broadcasts. Published literature in many languages was made readily available to all who asked, and the ACEN replied to every letter received.
Beginning in 1959, the ACEN promoted the annual commemoration of Captive Nations Week, an event that spurred a torrent of correspondence to government officials throughout the United States to ensure that the captive nations were not forgotten.(3) The ACEN sponsored an anti-communist photo and essay display called the "Soviet Empire Exhibit," graphically depicting scenes of Soviet persecution along with facts about existing standards of living. The exhibit opened in New York in 1958 and subsequently in cities around the world.
The Demise and Legacy of the ACEN
The late 1960s saw a decrease in ACEN activity, with a number of foreign delegations closing their doors. As the Cold War entered a period where open antagonism gave way to policies of detente, support of organizations such as the ACEN gradually fell away. In 1971, Free Europe, Inc., was ordered to suspend all financial assistance to ACEN activities as of January 1972 in the name of economizing and "budget-trimming." The remaining international offices were closed on short notice and all publication activity came to a halt. With the support of individual sponsors, a skeleton crew endeavored to keep the ACEN going, but within a couple of years, even this effort stopped.
The ACEN provided a valuable service to its governmental and private anti-communist supporters: by keeping abreast of communist persecution and publicizing this knowledge in the strongest of terms, organizations such as the ACEN could say aloud what government officials could only think. In vehement declarations, the ACEN condemned the Soviet Union and garnered the support of public and private citizens for its cause. When the United States government deemed activities in this vein no longer useful in the climate of a changing political agenda, they withdrew support.
The ACEN reached beyond the scope of its
member nations to grasp an understanding of how communism affected the
world, hoping this would compel the world to take a second look at the
plight of the captive nations and begin the process of restoring their
freedom. The question of the ACEN's effectiveness in its war against
communism is one that remains to be answered. For the many thousands
of letters sent and contacts made, the ACEN receives no mention in history
books. The lasting significance of the Assembly of Captive European
Nations has yet to be determined.
(1) Among the many declarations signed, perhaps the most influential in the founding of the ACEN was the "Declaration of Aims and Principles of Liberation of the Central and Eastern European Peoples," signed on 11 February, 1951, at Independence Hall, Philadelphia.
(2) Free Europe Committee was covertly funded by the CIA in order to further the U.S. government's Cold War attempts to fight communism through the use of exiled nationals. Among its other projects, FEC also funded Radio Free Europe.
(3) Captive Nations Week was set
in motion by the National Captive Nations Committee, an official organ
of the U.S. Government.
The Assembly of Captive European Nations collection is organized into the following series and subseries:
SERIES I - INTERNAL ORGANIZATION
Subseries:
1. Internal Organization
2. Funding Sources
3. Chronological Files
4. Committee Members
5. Members of Secretariat
6. Personnel
7. Foreign Offices
SERIES II - ACEN MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS
Subseries:
1. Background Information
2. National Organizations
3. Associative Member Organizations
4. Consultative Member Associations
SERIES III - DELEGATIONS, REPRESENTATIVES, AND CORRESPONDENTS ABROAD
Subseries:
1. Delegations Abroad
2. Representatives Abroad
3. Correspondents Abroad
SERIES IV - GENERAL COMMITTEE
Subseries:
1. Internal Organization and Activities
2. Foreign Delegations
3. Speakers Bureau
4. Minutes, Agendas, and Distributed Texts
SERIES V - WORKING COMMITTEES
Subseries:
1. Background Information
2. Cultural Committee
3. Economic Committee
4. Information Committee
5. Legal Committee
6. Political Committee
7. Social Committee
SERIES VI - PLENARY ASSEMBLEES/REGULAR SESSIONS, NEW YORK
Subseries:
1. Delegates and Credentials
2. Agendas, Minutes, Transcripts, and Papers Distributed
3. Appeals, Resolutions, and Declarations
4. Reports
5. Addresses Delivered
6. Extraordinary Plenary Meetings
7. Public Relations
SERIES VII - PLENARY ASSEMBLIES/SPECIAL SESSIONS, STRASBOURG
Subseries:
1. Administrative Arrangements and Minutes
2. Delegates and Observers
3. Appeals, Resolutions, and Declarations
4. Reports
5. Addresses Delivered
6. Messages and Greetings
7. Invitations to Guests and Guest Speakers
8. Publicity
9. Other Strasbourg Meetings
SERIES VIII - UNITED NATIONS AND COUNCIL OF EUROPE
Subseries:
1. United Nations - General
2. United Nations Commissions
3. Correspondence with Permanent UN Missions
4. Correspondence with Non-Member Nations
5. United Nations - World Issues
6. Council of Europe
SERIES IX - RELATIONS WITH GOVERNMENTS
Subseries:
1. Foreign Governments
2. United Kingdom
3. United States Presidents
4. State Department
5. Executive Branch Cabinet Offices
6. United States Senate
7. United States House of Representatives
8. State Governments
9. United States Political Parties
SERIES X - RELATIONS WITH NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS
Subseries:
1. Political Organizations
2. Religious Organizations
3. Other Organizations
4. Universities and Research Institutes
5. Libraries
SERIES XI - PRESS RELATIONS
Subseries:
1. United States Print Media
2. International Print Media
3. Broadcast Media
4. ACEN Press Activity
SERIES XII - PUBLIC RELATIONS ACTIVITIES
Subseries:
1. Exhibitions
2. Celebrations and Commemorations
3. ACEN Activities
4. Captive Nations Week
SERIES XIII - CONFERENCES, SEMINARS, and MEETINGS
Subseries:
1. Conferences
2. Meetings
3. Seminars
SERIES XIV - ACEN PUBLICATIONS
SERIES XV - MISCELLANY
SERIES XVI - OVERSIZE MATERIALS (CAPTIVE NATIONS WEEK SCRAPBOOKS)
SERIES XVII - DIGITAL IMAGES
I. Internal Organization
These records outline the administrative structure of the ACEN, including the drafts, amendments, and final products of the ACEN Charter and Rules of Procedure. Details regarding its meeting halls are in Subseries 1, including blueprints and photographs of the New York "Captive Nations House." For the ACEN 10th Anniversary Commemoration, special bronze medals were commissioned and awarded to those considered to have contributed to the work of the ACEN, and the records here contain lists of recipients as well as details of the creation of the medals themselves. Two of the medallions produced for the ACEN can be found in Box 159, at the end of the collection.
Most of the folders in this series contain correspondence. In Subseries 2, letters are predominantly between the ACEN and its primary funding source, the Free Europe Committee. Chronological files of all outgoing correspondence from 1954 to 1970 make up Subseries 3.
Subseries 4, 5, and 6 provide insight into the individuals involved with the day to day activity of the ACEN. Biographical and correspondence files of General Committee members cover the first 10 years of the organization and give perhaps the closest detail of people such as Dr. Vilis Masens, Dr. George Dimitrov, Brutus Coste, and Dr. Nuci Kotta, the original leaders of the ACEN. Drafts and final copies of working papers of both General Committee and Secretariat members are arranged here by author, providing one the opportunity to get a feel for the work of individuals, where in later folders the work is arranged topically. General personnel files contain applications, tests, and individual files arranged alphabetically by name.
Subseries 7 contains files of correspondence
between the United States headquarters of the ACEN and its offices in Bonn,
Paris, and London. These offices began operations as formal European
arms of the organization in 1956 and continued their activity until their
dissolution in the 1970s. Included in these folders are reports on
European activities and foreign press clippings.
II. Member Organizations
The files in this series contribute to a more complete picture of the makeup of the ACEN. Subseries 1 has the background materials concerning membership. Only established national and international organizations participated in the ACEN. Initial applications and membership lists are found in this subseries, as well as qualifying statutes describing the organizations in greater detail. The following subseries describe in closer detail the activities of the member organizations. They are arranged by their status within the ACEN.
Subseries 2 consists of the national member files, grouped by the represented nation. Each national subgroup has a general file of materials having to do with each ACEN member country, an ACEN delegate file, ACEN correspondence with other national organizations, and personal files of individuals of the particular nationality who had dealings with the ACEN. The Estonian subgroup contains correspondence with representatives in Sweden.
Subseries 3
comprises associate member files, including records of each organization's
involvement with the ACEN, lists and reports of their delegates, and copies
of associate member publications and clippings of interest to ACEN activity.
Of the consultative member files in
Subseries 4, the groups which
participated longest were exile women's organizations.
III. Delegations, Representatives, and Correspondents Abroad
In addition to foreign offices, the ACEN supported work for its cause to varying degrees internationally. Each group or individual operated at its own level of involvement, whether it was just writing the occasional letter to New York to describe a newspaper article or publishing and distributing anti-communist literature. This series features the records of the ACEN's foreign representation.
Subseries 1 holds the records of
foreign delegation offices, the official international arms of the New
York-based ACEN. These files contain correspondence, press clippings,
copies of reports and memos and, on occasion, pamphlets and posters produced
by the delegation. Especially active were delegations in countries
where foreign offices were located (Bonn, London, and Paris) and in Argentina,
Australia, Brazil, Italy, Lebanon, Mexico, Sweden, and Uruguay. Subseries
2 and 3 are correspondence with representatives and correspondents
abroad who operated as individuals in representing the ACEN and reporting
on activities within their nation.
IV. General Committee
The folders in this series present the work of the General Committee, the ACEN branch responsible for the day-to-day activity of the ACEN between business meetings. Subseries 1 and 2 contain the General Committee internal papers, including lists of Committee appointees, by session, through the years both in the United States and abroad. Examples of generated reports, correspondence, and memoranda are found here, as well as invitations to and announcements of upcoming meetings. The agendas and texts distributed during committee meetings located here are complete, offering a rare glimpse into actual workings of the organization.
Subseries 3 and 4 outline General
Committee outreach efforts, including delegations to Asia, Europe, and
South America in the late 1950s and the ACEN speakers bureau. The
delegation to South America in 1956 folder contains statistics on Baltic
settlement in South America. Papers including travel arrangements
and correspondence with foreign nationals present a picture of how the
ACEN established offices and representation abroad. The speakers
bureau files describe various committee members and their specific areas
of expertise. Examples of speeches show the broad base of speakers
available to spread the word about the aims of the ACEN.
V. Working Committees
ACEN working committees were made up of representatives from each captive nation. These committees provided members with specific interests, areas of expertise, or particular concerns a venue through which to have the results of their studies put to use by the greater assembly. Lists of committee members, broken down by nationality, are located in Subseries 1.
Subseries 2 and 3 are papers of the Information Committee and the Cultural Committee, two groups that merged in 1963. Of interest here are reports concerning the cultural heritage of the captive nations and copies of a 1957 questionnaire distributed in the United States for the purpose of gathering information on education and cultural organizations in exile.
Subseries 4 and 5 are the files
of the Legal and Political Committees, which merged in 1963. The
bulk of reports found here deal with the legality and politics of Soviet
aggression and occupation policies. Subseries 6 and 7 contain the
Economic and Social Committee files. The line of when these two groups
merged is not as clear as with the other working committees, for the reports
produced carry the names of both committees up through the late 1960s.
The work of the Economic Committee produced ACEN pamphlets on East-West
trade and Soviet colonialism. Social Committee files give the background
and copies of the ACEN "Human Rights Chart," a poster that identifies Soviet
human rights violations in the captive nations.
VI. Plenary Assemblies/Regular Sessions, New York
This series outlines the administrative detail and the work of the ACEN Plenary Assembly, which met yearly in New York. Delegations to the Plenary Assemblies were appointed by members and associate members of the ACEN. It was at these meetings that all reports, resolutions, and other business were put to task. As records of business proceedings, these files show perhaps the most comprehensive picture of the ACEN, describing the people involved, the issues discussed, and efforts to elicit governmental assistance in alleviating the plight of the captive nations. Lists and credentials of Plenary Assembly delegates are located in Subseries 1.
Subseries 2, 3, 4, and 5 are the working papers of the Plenary Assemblies. Sorted by the nature of the papers, these folders contain meeting minutes and agendas, appeals, resolutions and declarations, reports, and addresses. Together, these records comprise the intellectual framework of ACEN activity.
Subseries 6 folders are divided by individual occasions of special sessions-meetings called outside the regular yearly scheduled meetings. The first extraordinary sessions were convened in 1956 to focus on issues surrounding the Hungarian Revolution. Subsequent special sessions dealt with its aftermath. Beginning in 1961, special sessions were also called in response to Soviet involvement in Asia.
Subseries 7 encompasses publicity
efforts, including press releases and copies of ACEN work sent out to government
officials, inciting them to action. ACEN sponsored a number of receptions
and dinners, and folders contain invitations for guests to attend these
functions as well as Plenary Assemblies.
VII. Plenary Assemblies/Special Sessions, Strasbourg
This series outlines assemblies that took place yearly in Europe from 1956 to 1961. Though less complete than records of the New York sessions, the records in this series provide unique insight into how the European branches of the ACEN interpreted their mission.
Subseries 1 contains the administrative arrangements for United States members attending the assemblies in Strasbourg, as well as the only minutes of the sessions of 1957-58. Subseries 2 provides lists and credentials of participating delegates to the Strasbourg sessions and members of the ACEN official team of observers in 1958-59.
Subseries 3, 4, and 5 are the working papers of the special sessions. Arranged by the specific nature of the contents, these files are a record of the appeals, resolutions, declarations, reports, and addresses produced by the special sessions.
Subseries 6 and 7 are Special Session public relations papers: messages and greetings to the special sessions, invitations to attend assemblies. Often, responses to these invitations were polite refusals, with messages wishing the best for the ACEN. Subseries 8 contains press releases and examples of press coverage for the sessions up to 1958. Folders of correspondence show arrangements with various press organizations to publicize ACEN activities in Strasbourg.
Subseries 9 describes other meetings
held in Strasbourg, including conferences in 1963 and 1964, a round table
conference in 1956, and a colloquy in 1965.
VIII. United Nations and Council of Europe
This series is concerned with issues addressed by or omitted from United Nations assemblies and commissions. Correspondence within these folders speaks to the lack of representation awarded to the captive nations, human rights violations behind the Iron Curtain, and matters regarding UN involvement in world politics and the exercise of power. General information about the United Nations from the late 1950s such as agendas, calendars, and picketing rights are located in Subseries 1.
Subseries 2 is correspondence, press releases, and statements addressed to various UN Commission members, informing them of current events in the captive nations, the ACEN position on issues dealt with by individual commissions, and calls to action.
Subseries 3 and 4 contain information forwarded to and correspondence with representatives of member- and nonmember-nations. Many of the letters and memos contain reminders of the plight of the captive nations, requesting that United Nations members and nonmembers alike take a stand against the exclusion of the captive nations.
Subseries 5 and 6 address specific issues discussed in the United Nations assemblies of particular interest to the ACEN. File contents are correspondence, appeals, reports, and resolutions forwarded to UN officials, stating ACEN concern over conditions in South Vietnam in 1963, the Middle East in 1958, and human rights violations behind the Iron Curtain. In addressing Hungary, particular attention is given to the case of Pavl Bang-Jensen, and several folders contain a chronicle of action taken by the ACEN in response to the 1957 UN Report on Hungary.
Subseries 7 contains a record of
ACEN and Council of Europe relations. Many Consultative Assembly
reports are found in these files, and a large portion of the materials
is in French.
IX. Relations with Governments
The files in this series shed light on
the relationships developed between the ACEN and various government offices,
both within the United States and abroad. Many of these relationships
were one-sided, as is revealed by the number of personalized letters sent
out and polite form letter responses received. The folders contain
correspondence that does not necessarily relate to issues dealt with in
other series.
Subseries 1 and 2 are folders of
correspondence between the ACEN and leaders and representatives of foreign
governments. The letters endeavor to describe the aims of the ACEN
and keep governments abroad apprised of events in the captive nations.
Subseries 3, 4, and 5 comprise folders
of correspondence with United States federal government officials: presidents,
representatives of the State Department and other executive branch offices.
With State Department folders is included a documentary file of ACEN delegate
visits with the State Department. Subseries 6, 7, 8, and 9
deal with state governments and major U.S. political parties.
X. Relations with Non-Governmental Organizations and Individuals
The ACEN solicited support from any and all organizations who expressed interest in the captive nations and conditions there. This series is arranged alphabetically by the nature of the organization: political, non-political, religious, and institutional. Though the folders are primarily
correspondence, copies of publications
either mentioning the ACEN or its goals are included with the organization
responsible for their publication.
XI. Press Relations
When not sending out a barrage of information
to heads of state, ACEN members exerted a great deal of effort toward getting
their message through to the general public. This was achieved through
the careful orchestration of press relations, the details of which are
documented in this series.
Subseries 1 and 2 deal with print media, in the United States and overseas. Correspondence with major international publications and smaller press reflect the ACEN's understanding of fostering friendly relations with influential members of the press, including American national language newspapers, the Christian Science Monitor, the Washington Post and Readers Digest, and internationally, with representatives of major nations around the world.
Subseries 3 documents relations with broadcast media, primarily radio. Included in this subseries are folders corresponding with each national desk of Voice of America, which, along with Radio Free Europe, was responsible for broadcasting information to areas behind the Iron Curtain.
Subseries 4 outlines ACEN press
activity, providing documentation of ACEN press conferences, correspondence,
and press releases.
XII. Public Relations Activities
This series is a collection of papers having to do with activities either staged or sponsored by the ACEN in order to publicize its efforts.
Subseries 1 chronicles the planning, publicizing, and execution of pictorial exhibitions, most notably the Soviet Empire Exhibit which opened in New York in 1958 and traveled to many cities around the world. Included here are a series of photographs used in the Soviet Empire Exhibit and a publication that shows the exhibit in its entirety.
Subseries 2 and 3 alphabetically outline the various public relations activities of the ACEN, both in planning and publicity materials. Subseries 3 contains a copy of the "Communist Expansion Map"-a poster of Europe with the Communist takeover shown in red.
Subseries 4 is a chronicle of ACEN
participation in and promotion of Captive Nations Week. These folders
include original state proclamations of continued non-recognition of Soviet
occupation of the captive nations. Countless telegrams and letters
were forwarded to heads of state in the preceding months, urging continued
support of this period. Though well documented from the outset in
1959, in later years the folders contain fewer proclamations and even less
correspondence and documentation of international activity regarding this
issue.
XIII. Conferences, Seminars, and Meetings
This series contains the records of meetings either attended or monitored by the ACEN. Subseries 1 is primarily correspondence with conference planners and attendees, reiterating the aims of the ACEN and urging that the conferences include mention of the captive nations and take action. Included also are conference agendas and the reports of ACEN delegates regarding conference proceedings. Of particular interest to the ACEN were NATO conferences, documented here between 1956 and 1967.
Subseries 2 folders are internal
ACEN files monitoring events surrounding and including international summit
meetings. Subseries 3 contains the comprehensive files of
seminars in Latin America between the years 1963 and 1966.
XIV. ACEN Publications
The files found in this series are the
administrative records regarding the various publications of the ACEN:
ACEN News, Bulletin, and booklets on a variety of subjects
having to do with the captive nations.
XV. Miscellany
Materials filed in this series cover a
variety of issues not directly related to any existing series. Also located
in the last box of the series are examples of the "Captive Nations Commemorative
Medal."
XVI. Oversize Materials - Captive Nations Week Scrapbooks
The scrapbooks in this series are collections
of newspaper clippings about yearly Captive Nations Week celebrations internationally.
XVII. Digital Images
In 2002 -2003, selected items from the collection were digitized and made accessible on-line through the IHRC COLLAGE database of digital images. Please view these images at the links below:
SERIES I - INTERNAL ORGANIZATION
| Box # | Folder # | Folder Title | Year(s) |
| Subseries 1 - Internal Organization | |||
| 1 | 1 | Preliminary and Final ACEN Historical Data | 1953-1954,
1972 |
| 2 | Charter and Rules of Procedure | 1954-1962 | |
| 3 | Charter Drafts | 1955 | |
| 4 | Charter Amendments | 1956-1966 | |
| 5 | Rules of Procedure Drafts and Amendments | 1955-1963 | |
| 6 | Secretariat - Internal Administrative Assessments and Proposals | 1954-1965 | |
| 7 | Secretariat - Programs of Activities | 1955-1965 | |
| 8 | ACEN Office in Washington/Hungarian Committee | 1962-1964 | |
| 9 | ACEN Action Groups | 1962-1964 | |
| 10 | Captive Nations House | 1956 | |
| 11 | Captive Nations House | 1957-1963 | |
| 2 | 1 | Assembly Hall (Intl. Center of Carnegie Endowment) | 1954-1967 |
| 2 | Assembly Hall (Association of the Bar, NY), September-October 1955 | 1955 | |
| 3 | ACEN 10th Anniversary, May-September 1964 | 1964 | |
| 4 | ACEN 10th Anniversary, September-December 1964 | 1964 | |
| 5 | Commemorative Medals, April-October 1964 | 1964 | |
| 6 | Commemorative Medals, November 1964-February 1965 | 1964-1965 | |
| 7 | Commemorative Medals - List of Recipients, 1964 | 1964 | |
| 8 | Introductions and Biographical Data | ||
| Subseries 2 - Funding Sources | |||
| Free Europe Committee | |||
| 3 | 1 | Pamphlets and Press Releases | 1959-1960 |
| 2 | Correspondence | 1954-1955 | |
| 3 | Correspondence | 1956-1957 | |
| 4 | Correspondence | 1958-1959 | |
| 5 | Correspondence | 1960 | |
| 6 | Correspondence | 1961 | |
| 7 | Correspondence | 1962 | |
| 4 | 1 | Correspondence, January-May 1963 | 1963 |
| 2 | Correspondence, June-December 1963 | 1963 | |
| 3 | Correspondence, January-May 1964 | 1964 | |
| 4 | Correspondence, June-December 1964 | 1964 | |
| 5 | Correspondence | 1965 | |
| 6 | Correspondence | 1966 | |
| 5 | 1 | Correspondence | 1967 |
| 2 | Correspondence | 1968 | |
| 3 | Correspondence | 1969-1972 | |
| 4 | ACEN Monthly Reports to FEC | 1963-1965 | |
| 5 | ACEN Monthly Reports to FEC | 1966-1968 | |
| 6 | ACEN Monthly Reports to FEC | 1969-1971 | |
| 7 | James McCargar/FEC | 1955-1957 | |
| 8 | Frederick T. Merrill/FEC | 1955-1957 | |
| Other Funding Sources | |||
| 9 | Contributors | 1956-1963 | |
| 10 | Friends of the ACEN | 1958-1965 | |
| Subseries 3 - ACEN Chronological Files | |||
| 6 | 1 | 1954 | 1954 |
| 2 | January-April 1955 | 1955 | |
| 3 | May-September 1955 | 1955 | |
| 4 | October 1955 | 1955 | |
| 5 | November-December 1955 | 1955 | |
| 6 | January-March 1956 | 1956 | |
| 7 | April- June 1956 | 1956 | |
| 7 | 1 | July-August 1956 | 1956 |
| 2 | September-October 1956 | 1956 | |
| 3 | November-December 1956 | 1956 | |
| 4 | January-February 1957 | 1957 | |
| 5 | March-April 1957 | 1957 | |
| 8 | 1 | May-June 1957 | 1957 |
| 2 | July-August 1957 | 1957 | |
| 3 | September-October 1957 | 1957 | |
| 4 | November-December 1957 | 1957 | |
| 5 | January-February 1958 | 1958 | |
| 9 | 1 | March 1958 | 1958 |
| 2 | April-May 1958 | 1958 | |
| 3 | June-July 1958 | 1958 | |
| 4 | August 1958 | 1958 | |
| 5 | September 1958 | 1958 | |
| 6 | October-November 1958 | 1958 | |
| 10 | 1 | November-December 1958 | 1958 |
| 2 | January 1959 | 1959 | |
| 3 | February-March 1959 | 1959 | |
| 4 | April-May 1959 | 1959 | |
| 11 | 1 | May-June 1959 | 1959 |
| 2 | July-August 1959 | 1959 | |
| 3 | August-September 1959 | 1959 | |
| 4 | October-November 1959 | 1959 | |
| 5 | November-December 1959 | 1959 | |
| 12 | 1 | January-February 1960 | 1960 |
| 2 | March 1960 | 1960 | |
| 3 | April-May 1960 | 1960 | |
| 4 | June-July 1960 | 1960 | |
| 5 | August 1960 | 1960 | |
| 6 | September-October 1960 | 1960 | |
| 13 | 1 | November-December 1960 | 1960 |
| 2 | January-February 1961 | 1961 | |
| 3 | March-April 1961 | 1961 | |
| 4 | May-June 1961 | 1961 | |
| 5 | July-August 1961 | 1961 | |
| 6 | September 1961 | 1961 | |
| 14 | 1 | October-November 1961 | 1961 |
| 2 | December 1961 | 1961 | |
| 3 | January-February 1962 | 1962 | |
| 4 | March-April 1962 | 1962 | |
| 5 | May-July 1962 | 1962 | |
| 15 | 1 | August-September 1962 | 1962 |
| 2 | October-November 1962 | 1962 | |
| 3 | December 1962 | 1962 |
| 4 | January 1963 | 1963 | |
| 5 | February-March 1963 | 1963 | |
| 6 | April 1963 | 1963 | |
| 16 | 1 | May-June 1963 | 1963 |
| 2 | June-July 1963 | 1963 | |
| 3 | August 1963 | 1963 | |
| 4 | September-October 1963 | 1963 | |
| 5 | November-December 1963 | 1963 | |
| 17 | 1 | January-February 1964 | 1964 |
| 2 | March-April 1964 | 1964 | |
| 3 | May-June 1964 | 1964 | |
| 4 | July-August 1964 | 1964 | |
| 5 | September-October 1964 | 1964 | |
| 18 | 1 | November-December 1964 | 1964 |
| 2 | January-February 1965 | 1965 | |
| 3 | March-April 1965 | 1965 | |
| 4 | May-July 1965 | 1965 | |
| 5 | August-September 1965 | 1965 | |
| 19 | 1 | October-December 1965 | 1965 |
| 2 | January-March 1966 | 1966 | |
| 3 | April-June 1966 | 1966 | |
| 4 | July-September 1966 | 1966 | |
| 5 | October 1966-February 1967 | 1966-1967 | |
| 20 | 1 | March-May 1967 | 1967 |
| 2 | June-August 1967 | 1967 | |
| 3 | September-December 1967 | 1967 | |
| 4 | January-March 1968 | 1968 | |
| 5 | March-May 1968 | 1968 | |
| 21 | 1 | June-September 1968 | 1968 |
| 2 | October 1968-February 1969 | 1968-1969 | |
| 3 | March-June 1969 | 1969 | |
| 4 | July-November 1969 | 1969 | |
| 22 | 1 | December 1969-March 1970 | 1969-1970 |
| 2 | April-May 1970 | 1970 | |
| 3 | June-August 1970 | 1970 | |
| 4 | Activity Summaries | 1965-1970 | |
| Subseries 4 - Committee Members | |||
| 23 | 1 | Vilis Masens - Biographical Notes | |
| 2 | Vilis Masens - Correspondence | 1955-1964 | |
| 3 | Vilis Masens - Speeches | 1955-1958 | |
| 4 | George M. Dimitrov - Biographical Notes | ||
| 5 | George M. Dimitrov - Correspondence | 1955-1964 | |
| 6 | George M. Diniitrov - Speeches and Statements | 1954-1961 | |
| 7 | Brutus Coste - Biographical Notes | ||
| 8 | Brutus Coste - Correspondence | 1955-1965 | |
| 9 | Brutus Coste - Speeches and Reports | 1955-1963 | |
| 10 | Nuci Kotta - Biographical Notes | ||
| 11 | Nuci Kotta - Correspondence | 1955-1964 | |
| 12 | Nuci Kotta - Reports | 1959-1960 | |
| Subseries 5 - Members of Secretariat | |||
| 24 | 1 | Public Relations Representative | 1964-1971 |
| 2 | Joseph Czako - Correspondence | 1955-1961 | |
| 3 | Joseph Czako - Reports | ||
| 4 | Joseph Czako - "The Situation in Hungary" | 1956 | |
| 5 | Paul Vajda - Correspondence | 1957-1962 | |
| 6 | Algirdas Landsbergis - Biographical Notes | ||
| 7 | Algirdas Landsbergis - Correspondence and Memos | 1956 | |
| 25 | 1 | Algirdas Landsbergis - Correspondence and Memos | 1957-1967 |
| 2 | Algirdas Landsbergis - Drafts and Papers | 1956-1965 | |
| 3 | Miroslav Fic | 1956 | |
| 4 | Miroslav Fic | 1957-1961 | |
| 5 | Miroslav Fic - Reports and Papers | 1956-1958 | |
| Subseries 6 - Personnel | |||
| 26 | 1 | Translators and Interpreters | 1955-1967 |
| 2 | Tests of Applicants | 1955-1957 | |
| 3 | Political Officer Test | ||
| 4 | UN Representative Test | ||
| 5 | Applications (Male) | ||
| 6 | Applications (Female) | ||
| 7 | Bacharov, Cvetana | ||
| 8 | Brazda, Jaroslav Jan | ||
| 9 | Brzorad, William, and Bunescu, Victor | ||
| 10 | Campbell, Elizabeth, and Dinsmore, Gail | ||
| 11 | Emptage, Natalie | ||
| 12 | Frenel, Denise | ||
| 13 | Guaragno, Grace, and Hoffman, Bruce | ||
| 14 | Kulyte, Bronislava and Kundzins, Ilga | ||
| 15 | Lapadatu, Aureliu | ||
| 16 | Lethbridge, Betty | ||
| 17 | Lubicz, Maria | ||
| 18 | Murray, John | ||
| 19 | Natoli, Grace, and Sanchez, James | ||
| 20 | Silde, Adolfs | ||
| 21 | Szilagyi, Joseph | ||
| 22 | Victor, Nina | ||
| Subseries 7 - Foreign Offices | |||
| ACEN Office in Bonn | |||
| 27 | 1 | 1956-1958 | 1956-1958 |
| 2 | January-June 1959 | 1959 | |
| 3 | July-December 1959 | 1959 | |
| 4 | 1960 | 1960 | |
| 5 | 1961 | 1961 | |
| 6 | 1962-1963 | 1962-1963 |
| 28 | 1 | 1964 | 1964 |
| 2 | 1965-1968 | 1965-1968 | |
| 3 | 1969 | 1969 | |
| 4 | January-July 1970 | 1970 | |
| 5 | August 1970-1973 | 1970-1973 | |
| ACEN Office in London | |||
| 29 | 1 | 1956-1957 | 1956-1957 |
| 2 | 1958 | 1958 | |
| 3 | 1959 | 1959 | |
| 4 | 1960 | 1960 | |
| 5 | 1960-1961 | 1960-1961 | |
| 6 | 1962-1963 | 1962-1963 | |
| 7 | 1964-1967 | 1964-1967 | |
| 30 | 1 | 1968-1969 | 1968-1969 |
| 2 | 1970-1973 | 1970-1973 | |
| ACEN Office in Paris | |||
| 3 | 1956 | 1956 | |
| 4 | January-June 1957 | 1957 | |
| 5 | July-December 1957 | 1957 | |
| 6 | January-July 1958 | 1958 | |
| 31 | 1 | August-December, 1958 | 1958 |
| 2 | January-July, 1959 | 1959 | |
| 3 | August-December 1959 | 1959 | |
| 4 | January-June 1960 | 1960 | |
| 5 | July-December 1960 | 1960 | |
| 6 | January-July 1961 | 1961 | |
| 32 | 1 | August-December 1961 | 1961 |
| 2 | January-July 1962 | 1962 | |
| 3 | August-December 1962 | 1962 | |
| 4 | 1963 | 1963 | |
| 5 | 1964 | 1964 | |
| 6 | 1965 | 1965 | |
| 7 | 1966-April 1967 | 1966-1967 | |
| 33 | 1 | May-December 1967 | 1967 |
| 2 | January-June 1968 | 1968 | |
| 3 | July-December 1968 | 1968 | |
| 4 | 1969 | 1969 | |
| 5 | 1970 | 1970 | |
| 6 | 1971-1973 | 1971-1973 |
SERIES II - ACEN MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS
| Box # | Folder # | Folder Title | Year(s) |
| Subseries 1 - Background Information | |||
| 34 | 1 | Statutes and Lists of Member Organizations | |
| 2 | Applications for Membership | 1955-1963 | |
| Subseries 2 - National Organizations | |||
| Albania | |||
| 3 | Albanian Delegation to ACEN | 1956-1969 | |
| 4 | National Democratic Committee for a Free Albania | 1954-1955 | |
| 5 | National Committee for a Free Albania | 1956-1957 | |
| 6 | Free Albania Committee | 1957-1971 | |
| 7 | Albania | 1954-1973 | |
| Bulgaria | |||
| 8 | Bulgarian Delegation to ACEN | 1954-1968 | |
| 35 | 1 | Bulgarian National Committee/George Dimitrov | 1954-1972 |
| 2 | Bulgaria | 1955-1970 | |
| 3 | Kyril Konakchiysky | 1955-1956 | |
| 4 | Tsenko Barev | 1955-1956 | |
| 5 | Nikola Antonov | 1956-1961 | |
| 6 | Dimitar K. Petkoff | 1957-1971 | |
| 7 | Nikola Dolaptchieff | 1956-1958 | |
| Czechoslovakia | |||
| 8 | Czechoslovak Delegation to ACEN | 1954-1957 | |
| 9 | Czechoslovak Delegation to ACEN | 1958-1961 | |
| 36 | 1 | Czechoslovak Delegation to ACEN | 1962-1972 |
| 2 | Council of Free Czechoslovakia | 1954-1966 | |
| 3 | Committee for Free Czechoslovakia | 1967-1972 | |
| 4 | Czechoslovakia | 1955-1960 | |
| 5 | Czechoslovakia | 1961-1972 | |
| 6 | Czechoslovak Party of Middle Classes in Exile | 1955-1957 | |
| 7 | Jan Papanek | 1956-1961 | |
| 8 | Hubert Ripka | 1955-1958 | |
| 9 | Mirko Sedlak | 1956-1957 | |
| 37 | 1 | Jozef Lettrich | 1957-1969 |
| 2 | Josef Vanek | 1959-1960 | |
| Estonia | |||
| 3 | Estonian Delegation to ACEN</ |