The IISH collections on Germany and German speaking countries in Central Europe cover the period beginning with the democratic revolutionary movements and early workers' organizations around 1840 to the protest movements in the FRG during the '60s and '70s and the civic movement in the GDR during the '80s. Several classics among the archives reflect the historical impact of German socialist theorists far beyond national borders. The collections include papers of political leaders and theorists, organizational records, printed materials such as periodicals, posters, and brochures from the social movement, as well as photographs and audio materials.
The IISH reference library aims to provide a comprehensive variety of perspectives on the history of Germany and Central Europe since the early modern period.
Special library collections included in the IISH library have widened its scope considerably. These collections include the autonomous movement, alternative economy, ecology, the women's movement, the gay rights movement, as well as the extreme right in modern Germany.
The collections may be accessed in various ways. The archives index contains individual archival descriptions and a list of all archives by country (browse: Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia (formerly), International Organizations, Switzerland).
Books, periodicals, and image and audio materials are retrievable via the IISH catalogue.