Although expansionists are concerned with only a small part of its total holdings, chiefly the records of the Colonial and Foreign Offices, the archives of the Public Record Office in London are nonetheless vital to researchers concerned with aspects of 18th and 19th century British imperalism. Hence it is that any change in the location or accessibility of these documents is bound to be of interest, even though nearly all of us trust the English and might assume that if documents are to be moved, it is probably because the old building at Chancery Lane finally ran out of space and that something more modern will await us.