For 2026, AM Digital Ltd have made available 12 free, individual subscriptions for products that give online access to records and periodicals from the Church Mission Society Archive dating back to 1799.
The subscriptions are for individuals who wish to explore written histories relating to their own local or national history and are not able to visit the Cadbury Research Library or access AM Digital products in any other way. We are particularly hoping that they will make the Archive accessible to people outside of the UK who self-identify as, for example, First Peoples, Aboriginal, Indigenous Peoples, First Nations, Inuit, or Métis Peoples, Okinawan or Ainu.
Church Mission Society Archive
The Cadbury Research Library holds the archive on behalf of the Church Mission Society (CMS, formerly known as the Church Missionary Society). The Archive is one of the most extensive and popular collections held by the University of Birmingham.
Much of the CMS Archive consists of records and publications arising from the Society's work outside of the UK, including thousands of items of correspondence, personal journals and illustrated magazines. There are also records of organisations that amalgamated with the CMS, including the Church of England Zenana Missionary Society (CEZMS), the Society for Promoting Female Education in the East (FES) and the Loochoo Naval Mission (L).
The records document the history of each organisation’s work and the activities, experiences and observations of the people recruited from the countries in which the societies were working, and from the UK and Europe. There is much relating to Indigenous Peoples, historical events and the built and natural environment.
You can find out more about the CMS Archive and related collections through the Cadbury Research Library online catalogue.
The CMS Archive in AM collections
AM Digital has digitally published thousands of items from the CMS Archive under two titles: AM Scholar – Church Missionary Society Archive and Church Missionary Society Periodicals.
These products are particularly important for anyone wishing to access records relating to countries in Africa, what is now known as Canada, the Caribbean, China, Egypt, India, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Pakistan, Palestine, Mauritius, Madagascar, and the Seychelles.
The Cadbury Research Library - AM Digital partnership subscriptions
If you wish to access documentary sources relating to your own local area, country, or culture, and wish to use digitised copies of papers, periodicals, and publications from the Church Mission Society Archive, you may be eligible for a Cadbury Research Library-AM Digital partnership subscription.