Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House)
On the sidelines of the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, the British diplomat Lionel Curtis advocated the creation of an institute for the study of international affairs to foster mutual understanding between nations and for the institute to propose solutions to the biggest challenges facing the world, leading to the inaugural meeting of the British Institute of International Affairs in 1920.
In the 1940s, Chatham House researchers generated unique insight throughout World War Two with the creation of the Foreign Research and Press Service, which provided a coherent picture of conditions in Axis-occupied countries. The Service influenced British wartime intelligence and post-war planning. The Institute also arranged courses for armed services officers and provided research facilities for refugee and allied scholars.