Reference styles
The first reference to a publication or primary source in a footnote should be given in full length, later references to the same publication in an abbreviated form. This should include the author’s name, with a short-title reference if more works of the same author are referenced in the article, followed by the volume (if applicable) and page reference.
Legatio follows the reference style of the MHRA Style Guide, however, the journal has its own style regarding archival sources and printed primary sources:
- Correspondence:
- Archival source: Letter from .. to .. , date (day, month, year): archive, archival collection(s), volume number [if applicable], fol.
- Printed source: Letter from .. to .. , date (day, month, year) in book title, editor (details of publication), volume number [if applicable], p.
- Manuscripts:
- Archival source: Author, title of document, date (day, month, year): archive, archival collection(s), volume number [if applicable], fol.
- Printed source: Author, title of document, date (day, month, year) in book title, editor (details of publication), volume number [if applicable], p.
- Critical editions of primary sources
Legatio accepts publications of key texts relating to the history of diplomacy. The submitted articles should contain two parts: a short introductory essay and the transcription of a primary source. Whereas the transcription should stay in its original language, the introduction must be written in British English.
The author should provide both a title for the critical edition and a full archival reference of the transcribed source.
The transcription should be preceded by introductory material where the origins and the significance of the text is clearly explained. All events described in the text, as well as locations and mentioned persons, are to be clarified and contextualised. The introduction should also include the critical analysis of the document where the relevance of the source for diplomatic history is clearly established (e.g. what we can learn from the text and any preliminary conclusions that can be drawn).
Sources will be published in their original language. The texts have to be accurately transcribed, adhering to the following rules and respecting original spelling, capitalization, and punctuation:
- Names and places: they should be given in their original form, with the standard modern spelling in square brackets. When a word or name is consistently or frequently misspelled throughout the text, provide a footnote at the first occurrence stating this and give a list of other variants found in the text.
- Contractions and abbreviations: these should be solved with the interpolated letters in italic, e.g. nostri, occasione, animo.
- Letters u, v, i and j: amend to modern spelling, e.g. vniuersal becomes universal, maiestie becomes majestie.
- Letter s: long and short s are both given as s.
- Roman numerals: convert to modern usage, e.g. xiij and iiij become xiii and iv.
- Capitalization: follow the original text. Capitals may be added for the first word of a sentence and names.
- Punctuation: follow the original text. Full stops can be inserted if they are essential for the reading of the text.
- Page or folio numbers: the original page numbering should always be indicated in square brackets.
- Marginal notes: these may be inserted in square brackets at the appropriate point in the text or provided in footnotes.
- Annotations: the source should be annotated to clarify people, places and concepts or to elaborate on the information contained in the text.
- Lost/unreadable text: where text has been lost or is unreadable, this should be stated in square brackets.
