diff --git a/src/test/recovery/t/002_archiving.pl b/src/test/recovery/t/002_archiving.pl
index c8f5ffbaf0..88ddc8fce7 100644
--- a/src/test/recovery/t/002_archiving.pl
+++ b/src/test/recovery/t/002_archiving.pl
@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ $node_primary->backup($backup_name);
 
 # Initialize standby node from backup, fetching WAL from archives
 my $node_standby = PostgreSQL::Test::Cluster->new('standby');
+# Note that this makes the standby store its contents on the archives
+# of the primary.
 $node_standby->init_from_backup($node_primary, $backup_name,
 	has_restoring => 1);
 $node_standby->append_conf('postgresql.conf',
@@ -81,10 +83,20 @@ ok( !-f "$data_dir/$recovery_end_command_file",
 # file, switch to a timeline large enough to allow a standby to recover
 # a history file from an archive.  As this requires at least two timeline
 # switches, promote the existing standby first.  Then create a second
-# standby based on the promoted one.  Finally, the second standby is
-# promoted.
+# standby based on the primary, using its archives.  Finally, the second
+# standby is promoted.
 $node_standby->promote;
 
+# Wait until the history file has been stored on the archives of the
+# primary once the promotion of the standby completes.  This ensures that
+# the second standby created below will be able to restore this file,
+# creating a RECOVERYHISTORY.
+my $primary_archive = $node_primary->archive_dir;
+$caughtup_query =
+  "SELECT size IS NOT NULL FROM pg_stat_file('$primary_archive/00000002.history')";
+$node_primary->poll_query_until('postgres', $caughtup_query)
+  or die "Timed out while waiting for archiving of 00000002.history";
+
 # recovery_end_command should have been triggered on promotion.
 ok( -f "$data_dir/$recovery_end_command_file",
 	'recovery_end_command executed after promotion');
@@ -108,14 +120,19 @@ my $log_location = -s $node_standby2->logfile;
 # Now promote standby2, and check that temporary files specifically
 # generated during archive recovery are removed by the end of recovery.
 $node_standby2->promote;
+
+# Check the logs of the standby to see that the commands have failed.
+my $log_contents       = slurp_file($node_standby2->logfile, $log_location);
 my $node_standby2_data = $node_standby2->data_dir;
+
+like(
+	$log_contents,
+	qr/restored log file "00000002.history" from archive/s,
+	"00000002.history retrieved from the archives");
 ok( !-f "$node_standby2_data/pg_wal/RECOVERYHISTORY",
 	"RECOVERYHISTORY removed after promotion");
 ok( !-f "$node_standby2_data/pg_wal/RECOVERYXLOG",
 	"RECOVERYXLOG removed after promotion");
-
-# Check the logs of the standby to see that the commands have failed.
-my $log_contents = slurp_file($node_standby2->logfile, $log_location);
 like(
 	$log_contents,
 	qr/WARNING:.*recovery_end_command/s,