British Army

My Ancestor was in the British Army

by Christopher T. and Michael J. Watts

published by the Society of Genealogists

Documents shown on the cover are Crown copyright - full references are given inside.

This 124 page book (currently out-of-print) is for those who require guidance and assistance in tracing their army ancestors. It covers the period 1660 to World War 1, a slightly narrower period than is covered by the PRO's books, but does not limit itself to material held by the PRO.

The book is subdivided into 4 major sections namely:

	Officers - prior to 1914		Other Ranks - prior to 1914
	Other Sources - prior to 1914		World War 1 Records

This book does not limit itself to the records held by a single archive, but rather looks at the vast range of available material and demonstrates how it might be used to solve your particular research problem. It tells you what you might hope to find in each type of document; it contains many transcripts to demonstrate the points that it makes.

Contents

Officers - prior to 1914:

This section covers Army Lists, Returns of Service, Purchase of Commissions, Commander-in-Chief's Memoranda Papers (which include letters of recommendation for men seeking appointments and promotions), Half Pay Ledgers and Lists, Widows' Pensions and Pensions to Wounded Officers.

Other Ranks - prior to 1914:

This section starts with extensive advice on how to find a soldier's regiment when this essential information is not already known. A range of non-army as well as army sources are explored for this purpose. Finally the wide range of material unlocked by discovering a man's regiment is discussed and described. This includes Soldiers' Documents, Muster Books and Pay Lists, Description Books, Records for Chelsea and Kilmainham Hospital, Prize records, as well as material about deserters and courts martial. Militia, Volunteers and Auxiliary Forces are covered briefly also.

Other Sources - prior to 1914:

This section considers a range of miscellaneous material such as Indexes to the Army (unfortunately fewer than the researcher might wish), Army Museums, Medals and Vital Record (Registration of Army Births, Baptisms, Marriages and Deaths).

World War 1 Records:

This section only briefly covers the records related to World War 1 service as the authors did not wish to duplicate the works by Norman Holding. In addition a more recent publication by the PRO is available - Army Service Records of the First World War by Simon Fowler, William Spencer and Stuart Tamblin. [Note: The recent releases of material at the PRO are not yet fully covered]

Appendices:

The book is completed two useful appendices covering British Army Campaigns and Medals (1660-1902) and List of Regiments and their Records.

The Public Record Office publishes several useful leaflets for those interested in tracing an ancestor who served in the British Army. Copies of these may be found on their website. Useful though the PRO leaflets may be, their limited size means that they can only give the reader an initial introduction to the subject. The PRO also publishes useful books on the Army and Militia, which explore these topics much more fully but restrict themselves in the main to material held by the PRO, namely:

	Army Records for the Family Historian (PRO Reader's Guide No. 2) by William Spencer and Simon Fowler
	Records of the Militia & Volunteer Forces 1757-1945 (PRO Reader's Guide No. 3) by William Spencer
	Army Service Records of the First World War by Simon Fowler, William Spencer and Stuart Tamblin

The Federation of Family History Societies also publish three booklets, written by by Norman Holding, specifically aimed at those tracing individuals who served in the Army during World War 1.

These books are/will be available from good genealogical booksellers such as those run by
the Society of Genealogists, the Public Record Office and Family Tree Magazine.

If you find that you do need further assistance with your research problem this is available from the authors, who offer a professional research service at modest rates.

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