Great Britain, War Office Registers - FamilySearch Historical Records

Great Britain

Record Description
This collection of War Office Registers contains regimental descriptions, succession books, commissions, appointments, descriptions, returns of services, casualties, half pays, pensions, and gratuities for the years of 1772-1935. The original records are held at The National Archives in Kew, Richmond, Greater London, England. Military Records are potentially of great genealogical value and may provide information not found in any other source. Such records identify individuals who served or who were eligible to serve in the military. Records in this collection come from the following locations: This is an Index Only Collection meaning that you will not be able to see the actual records. Some records may be viewed at: The National Archives Image Library.
 * England
 * Ireland
 * Scotland
 * Wales

Record Content
War Office Registers may include:
 * Descriptions of the regiments/battalions
 * Descriptions of soldiers
 * Commissions/promotions for soldiers
 * Returns of services
 * Those listed among casualties
 * Statements of settlements of soldiers, whether half pay or full pay
 * Successions of ranks of soldiers
 * Pensions for soldiers
 * Lists of married officers (sometimes including names of children)
 * Lists of wounded officers

How to Use the Record
This section contains tips and information about how to search the collection. As you are searching it is helpful to know information such as your ancestor's name and estimated birth year. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times. Military service (other than the militia) was usually a lifetime career. Officers came from the upper classes; soldiers usually came from the poor. Knowing this, you may be able to get a hint to the kind of life your ancestor lived outside of their military service.

Search the Collection
To search by index: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the people in the list to what you already know about your ancestor to determine if this is the correct person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Check for variant spellings of the names.
 * Titles may be clues of military rank.

Related Websites

 * The United Kingdom National Archives
 * Organisations and Resources for British Military History Research
 * Where to find Army Service Records

Related Wiki Articles

 * British Military Records
 * British Military Records Online
 * British Military Personal Papers and Possessions

Citations for This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image. Collection Citation: Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):