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What are the Royal Naval Reserve service records?

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You can search and download over 9,000 service records for men serving in the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) between 1860 and 1908. The Royal Naval Reserve was established in 1859 as a reserve force of officers and men from deep-sea merchant ships. By 1890 there were 20,000 men in the RNR. These records, held by The National Archives in the seriesLink to glossary - opens in a new window BT 164, record a seaman’s personal details and also provide a record of training and service, and of the retainers paid.

Searching the service records

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You can search by entering any or all of the following:

  • First name(s)
  • Last name
  • Year of birth
  • Place of birth
  • Service number

Alternatively, you may wish to browse details of the whole collection.

What could these records help me to discover?

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These records might tell you:

  • Name
  • Date of birth
  • Address
  • Parents’ names
  • Physical description
  • Date of enrolment
  • Training undertaken
  • Names of ships served on, with dates of joining and discharge from each ship
  • Period of time actually served
  • Any engagements not completed and the reason for this

Each record covers a five year term of service in the Royal Naval Reserve, so a reservist may appear in several successive volumes/cards.

What do the records look like?

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Volumes

A volume entry covers two pages. The top of the record includes a rating’s name, date of birth, place of birth, physical description, date of enrolment and the names of his mother and father. The lower section of the volume entry records a list of ships served on, retainer pay and any training undertaken. In some instances medal entitlement is also noted on the records. To get an idea of what the records look like, see the record of William Sharp CobbPDF file - opens in a new window

Cards

Service records held in piece 20 have been recorded on a single card. The image you receive will contain both the front and reverse of the card. The cards have a similar layout and contain much the same information as the volume records. To get an idea of what the records look like, see the record of Thomas John SedgmanPDF file - opens in a new window

Miscellaneous

The records held in piece 23 are a collection of correspondences and have not been individually indexed. Instead, we have made the whole piece available to download for £3.50. Once downloaded you can scroll through the document to locate the information you require.

Why can't I find an entry?

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  • BT 164 is only a representative sample of Royal Naval Reserve Ratings service records. If you cannot locate a record it could be possible that it is not among the selected sample.

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  • Records of service between 1919 and 1922 are held on microfiche in the seriesLink to glossary - opens in a new window BT 377. Name indexes are available within the same series on microfilm covering the period back to 1860. It may also be worthwhile checking the service records of Merchant Seamen for the war period. See the research guide on merchant seamen: sea service records, 1913-1972.

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  • For service records from 1922-1939 and after 1945 please contact:

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    PPPA (Pay, Pensions, Personnel, Administration),
    Centurion Building,
    Grange Road,
    Gosport,
    Hampshire,
    O13 9XA

     

  • The Fleet Air Arm Museum holds the original records for RNR ratings from 1908 to 1955.

Further research

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Service records of Royal Naval Reserve officers who served between 1862 and 1920, and of honorary officers from 1862 to 1960, are in ADM 240 arranged by rank and seniority.

ADM 340 contains files and record-of-service cards, detailing the service of officers in the Royal Navy, the Royal Naval Reserve, the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve and the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS).

Medals

Records relating to the award of the RNR Long Service medal are in ADM 171/70, ADM 171/71, and ADM 171/72. Honours and Awards for the RNR during the First World War are in ADM 171/77. Each volume is arranged in alphabetical order, although not strictly within each letter. Papers on awards to RNR officers during the Second World War are in BT 164/23.

The Roll of the Naval War Medals also contains entries for the RNR - officers in ADM 171/92-93 and ratings in ADM 171/120-124.

Research guides

Royal Naval Reserve

Books

Tracing Your Naval Ancestors, Bruno Pappalardo, The National Archives, 2003.

Family History in the Wars: Find how your ancestors served their country, William Spencer, The National Archives, 2007.