If he was killed in the war or demobilised after the war, there is only about a 25% chance of finding his service record, as most records were destroyed by bombing in 1940. The records that do remain are known as the 'burnt documents'. For further information about this, check our research guides.

Service records of soldiers who were killed, died or survived the war (held in series WO 363) are being made available on Ancestry.co.uk. The records are being released in batches, and the project is due to be completed by the end of 2008 - please check the Ancestry.co.uk website for latest availability. There is a fee to download the records, although they are free to access on site at The National Archives in Kew.

British army soldiers' papers: First World War, 1914-1918

War Dead: First & Second World Wars

British Army War Diaries: First World War, 1914-1918

William Spencer, Army Service Records of the First World War (PRO, 2001)

Search the Commission's Debt of Honour Register online.