This is a brief guide to researching records of the Royal Naval Reserve. These records are incomplete and whilst many records are available at The National Archives, some service recordsservice record - a document recording the career of an individual in the armed forces are currently held by the Ministry of Defence.
This guide will help you to find out if the information you are looking for exists and, if it does, where to find it.
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What do I need to know before I start?
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Try to find out:
- the name and rank of the person
- the date range and service number to help focus search
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What records can I see online?
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Ratings' service records (1860-1908)
Look in BT 164 for a representative sample of ratings' service records. These can be searched on our website by name, year of birth, place of birth and service number.
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What records can I find at The National Archives at Kew?
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Ratings' service records (1908-1955)
Look in ratingsRating - a seaman ranking lower than an officer. These are the most junior class of seamen in the Royal Navy.' service recordsservice record - a document recording the career of an individual in the armed forces for this period in BT 377. The seriesa grouping of records held by The National Archives, based on common function or subject includes alphabetical indexes to the service records which are arranged by service number.
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Ratings' service records (1860-1909)
The records record a seaman's personal details and also provide a record of training and service, and of the retainers paid. If a man served served between 1908 and 1955 you can look for his service number in the alphabetical indexes in BT 377.
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Officers' service records (1862-1920)
Research officers' service recordsservice record - a document recording the career of an individual in the armed forces for this period in ADM 240. The seriesa grouping of records held by The National Archives, based on common function or subject includes an alphabetical index for the First World War period.
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To access these records you will either need to visit us, commission research (£there will be a charge) or, where you can identify a specific record referencea unique set of letters and numbers identifying a document in The National Archives, order a copy (£there will be a charge).
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What records can I find in other archives and organisations?
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Officers' service records (1921-present)
Consult the Veterans UK website to establish how to request a summary of an officer'sOfficer - a senior member of staff in the armed forces service recorda document recording the career of an individual in the armed forces from the Ministry of Defence.
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Ratings' service records (1909-1955)
Check with the Fleet Air Arm Museum about arrangements for access to the original Royal Naval Reserve ratings service records from 1909 to 1955.
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What other resources will help me find information?
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Books
Read Tracing your Naval Ancestors by Bruno Pappalardo (The National Archives, 2003).
Consult the published Navy Lists to follow a Royal Naval Reserve officer's career.
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In-depth research guides
Births, marriages and deaths in the armed forces
Royal Naval Division
Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve