This is a brief guide to help you research someone in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. Many records are online, but it is important to note that not all records survive.
This guide will help you to find out if the information you are looking for exists and, if it does, where to find it or more information about it. See also the Royal Naval Division guide as many Royal Navy Volunteer Reservists formed part of the Royal Naval Division (63rd Division) in 1914 and fought on the Western Front.
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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
- a date range to help focus your search
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What records can I see online?
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Service records (1903-1922)
Download Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve service records (£There may be a charge for accessing this information. Searching indexes may be free.) on our website for a ratingA seaman ranking lower than an officer. These are the most junior class of seamen in the Royal Navy. (1903-1919) or officera senior member of staff in the armed forces (1903-1922) in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (ADM 337).
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Naval officers' service record cards and files (c.1880-1950s)
Search by name and download [£There may be a charge for accessing this information. Searching indexes may be free.] Royal Naval officers' service record cards and files on our website (ADM 340/1-150) for officers in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (c.1880-1950s). To view ADM 340/151-456 visit The National Archives at Kew.
Duplicated and additional information on many officers will be found in RNVR service records.
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Medal Rolls (1909-1949)
Search by name for information about the award of First World War, long service and good conduct medals in the Royal Navy medal roll using Ancestry.co.uk (£There may be a charge for accessing this information. Searching indexes may be free.). These rolls do not usually contain biographical information.
Digital microfilm copies of these records are also available to download and browse from our website free of charge. See ADM 171/70-72, ADM 171/89-91 and ADM 171/125-9.
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What records can I find at The National Archives at Kew?
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Naval officers' service record cards and files (c.1880-1950s)
Browse Discovery, our cataloguea search tool with descriptions of tens of millions of documents from the UK central government, law courts, and other national bodies for officersofficer - a senior member of staff in the armed forces' service recordsservice record - a document recording the career of an individual in the armed forces for this period in ADM 340/151-456.
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RNVR divisional records (1904-1939)
Browse ADM 900/75-86 for the small sample of surviving divisional records. Most have been destroyed.
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Navy Lists (from 1903)
Trace RNVR officers who were included in the Navy List from September 1903. The Confidential Navy lists (ADM 177) contain information omitted during the world wars. These can be found in the reading rooms at The National Archives, Kew.
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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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Service records (1920-present)
Visit the Veterans UK website for information about how to request a summary of an officer'sOfficer - a senior member of staff in the armed forces or rating'sRating - a seaman ranking below an officer service recorda document recording the career of an individual in the armed forces from the Royal Navy.
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Fleet Air Arm Museum
Contact the Fleet Air Arm Museum who hold information such as Engagement Papers and First World War pay and appointing ledgers.
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National Maritime Museum
Contact the National Maritime Museum which has an extensive collection of books, photographs, paintings, drawings and manuscripts dealing with most aspects of the Royal Navy and some of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. They do not hold official records of the Royal Navy.
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What other resources will help me find information?
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Books
Consult the published Navy Lists to follow an officer's career.
Use our library catalogue to find a recommended book list.
The books are all available in The National Archives' reference library. You may also be able to find them in a local library. You can buy from a wide range of history titles in our bookshop.
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Births, marriages and deaths in the armed forces
Royal Naval Division
Royal Naval Reserve