British Army operations in the Second World War

1. Introduction

This research guide is concerned only with records relating to military operations in which the British and Indian armies, and Allied, Dominion and Colonial troops under British command were involved. Records concerned with administration, supply, and research have, for the most part, been excluded, together with personnel records, which have not been transferred to The National Archives.

The information given below is not exhaustive. During the war the military, naval and air services were integrated to an extent unparalleled in peacetime or during earlier wars, and the process of integration was extended to encompass the civil government and Allied forces. Information about operations can, therefore, be found in records series which are primarily concerned with other aspects of the conduct of the war.

The Second World War: A Guide to Documents in the Public Record Office, J Cantwell (PRO handbook No.15, PRO, 1998) contains a general description of the wide range of war-time records preserved in the Public Record Office.

2. Official history and narratives

A collection of narratives and reports of all kinds brought together by the Official Historians is in Historical Section Files (AL Series) (CAB 106). Confidential Editions of the Official Histories of the War, containing the document references omitted from the published editions, are to be found in Official Histories: Military (CAB 101). Further historical studies are preserved in a series of Monographs (WO 277).

Notes and papers of a 1947 course on the D-Day landings and ensuing campaigns are in WO 223. The Medical Historians' Papers (WO 222) include many narratives of medical units in action.

3. High command

3.1 Cabinet

The War Cabinet Minutes (CAB 65) and Memoranda (CAB 66, CAB 67, CAB 68), records of the Cabinet committees concerned with defence (CAB 69, CAB 70, CAB 78, CAB 83, CAB 85, CAB 92-98), records of the Chiefs of Staff committee and its sub-committees (CAB 79, CAB 80, CAB 81, CAB 82) and of the Combined Chiefs of Staff committee and sub-committees (CAB 88) form the starting point for any study of military operations. The daily situation reports for the War Cabinet and the daily summaries of information prepared in the Central War Room are in War Cabinet: daily situation reports (CAB 100) and Cabinet telegrams to overseas commands in War Cabinet: telegrams (CAB 105).

3.2 Prime Minister

The Secretariat Files (CAB 120) contain information about the personal intervention of the Prime Minister of the day in operational matters. Similar papers are to be found in Prime Minister's Office: operational papers (PREM 3) and, to a lesser extent, in confidential papers (PREM 4).

3.3 War Office councils and committees

The class War Office council and Army council (WO 163) contains the minutes of these two bodies and their committees. The Inter-Services security board minutes (WO 283) contain information on the co-ordination of operational security and the control of code names. Files of secret papers concerning defence issues, which were made available to commanders in chief visiting London, are in CAB 121, records of the Special Secret Information Centre.

4. Headquarters papers

The records of the military Headquarters of each theatre of operation, and of the forces under their command, are the most important sources of information on the planning and conduct of military operations. The series concerned are:

Allied forces headquarters: microfilm (WO 228) and SHAEF and 21st Army group: microfilm (WO 229) are available in the reading rooms.

5. Unit war diaries

All units and formations of battalion size and above, and smaller units operating independently, maintained a daily record of events, often with appendices of signals and orders. These War Diaries are arranged by Command, following the Order of Battle:

*These series include associated papers

6. War Office directorates

While the directorates were primarily concerned with administration, their records frequently include reports on actions and campaigns. They are to be found in the following classes:

7. Other operational records

Although mainly concerned with administration registered files (WO 32) include many reports of actions, especially in the cuts O (overseas), 46 (narratives of operations) and 95 (invasion). O and A Papers (WO 33) include a proportion on actions with the enemy. Combined operations headquarters records (DEFE 2) cover all amphibious and some airborne operations. Records of airborne operations can also be found in Directorate of air (WO 233) and Army co-operation command (AIR 39).

8. Orders of battle

Those of British and Dominion forces are mainly to be found in:

Those of allied and enemy forces may be found in:

Col H F Joslen, Orders of Battle in the Second World War (2 vols, HMSO, 1960) contains a guide by units and formations to the orders of battle of British and Dominion forces.

9. Other sources

Private and Private Office papers contain some information about operations. The main series are: