Royal Navy officers' service records, First World War and confidential reports 1893-1943

1. Service records and confidential reports

Naval officers' service records are mainly in ADM 196 and a selection of pieces are available to download. Access is free on site at The National Archives.

There is a main series for executive officers, and another for warrant officers. A service record usually gives:

• date of birth (occasionally place of birth)
• wife's name, and date and place of marriage
• name and profession of father (address sometimes given)
• dates of commission and promotions
• details of rewards, distinctions and examinations taken
• date of appointment and discharge from each named ship
• dates of retirement and death

There are several series of summaries of confidential reports: these give commanding officers' (often brutally candid) opinions of individuals' suitability for promotion.

2. Indexes: some and none

Unfortunately, there is no overall name index to these records. Some volumes include an index: others have separate index volumes. If there are no name indexes, you will have to search the service records by date. To do this, you will need to find out either when the officer joined the navy, or his date of seniority or promotion to a particular rank. These dates can be found in the Navy List, in the alphabetical list of officers, or the seniority lists.

3. Executive officers: service records

Cadets, Midshipmen, Mates, Sub-Lieutenants, Lieutenant Commanders, Lieutenants, Commanders, Captains, Admirals

This main series of service records provides details of an officer's entire career from Midshipman up. It cross refers to earlier series in ADM 196/36-56.

There are no name indexes: you need to get the date of attaining rank of Midshipman from the Navy List.

4. Engineer officers

5. Executive officers: summaries of confidential reports

5.1 Acting Mates and Mates

Confidential reports on Acting Mates and Mates promoted to Lieutenant, and recording service as far as Lieutenant Commander.

5.2 Lieutenants and Sub Lieutenants

+ A sample index entry: Charles D Rickett volume 'B' 80. Convert the letter to a new reference using the table above.

* Further service details for Lieutenants promoted 1895-1898 are in ADM 196/137. This contains a name index.

** For supplementary Lieutenants and Sub- Lieutenants, promoted 1913 Jan -1914 June, see ADM 196/152. This contains a name index.

5.3 Commanders

There is also a union index to these four volumes in ADM 196/129. A typical entry would be John Cresswell 1929, page 21. Check the date given against the above table.

5.4 Admirals and Captains

6. Warrant Officers: service records (and Gunners' confidential reports)

Boatswains, Carpenters, Gunners, Gunners (T), Instructors in Cookery,

Signal Boatswains, Warrant Armourers, Warrant Electricians, Warrant Shipwrights, Warrant Stewards, Warrant Telegraphists, Warrant Writers

The main series of service records. It cross-refers to earlier series in ADM 196/34-35

A sample index entry: J Bellis, Gunner, Volume 2, p 13, refers to ADM 195/156 p 13.

Service records of warrant officers promoted to Lieutenant during 1918 Jan - 1931 June are in ADM 196/153. This contains a name index.

7. Gunners

8. Paymasters: service records and confidential reports

8.1 Assistant Clerks, Paymaster Cadets and Paymasters

9. Schoolmasters and surgeons: service records

9.1 Schoolmasters

Service records of Schoolmasters who joined the Navy 1919-1926 are in ADM 196/177.

9.2 Surgeons

10. No trace of a service record?

It is possible to establish the basic outline of an officer's career by searching the Navy List. Also, it may be worth searching other parts of ADM 196, and ADM 29/105-131, for references to other service records for executive and warrant officers who served during the First World War, particularly those who joined the navy towards the end of the nineteenth century.

11. Service records after the First World War

The service records and confidential reports detailed here do include details of officers who continued serving even beyond the Second World War. However, we do not as yet have service records for:

• executive officers whose service began after May 1917
• warrant officers whose service began after 1931

Service records after these dates are closed, but information can be provided by the Ministry of Defence to officers, or to their next of kin (for a fee). For officers who have died, contact:

The Directorate of Personnel Support (Navy)
Navy Search
TNT Archive Services
Tetron Point
William Nadin Way
Swadlincote
Derbyshire
DE11 0BB
Tel: 01283 227 910/911/912/913
Fax: 01283 227 942
Email: navysearchpgrc@tnt.co.uk

For officers who are still living, contact:

Data Protection Cell (Navy)
Building 1/152
HM Naval Base Portsmouth
Victory View
Portsmouth
PO1 3PX
Tel: 02392 727 381/723 114/720 014/727 470/727 531
Fax: 02392 725 829