Search the archives
We have a number of resources to help you find the records you need. Use the box below to search the main databases, or select the most appropriate one from the list. Those databases included in the search are indicated by an asterisk (*).
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Search records held by The National Archives
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The Catalogue*
Search descriptions of 11 million documents from the UK central government, law courts and other national bodies.
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Cabinet papers*
Search or browse a selection of Cabinet papers, 1915-1977.
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DocumentsOnline*
Search and download paper documents that have been scanned, including wills and medal index cards.
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Electronic Records Online*
Search and download modern UK government documents that were created in a digital format, including records of public inquiries and parliamentary committees.
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Equity Pleadings
Search papers relating to civil court cases in the late 17th and early 18th centuries (C 6).
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National Digital Archive of Datasets (NDAD)
Search and download sets of data and statistics generated by the UK government.
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Reference Library Catalogue*
Search the catalogue of The National Archives' reference library.
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Taxation records
Search by place for descriptions of documents relating to medieval and early-modern taxation (E 179).
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Trafalgar Ancestors database
Search the records of everyone who served on the British side in the Battle of Trafalgar.
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UK Government Web Archive
View historical snapshots of UK government websites.
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Your Archives*
Read what others have written about records and contribute your own knowledge of archival sources.
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Search our records on partner websites
The work of putting these records online has been carried out by our partners. It is free to search their websites, but there is a charge to download documents.
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Census records
Search and download census records from 1841 to 1911.
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First World War soldier records
Visit ancestry.co.uk to search and download surviving First World War service records and pension records (WO 363 and WO 364).
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Non-parochial records
Visit bmdregisters.co.uk to search and download birth, marriage and death records from non-conformist and other non-parish sources 1567-1840 (RG 4 - RG 8, RG 32, RG 33, RG 34 & RG 36).
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Passenger lists
Search and download lists of ship passengers who arrived in (1878-1960) or left (1890-1960) the UK (BT 26 and BT 27).
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Find records in other archives
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Accessions to Repositories*
An annual listing of new documents and collections acquired by record repositories throughout the British Isles.
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Access to Archives (A2A)*
Search catalogues describing archives held throughout England.
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Archive contact details (ARCHON)*
Find contact details for record repositories in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the world.
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Hospital records
Search for collections of hospital records in the United Kingdom.
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Manorial Documents Register
Search a partial database of the locations of manorial records in local and national record offices or private hands.
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National Register of Archives*
Search for archival collections relating to British history held throughout the UK and beyond.
