This is a brief guide to help you find records of a hospital. Ministry of Health records held at The National Archives are wide-ranging, although not all records survive. Many records of individual hospitals are held in local archives.

What do I need to know before I start?

The Ministry of Health was created in 1919.

Before the National Health Service was established, provision of healthcare was fragmented with no central control, and voluntary hospitals were charitable institutions.

The National Health Service was established in 1948.

Online records

Records available only at The National Archives in Kew

Records in other archives and organisations

Other resources

This guide provides advice on how to search for records of Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) officers. Which sets of records you should consult will depend on the start and finish dates of the officer’s service.

What do I need to know before I start?

Online records

Records available only at The National Archives in Kew

Records in other archives and organisations

Other resources

1. Why use this guide?

One of the many thousands of wallpaper, or ‘paper hanging’, designs from our collection, this one dated 1849 (catalogue reference BT 43/85/60220).

Among The National Archives’ most visually captivating collections is its stunning array of almost three million designs used for textiles, glasswork, metalwork, ceramics, furniture, wallpaper and other decorative arts and manufactured objects. We hold copies of these designs in the form of drawings, paintings, photographs and product samples, sent to the Designs Registry, part of the Board of Trade, to be registered for copyright protection between 1839 and 1991.

This guide explains how you can locate individual images or samples of these designs, known as ‘representations’, within our collection. There is also advice on how to find other details about each design, including the identity of the copyright owners or ‘proprietors’ – usually the manufacturer or retailer rather than the designer.

As registration was not compulsory, there are many commercially produced designs which you will not find in our records.

See our other intellectual property guides for advice on trade marks, patents and copyright.

For advice on modern-day registrations contact the Intellectual Property Office.

2. What, why and how designs were registered

Until 1839 there had been copyright protection in the UK for some textiles, but most areas of the decorative arts, such as glass, metalwork, ceramics and wallpapers, had no copyright protection at all. This changed with the 1839 Designs Registration Act which provided protection for all ‘ornamental’ designs.

From 1839, to apply for copyright protection you had to submit your design to the newly created Designs Registry, part of the Board of Trade and later to fall under the jurisdiction of the Patent Office. Registration protected the decorative elements of the design from being copied and manufactured without permission. Details of how an item worked – the mechanics of the design – were protected separately, by patents of invention (though patents did slip into the registered design records sometimes).

Today designs are registered with the Intellectual Property Office.

Although the system used for registering designs continued to change as subsequent Acts of Parliament extended and amended design copyright law, from 1842 the process always involved two basic record types: representations and registers.

3. Record types: representations and registers

When a design was submitted for copyright protection, details were added to two different types of records: design registers and representation books.

A representations book (catalogue reference BT 43/102).

3.1 Representations

Representations were drawings, paintings, photographs or samples of the design, such as wallpaper or textiles, submitted at the time of registration. We hold representations for around 2,950,000 designs.

Inside a representations book (catalogue reference BT 43/102).

The representations were pasted into large bound volumes, and later stored in archival boxes, and have a registered design number stamped on them. The same number is recorded in the register so that you can cross refer between the two record types.

3.2 Registers

In the registers were recorded:

• the registered design number
• the name and address of the copyright owner, or ‘proprietor’ (usually the manufacturer or retailer rather than the designer)
• the date of registration
• sometimes a description of the design (for example ‘printed fabric’ or ‘dinner plate’)

A design register (catalogue reference BT 53/111).

At The National Archives, these registers and representations have been split into various record series, each one determined by the most recent Act of Parliament in place when they were registered.

4. How to locate records: search methods

This section outlines the different search methods you can use to locate registered design records but for advice on which of these methods you can use for a particular period or set of years, see sections 5 to 11.

A search for a representation or register entry for any design begins in our online catalogue. The search methods that you can use depends very much on the date the design was registered and the parliamentary act applicable to its registration. However, if you do not know which date or act apply to a particular design, all is not lost – for some designs from some years you can search using other details you may know about them.

Successful searches will produce catalogue references (which for registered designs always begin with ‘BT’). Once you have found a catalogue reference for a representation or register that you would like to see you will need either to visit us, so that you can see the original in person, or request a copy to be sent to you (£).

Although vast numbers of registered design records survive, there are instances of registration numbers without corresponding records, and of numbers that were not used.

A wallpaper or ‘paper hanging’ design registered in November 1844 by William Evans of Shoreditch in London (catalogue reference BT 43/78/22871).

4.1 Searching by item type or details of owner

Following a series of projects at The National Archives to enhance catalogue descriptions, some of the online catalogue listings for representations and registers contain more detail than others. Where listings have been enhanced the extra details include:

• Description of item (for example, lamp, letter weight or belt)
• Name of proprietor
• Address of proprietor
• Design number

You can search for individual designs using these details for the following design types and their respective record series:

• Designs registered between 1839 and 1842, in BT 42 (see section 5 for more detail)
• ‘Ornamental’ designs registered between 1842 and 1883, in BT 43 (see section 6 for more detail)
• ‘Useful’ designs registered between 1843 and 1884, in BT 45 (see section 8 for more detail)
• Provisional ornamental designs registered between 3 January 1851 and 24 November 1876) and between 11 December 1876 and 27 December 1883, in BT 47 (see section 9 for more detail)
• Designs registered in 1884 and between 28 December 1893 and 9 January 1895, in BT 51

In some instances, you can also search by proprietor using the indexes to proprietors which were created as part of the original records but you will need to visit us to use them. See the tables in sections 5 to 11 for details of which records come with indexes.

A wallpaper design registered by Richard Goodlad and Company of Newcastle-on-Tyne in 1857 (catalogue reference BT 43/97/111263).

4.2 Searching by registered design number

Objects whose design has been registered should have a design number marked on them. However, in the case of wallpaper and textiles, usually used in sections, the design number is unlikely to be visible. If you know or can find a registered design number you should be able to find the respective register entry or representation in our collection, though it will be easier for some than for others.

When searching with a design number, it makes sense to start a search in BT 43 and, if your design is a ‘useful’ design (see section 8) in BT 45, as the designs in these series appear in our catalogue in individual detail, each with its respective design number. This is also true, though to a lesser extent, of BT 42, BT 47 and BT 51, of which only a small proportion has been catalogued in individual design detail. If searching in these series proves fruitless, you’ll need to consult the tables in sections 5 and 8 to 11 and follow the step by step instructions here below:

Search instructions

Let’s suppose we are looking for the representation of a glass vase with design number 523000. If you did not know the date that the design was registered, and in some instances even if you did,  you would need to follow these steps:

• Using the tables in sections 5 and 9 to 11 of this guide, locate the design number range within which the number falls  (numbers were reused so you will need to consult all the tables as your number may appear in more than one table). In section 11 the range 518644–548919 includes our number, 523000.
• Ensure the number range applies to the right kind of classification for the object. As the table in section 11 indicates, the only classification details we have for the respective design number range is ‘non-textile designs’. So our glass vase fits with this classification.
• Use the table to establish which catalogue references to search within. The table in section 11 indicates that, for representations we should be looking between BT 52/1 and BT 52/55 for our design number range.
• Click on the respective catalogue reference links in the table. For 523000 we need to click on BT 52/1–55.
• Browse through the BT numbers until you get to one for the more specific design number range which includes your number. For 523000 you will need to browse to BT 52/12 (which covers design numbers 522919–523306).
• Click on the catalogue reference for the respective catalogue description page which includes your number and follow the on-screen instructions for your ordering and viewing options. This is the catalogue description page for BT 52/12.

A furniture fabric design registered in 1877 (catalogue reference BT 43/373/313643).

• If you are viewing a representations book or register here at The National Archives in Kew you will need to page through the book until you arrive at the page for your design number.

4.3 Searching using a diamond mark (ornamental designs from 1842 to 1883 only)

Diamond marks were printed, engraved or otherwise marked on an object to authenticate its copyright registration and add a layer of protection against fraud. Diamond marks were only in use between 1842 and 1883 and only for objects registered under the terms of the 1842 Ornamental Designs Act.

If the object you are interested in has a diamond mark, you can use the mark to track down the registered design number and therefore the records themselves – see section 7 for more detail.

A printed fabric design registered in 1882 (catalogue reference BT 43/346/388554).

4.4 Searching in the Official Journal of the Patent Office at the British Library

The British Library holds copies of the Official Journal of the Patent Office, published weekly since the mid-19th century. The journal’s ‘Designs’ section lists registered designs by date of registration, class, design number, and proprietor, providing the address of the proprietor too. It may prove particularly useful when in search of a design registered after 1884 (from which point our own catalogue is short on descriptive detail).

5. Designs registered between 1839 and 1842

These records are for designs registered under the 1839 Copyright of Designs Act.

This representation for a plate design (catalogue reference BT 42/4/808), registered in 1841, was classified as ‘other than paper hangings’. The registration certificate is pasted below the representation.

The act classified objects either as ‘paper hangings’ – in other words, wallpaper – or anything ‘other than paper hangings’, which included all other objects, from chandeliers to telescopes.

There were no registers during this short period, but two sets of representations, one of which had a certificate attached which included registration details (see image on the right). To find a specific representation, search in BT 42 with one or more of the following as your keywords:

• description of object – for example ‘hat’ or ‘vase’
• name of proprietor (person registering the item for copyright, usually the manufacturer or retailer and only sometimes the designer)
• address of proprietor
• registered design number

If the search proves fruitless, follow the search instructions in section 4.2.

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number range	Classification	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers
12/08/1839	31/08/1842	1-1424	Other than paper hangings with certificates	BT 42/1-6(1)	None
14/10/1839	31/08/1842	1-1424	Other than paper hangings without certificates	BT 42/7-13	None
14/10/1839	29/04/1842	26-1218	Paper hangings with certificates	BT 42/14-15(1)	None
14/10/1839	29/04/1842	26-1218	Paper hangings without certificates	BT 42/16-17(1)	None

Notes:
(1) Not all representations survive

6. ‘Ornamental’ designs registered between 1842 and 1883/1884/1885

This section covers records for designs registered under the 1842 Ornamental Designs Act. This act repealed the 1839 Act (see section 5) and sought to confine registration exclusively to ornamental designs, excluding the practical element of a design – though these would subsequently be covered by another act (see section 8) as well as by patents of design (see our guide to patents of design). In practice, however, many functional designs were effectively registered under the guise of a registration of the ornamental element of the design.

The ‘Granville’ chair and (above) its representation, registered in 1870 (catalogue reference BT 43/58/245877). A typical example of how the registration of the ornamental elements of a design could be used to surreptitiously register the functional elements of the design too.

The design classification codes were expanded under the terms of this act, meaning representations were filed under more precise classification categories, determined by the materials that the designed objects were made of. Although attempts were made to cover everything, the lace and the earthenware classifications became used as miscellaneous categories.

‘Diamond marks’ were another innovation brought into use with this act (see section 7).

To find a representation from this period, search in BT 43 with one or more of the following as your keywords:

• description of object – for example ‘hat’ or ‘vase’
• name of proprietor (person or company registering the item for copyright, usually the manufacturer or retailer and only sometimes the designer)
• address of proprietor
• registered design number

If you don’t have any of these details but your object contains a diamond mark, you can use the classification and date information that the diamond mark provides to find a record (see section 7).

As a last resort, you can, instead, click on the catalogue reference links in the table below for the respective classification type and browse through the record descriptions, though as there are hundreds of thousands of catalogue entries you will need to narrow your browsing range to a smaller range of dates.

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number range	Classification	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers
01/09/1842	18/06/1884	1425-408896	Class 1 – Metal	BT 43/1-56	BT 44/1-5
07/10/1842	22/12/1883	1912-408680	Class 2 – Wood	BT 43/57-59	BT 44/6
01/09/1842	16/01/1884	1461-408895	Class 3 – Glass	BT 43/60-63	BT 44/7
22/09/1842	29/12/1883	1694-408849	Class 4 – Earthenware	BT 43/64-74	BT 44/8
01/09/1843	17/12/1883	1452-408445	Class 5 – Paper hangings	BT 43/75-104	BT 44/9
01/09/1842	21/12/1883	1446-408592	Class 6 – Carpets	BT 43/105-169	BT 44/10-11
21/10/1842	11/07/1885	2023-400649	Class 7 – Printed shawls	BT 43/170-180	BT 44/12
02/09/1842	13/11/1883	1462-406857	Class 8 – Other shawls	BT 43/181-186	BT 44/13
05/09/1842	27/10/1881	1465-372225	Class 9 – Yarn	BT 43/187	BT 44/14
01/09/1842	31/12/1883	1426-408890	Class 10 – Printed fabrics	BT 43/188-354	BT 44/15-27
10/09/1842	24/12/1883	1655-408714	Class 11 – Furnitures (printed fabrics) (1)	BT 43/355-381	BT 44/28
21/09/1842	31/12/1883	1693-408894	Class 12 (i) – Other fabrics	BT 43/382-406	BT 44/29-30
22/11/1853	11/12/1883	73748-408165	Class 12 (ii) – Other fabrics (Damasks)	BT 43/407-415	–
07/10/1842	31/12/1883	1911-408892	Class 13 – Lace	BT 43/416-432	BT 44/31-32
12/08/1839	01/01/1870	–	Indexes to Proprietors (A-Z)	–	BT 44/33-38 (2)

Notes:
(1) ‘Class 11, Furnitures’ were defined as printed fabric designs with a repeat pattern greater than 12 x 8 inches.
(2) The registers in BT 44/33–37 contain indexes of proprietors (volumes A and C–E – volume B is not available). BT 44/38 is an alphabetical register of the proprietors in BT 44/33–37.

7. Diamond marks, 1842-1883

Diamond marks were brought into use with the 1842 Ornamental Designs Act. They were no longer used once the 1842 Act was replaced by the 1883 Act (see section 8).

7.1 What were diamond marks?

Diamond marks were printed, engraved or otherwise marked on an object – for example, on the underside of china or the reverse of printed fabric. The mark was in the shape of a diamond with numbers and letters at specific points to represent the type of material used and the date of registration. However, in the case of wallpaper and textiles, usually used in sections, the diamond mark is not always visible and sometimes it may not be possible to locate it.

Diamond marks demonstrated that a design was registered, that it was designed in Britain and added a layer of protection against fraud. Between 1842 and 1883 they were issued with the registration number when a design was registered by the Patent Office, but only for designs registered under the terms of the 1842 Ornamental Designs Act.

Two diamond marks, one from 1861, the other from 1881. From 1842–1867 letters were marked on the left point of the diamond and numbers on the right. From 1868–1883 letters were marked on the right point of the diamond and numbers on the left.

7.2 How to interpret diamond marks

If the object you are interested in has a diamond mark, you should be able to date the design and therefore the object itself. The fact that a design has a diamond mark at all tells you that it dates from between 1842 and 1883.

Roman numeral codes

The mark at the top of the diamond was a number (usually in Roman numerals, though in the example above it appears as an ordinary Arabic numeral) representing the material the item was made from, as follows:

I Metal
II Wood
III Glass
IV Ceramic
V Wallpaper
VI Carpets
VII–XIII Textiles of various kinds, including dress and furnishing fabrics

Letter and number codes

The number codes on a diamond mark represent the day of registration and the letter codes represent the year or month the design was registered.

Use Appendix 1 to interpret month codes and Appendix 2 to interpret year codes.

7.3 How to use a diamond mark to find a record

With the classification and date information provided by a diamond mark you can use our catalogue to either find an exact record or, more likely, narrow down your catalogue search results to a manageable number. To do this, follow these steps:

• Step 1: Go to the BT 43 series search
• Step 2: Search using the class number as your keyword (for example, Class 4) and the year (in the date boxes) – this will usually return a large number of results
• Step 3: Sort your search results by date using the drop-down list on the search results page (search results are displayed by ‘relevance’ by default)
• Step 4: Once your search results are sorted by date you should be able to scroll through the results to the date displayed on the diamond mark

8. ‘Useful’ designs (inventions) registered between 1843 and 1884

These records are for designs registered under the 1843 Utility Designs Act. This act sought to extend the range of designs that could be protected by copyright law, beyond the strictly ornamental designs covered by the 1842 Act (see section 6). The appearance of designs of utility could now officially be registered under copyright law, thus causing confusion with patent law.

A representation for a ‘luncheon casket’, registered in 1878 (catalogue reference BT 45/29/6105).

Search for representations in BT 45 with one or more of the following as your keywords:

• description of object – for example ‘corkscrew’ or ‘saddle’
• name of proprietor (person registering the item for copyright, usually the designer but sometimes the manufacturer or retailer)
• address of proprietor
• registered design number

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number range	Classification	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers	Indexes
01/09/1843	30/06/1884	1-6740	Non-ornamental (useful) designs	BT 45/1-30	BT 46/1-4	Index to Proprietors’ names in BT 46/5-7 (1) Alphabetical index to subjects in BT 46/9(2)

Notes:
(1) Letter A is missing from the index in BT 46/5
(2) Covers registrations from 01/09/1843 to 12/04/1883

9. ‘Provisional’ designs and sculptures registered between 1851 and 1883

These records are for designs registered under the 1850 Copyright of Designs Act. The key developments under this act were:

• designs could be registered and protected for a ‘provisional’ or temporary period of one year
• sculptures could now be registered

9.1 How to search for records of an ornamental design registered under the 1850 Act

The registered design for Arnold and Son’s ‘Combined Knife And Fork’ (catalogue reference BT 47/9, registered design number 3395).

To locate a representation of a provisional ‘ornamental’ design, search in BT 47 with one or more of the following as your keywords:

• description of object – for example ‘hat’ or ‘vase’
• name of proprietor (person registering the item for copyright, usually the manufacturer or retailer and only sometimes the designer)
• address of proprietor
• registered design number

9.2 How to search for records of a ‘useful’ design or sculpture registered under the 1850 Act

If you know the registered design number, follow the steps outlined in section 4.2.

If you don’t know the registered design number you are left with the herculean task of leafing through the representation books hoping to spot your design – or searching through the registers until you find a description for your design.

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number range	Classification	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers	Indexes
03/01/1851	27/12/1883	1-2025	Provisional: Ornamental designs	BT 47/1-2	BT 48/1	–
02/01/1851	31/12/1883	1-3819	Provisional: Useful designs	BT 47/3-10	BT 48/2	Indexes to registers, by proprietors’ names, in BT 48/3-4(1)
18/03/1851	22/11/1883	20-59(2)	Sculpture	BT 47/11	BT 48/5	–

Notes:
(1) The indexes do not cover the the full range of dates shown.
(2) We do not hold records for design numbers 1–19 as they were missing before the records were transferred to The National Archives.

10. Designs registered between 1884 and 1908

These records are for designs registered under the 1883 Patents, Trade Marks and Designs Act. Following this act the Designs Registry, by now part of the Patent Office, all but abandoned the classification system and did not categorise designs according to material or type – except for sculpture.

A Christopher Dresser textile design registered in 1885 (catalogue reference BT 50/30, registered design number 23268).

The representations for this period have not been described in our catalogue in descriptive detail so it will be difficult to find a record if you don’t know the registered design number. However, if you find an entry in the registers, which are a little easier to search within, it will provide you with the design number.

10.1 How to search for a register entry

You can search for registers in BT 51 by name or address of proprietor or by object type (see section 4.1) for designs from the following dates:

• 1884 (or browse BT 51/1– BT 51/10)
• 28 December 1893 to 9 January 1895 (or browse BT 51/75–BT 51/79)

10.2 How to search for a representation

If you do know the registered design number (which you can obtain if you find an entry in the registers – see above), follow the steps outlined in section 4.2.

If you do not know the registered design number your chances of finding a record depend upon the remote possibility that you may know the year, or even the month and year, when the design was registered and your willingness to leaf through the representation book covering those dates. You can view the covering dates of books and registers by clicking on the catalogue references below and browsing through the series.

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number range	Classification	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers	Indexes
01/01/1884	08/01/1908	1-518643	All designs except sculptures	BT 50/1-709	BT 51/1-173 and BT 53/7-8	Indexes by name (of submitting firm or person) for 1884-1894 in BT 51/174-175

11. Designs registered between 1908 and 1991

These records are for designs registered under the 1907 Patents and Designs Act and subsequent acts. Following this act the Designs Registry classified all designs as either textiles or, for everything else, non-textiles.

A tea set whose design was registered in 1908 (catalogue reference BT 52/1, registered design number 519057). Representations for non-textile designs came increasingly in the form of photographs.

To search for a record if you do know the registered design number, follow the steps outlined in section 4.2.

If you do not know the registered design number your chances of finding a record depend upon the remote possibility that you may know the year, or even the month and year, when the design was registered and your willingness to leaf through the representation book or register covering those dates. You can view the covering dates of books and registers by clicking on the catalogue references below and browsing through the series.

11.1 Textile designs

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number range	Classification	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers
01/01/1908	15/12/1910	1-26041	Classes 13, 14 & 15	BT 52/56-165	BT 53/9-10
21/06/1908	1964	1-495183	All textile classes	BT 52/2455-7880	BT 53/108-195
Sep 1964	July 1989	495184-515454	All textile classes	BT 52/8163-8664	BT 53/288-308

11.2 Non-textile designs

Earliest possible date of registration	Latest possible date of registration	Design number  range	Catalogue references for representations	Catalogue references for registers	Classified summaries (brief description of design only)
08/01/1908	09/09/1909	518644-548919	BT 52/1-55	BT 53/1-8 & BT 51/138(1)	–
09/09/1909	31/03/1950	548920-861679(2)	BT 52/166-2454(3)	BT 53/11-87(4)	BT 53/88-106(5) (558872-860616 only)
01/04/1950	31/03/1968	861680-935499	BT 52/7881-8162(6)	BT 53/196-287	–
Mar 1968	Jan 1991	935500-2012308	BT 52/8665-9217	BT 53/309-479	–

Notes:
(1) BT 51/138 includes design numbers 517232–520894
(2) For design numbers 600001–620000 there are, as well as representations, registers and classified summaries, also branch entry books, in BT 53/107 – they cover 1912–1913 only
(3) No representations were filed during the First World War period
(4) Only brief details were recorded during the First World War period
(5) BT 53/104 is missing
(6) Held in BT 52/7881 are miscellaneous design numbers 72411, 114769, 114787, 114858, 183063–183065, 183071–183072, 199774, 192389 and some unnumbered representations

12. Further reading and resources

Read Inventions that didn’t change the world by Julie Halls (Thames and Hudson, 2014) and listen to the related podcast.

Read The National Archives’ blog posts on design registers.

Listen to the podcast A momentous question: decorating the Victorian home.

Listen to the podcast Inventions that didn’t change the world: a history of Victorian curiosities.

Appendix 1: Diamond mark month codes

Month code	Month		Month code	Month
A	December		H	April
B	October		I	July
C	January		K	November
D	September		M	June
E	May		R	August
G	February		W	March

*R was used during 1–19 September 1857
*K was used for December 1860
*G was used for the month in place of W 1–6 March 1878

Appendix 2: Diamond mark year codes

Year codes for 1842–1867 in alphabetical order

Year code	Year		Year code	Year		Year code	Year
A	1845		J	1854		S	1849
B	1858		K	1857		T	1867
C	1844		L	1856		U	1848
D	1852		M	1859		V	1850
E	1855		N	1864		W	1865
F	1847		O	1862		X	1842
G	1863		P	1851		Y	1853
H	1843		Q	1866		Z	1860
I	1846		R	1861

Year codes for 1868–1883 in alphabetical order

Year code	Year		Year code	Year
A	1871		L	1882
C	1870		P	1877
D	1878*		S	1875
E	1881		U	1874
F	1873		V	1876
H	1869		W	1878
I	1872		X	1868
J	1880		Y	1879
K	1883

*From 1–6 March 1878, W was used for the year in place of D

Codes listed chronologically

Year	Year code		Year	Year code		Year	Year code		Year	Year code
1842	X		1855	E		1868	X		1881	E
1843	H		1856	L		1869	H		1882	L
1844	C		1857	K		1870	C		1883	K
1845	A		1858	B		1871	A
1846	I		1859	M		1872	I
1847	F		1860	Z		1873	F
1848	U		1861	R		1874	U
1849	S		1862	O		1875	S
1850	V		1863	G		1876	V
1851	P		1864	N		1877	P
1852	D		1865	W		1878	D*
1853	Y		1866	Q		1879	Y
1854	J		1867	T		1880	J

*From 1–6 March 1878, W was used for the year in place of D.

1. Why use this guide?

This guide will help you find records at The National Archives relating to Royal Navy and Royal Marines operations and actions that took place after 1945.

The guide does not cover records of:

• personnel (for Royal Navy personnel records from this period contact the Ministry of Defence via the Veterans Agency)
• administration or supply
• technological research

You may also want to consult our guide to Royal Navy ships’ log books. Though ships logs and submarines’ logs are not the best records for details of operations, they do include some specific information on particular incidents.

1. Why use this guide?

The National Archives holds over a quarter of a million seals dating from the 11th to the 20th century. Much of the collection, which includes a number of significant royal, government and colonial seals, is from the medieval and early modern periods. Use this guide for advice on how to locate and view these seals.

Images of some of the seals and related records detailed in this guide are available to view online. Others are not and to view these and the original seals themselves you will need to visit us.

2. What are seals and what do they tell us?

2.1 What are seals?

Seal used by Henry of Lancaster, Edward I’s nephew, in 1301 (catalogue reference: E 26/1)

The term seal is usually applied to the impression left by the stamping of an engraved metal die or ‘matrix’ which has been pressed into a material such as wax, but it is also used to refer to the matrix itself. Often bearing their owner’s portrait or coat of arms they were used to authenticate documents (such as charters, letters, writs) in much the same way as we use signatures today.

Seals were also used literally to ‘seal’ documents, fulfilling the same role today as gum on an envelope. They could either be attached to a document by a tag, tongue, cord, or placed directly on the face of the document.

2.2 What do seals tell us?

Seals can tell us much about a seal owner. They speak of authority and legitimacy, and the iconography and legend (around the seal circumference) often suggest something about the status of the owner and how they wanted to be regarded.

They can also provide us with valuable information for historical studies of:

• art
• costumes
• arms and armour
• heraldry
• architecture
• social status
• gender

A seal might also help identify and date the document to which it is attached.

3. Images of seals online

3.1 Seal Moulds Database

The National Archives holds around 6,500 plaster of Paris and silicone rubber moulds of seals in our collection. These were created by the Repairing/Conservation Department of the former Public Record Office from around 1880 to 1995 but were never formally accessioned. You can now see and download images of them for free via our catalogue.

Search PRO 23 by name of the seal owner or by broad category.

An image from the Seal Moulds Database (catalogue reference: PRO 23/2361)

The document downloads provide both a high resolution digital image of a surviving mould, like the image shown on the left, and information about:

• seal owner(s), both individuals and corporate bodies
• the reference of the parent document from which the seal mould was taken (which you can use to request to view the original at The National Archives)
• the seal’s colour
• the seal’s dimensions

They can be used in conjunction with the seals card index to identify seals in The National Archives’ collection.

3.2 Seals from the Duchy of Lancaster

Search our catalogue using the search box below to locate over 3,000 digitised images of 2,500 seals from the 12th to the 18th century. This is a search in series DL 25 and DL 26.

The seals from DL 25 and DL 26 are mostly personal seals but there are also:

• monastic seals
• ecclesiastical seals
• official seals
• local seals

Search by name, place or descriptive keyword. Each listing in our catalogue contain a description of the design of the seal, for example ‘lion sleeping facing right with four bushes above’ (from the description for DL 25/1336/1067). You can search for seals by matching your search terms to these descriptions.

Search tips:

Use:

• AND to find more than one term in the descriptions of seals
• double quotation marks “” to find exact terms
• the date filter to refine your search

If you wish to start a new search, return to the search box on this page.

4. How to locate original seals at The National Archives

Great seal of Richard I, from 1189 (catalogue reference: DL 10/42)

There is a card index of seals held at The National Archives. You can use it to locate the seals themselves but also for detailed descriptions of the seals.

The cards provide:

• name of the seal owner
• date of the document to which the seal is attached
• colour, shape and size of seal
• device (subject)
• legend (name and title of owner round seal border) of the seal
• additional remarks

The card index is available in two forms:

• the original card index
• digitised versions of the cards (the Digitised Seals Register) available online

4.1 Using the Digitised Seals Register

Search QFA 1, the Digitised Seals Register, by category (but not initially by name of owner). For example, to find the great seal of William II enter the search terms, ‘England’ and ‘Sovereign’. Download the card images (for free) and look for William II in the sequence of reigns.

4.2 Using the original card index

Located in a set of drawers housed in the Map and Large Document Reading Room, the cards are divided into drawers arranged by the following headings:

• England and Wales: ‘Ecclesiastical’, ‘Monastic’, ‘Local’, ‘Private Corporate’ (Oxbridge colleges)
• England and Wales: ‘Royal: Great and Deputed’ and ‘Departmental and Official’ (these two drawers include seals for Scotland and Ireland)
• Official and Corporate seals of Scotland, Ireland, Channel Islands, British Colonies and Dependencies (including many early US seals), France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Low Countries, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, Scandinavia, USA
• ‘Personal: Armorial: Men’, ‘Personal: Armorial: Women’, ‘Personal: Non-Armorial: Men’ ‘Personal: Non-Armorial: Women’ and ‘Personal: Equestrian

Search tips:

• if you are looking for the seal of a churchman or abbess or prioress look under their bishopric, abbey or other religious establishment, rather than under their family name
• for laymen and laywomen search under ‘Non-armorial’, ‘Armorial’, and, especially if noble, ‘Equestrian’. Also look under any offices they may have held, such as Keeper of the Wardrobe
• titled nobility are indexed under their family name, for example, under ‘Percy’ for the Percys, Earls of Northumberland
• when you find the seal of an individual ensure they do not have a second or third seal in the same or another category. Sovereigns used a host of different seals, so check all the sub-categories listed under Royal. This also applies to queen consorts, princes, and other members of the royal family

The cards also provide:

• a cross reference to the British Museum’s Catalogue of Seals (for seals held by the British Library)
• document references to any further (and sometimes clearer) impressions of the same seal
• references to ‘Wyon’ refer to a publication, The Great Seals of England (1887), by to Alfred Benjamin and Allan Wyon

4.3 Using printed finding aids

Use these three volumes, each with indexes, which provide document references and contain photographic reproductions of the seals:

• Catalogue of Seals in the Public Record Office (1986)
• Personal Seals, vols I and II (1978 and 1981)
• Monastic Seals, vol I (1986)

Use the typescript Catalogue of Seals compiled by PDA Harvey which includes all the online seals from DL 25 and DL 26 as well as those from LR 14 and LR 15. Consult the name and place index to locate records.

4.4 Using the online catalogue

Search our catalogue to locate records using keywords and dates.

The Parliamentary Archives collections include a large number of seals, including seals of individuals on documents such as petitions, the Death Warrant of King Charles I and the Articles of Union between England and Scotland; and Royal seals on Royal Commissions. They can be found by searching the catalogue using keywords and dates.

5. Records held elsewhere

Find other major seals collections at:

• the British Library
• Durham University Library Archives who hold the Durham Cathedral Muniments

A collection of plaster casts are held by the Society of Antiquaries of London.

6. Further reading

Visit the National Archives’ shop for a range of books

Use our library catalogue to find a recommended book list.

7. Appendix 1: glossary of terms

This is a guide to searching for records created by and about individual schools. The National Archives holds the administrative and policy files of the government departments concerned with education, but is not the best source of records for information on individual schools. Records documenting the life of an individual school, where they survive, are most likely to be held by the school itself, by local libraries and archives or, if the school was run by a charity, in the archives of that charity.

There are no records of individual pupils, or teachers, at The National Archives.

Where and how to get started

Online records

Records available only at The National Archives in Kew

Other resources

In this guide we provide a brief overview of military and Merchant Navy records held at The National Archives. We will help you to understand some of the basic principles of searching for these records and to decide where on our website to go next. There are links throughout this guide to our more in-depth research guides where you can find more detailed advice on how to search for specific types of military and maritime records.

What are these records?

How to get a search for records started

How to view records

Records of individuals

Records of ships, squadrons, battalions and other military units

Records of battles and military operations

Research and development

Government policy and administrative records

Further reading

1. Why use this guide?

This guide will help you find records at The National Archives relating to the origins, establishment and consequences of the League of Nations.

The League of Nations began life on 10 January 1920, when the Versailles Peace Treaty, signed in 1919 to formally end the First World War, came into effect.

What are these records?

These records are albums containing photos and details of prisoners in Wandsworth prison from 1872 to 1873.

The prisoners’ photograph albums (in volumes PCOM 2/290 and PCOM 2/291) were created because taking a photo of a prisoner made it easier to identify criminals who had been convicted or offenders who went on to commit further crimes.

What information do the records contain?

As well as a photograph, each entry also includes:

• prisoner’s physical description
• date and place of birth
• the crime they committed
• sentence
• place of conviction
• prisoner’s intended residence after release from prison

The entries often give the prisoner’s place of residence before imprisonment.

How do I search the records?

You can search and download the records in Discovery (£) by filling in the form below.

You don’t need to complete every field to find a record.

You may prefer to browse through the albums in PCOM 2/290 and PCOM 2/291.

What do the records look like?

Joseph Charman description

To get an idea of what the records look like, see the prison record below of Joseph Charman, who was convicted for stealing a tame fowl.

He was discharged aged 12 after serving a sentence of six weeks’ hard labour. There is also a note saying ‘5 years ref’, which means he was ordered to serve five years on the Reformatory School Ship Cornwall, which was moored at Purfleet.

Prison record of Joseph Charman (PDF, 0.86MB)

The prison record of John Hearn is written on a slightly different type of form. John Hearn was convicted aged 12 for simple larceny. He had stolen 11 pieces of leather to the value of two shillings and was sentenced to one calendar month’s hard labour.

Prison record of John Hearn (PDF, 0.28MB)

Why can’t I find what I’m looking for?

These albums only include photos of all those sentenced to serve one month or more at Wandsworth prison during 1872 to 1873. If the person you seek served less than one month, you will not find a record here.

The National Archives holds other Wandsworth prison registers containing one-line entries for each prisoner, for the years 1858 to 1879 (PCOM 2/230-289). The registers for 1879 to 1956 are held at The Metropolitan Archives.

What are these records?

These records in series WO 98 are the registers of the Victoria Cross between 1856 and 1944.

The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest award available to the armed forces for gallantry in action with the enemy. It was originally made from the bronze cannon captured during the Crimean War (1854-1856). At first it was awarded only to British Army and Royal Navy personnel, but it was subsequently given to members of the other armed forces.

What information do the records contain?

The Victoria Cross registers may contain information about:

• when the award was made
• by whom and to whom the award was made
• if it was a posthumous award

The registers are heavily annotated. They were used when organising the 100th anniversary celebrations of the creation of the Victoria Cross, when many more recipients were still alive.

How do I search the records?

You can search and download (£) the records in Discovery, our catalogue, by filling in the form below.

You do not need to fill out every field to search these records.

Alternatively you can download free of charge a list of the recipients of the Victoria Cross from 1856 up to 1946 (CAB 106/320). This list was produced in 1953 and includes two awards made during the Korean War (1950-1953) and so provides a more complete picture.

Record showing Private Sidney Godley (PDF, 0.82MB)

Record showing Lieutenant G Bromhead (PDF, 0.30MB)

Why can’t I find what I’m looking for?

Of the more than 1,350 awards made, including three bars, only 1,236 people have been recorded in the registers.

Information not contained in the registers

The following table lists those recipients of the Victoria Cross whose names do not appear in the registers. These volumes include all awards gazetted to 1 September 1944.