Search Discovery, our catalogue, to find records from over 2,500 archives across the UK, as well as from The National Archives itself. Your search results will include details of which archives currently hold the records.

Click on the title of a result for the contact details of the archive which holds the record – you will need to contact this archive for further information about the collection or the record itself.

Where the keywords you searched for appear in the description of a record, the search results are displayed under the ‘Records’ tab.

Where the keywords you searched for appear in the name of the institution or person that originally created the record (often not the same as the institution or person that currently holds the record), the search results are displayed under the ‘Record creators’ tab. For further tips on searching, see our Discovery help pages.

If you are looking for the records of a particular state-funded school you should, in the first instance, contact the nearest local archive. Use the Find an archive tool to find contact details for county and other local archives.

3. Records held at The National Archives

The National Archives is probably the single richest source of records for the study of Imperial and Commonwealth history. As well as official records of the Colonial and Dominions Offices, The National Archives holds many personal and semi-official papers of British ministers and officials relating to former British colonies; including the papers of General Sir Redevers Buller (WO 132), Viscount Cardwell, 4th Earl of Carnarvon (PRO 30/30), Earl Kitchener of Khartoum (PRO 30/57) and Viscount Milner (PRO 30/30). You can search for records using Discovery our catalogue and selecting the ‘held by The National Archives’ option.

The National Archives also has written many research guides describing sources for imperial and commonwealth history including guides on the Colonial Office, Foreign Office, and Dominions Office as well as a guide called Colonies and dependencies: further research.

4. Records recently collected by other archives

Many archives regularly take in new records to add to their collections – this process is known as accessioning. Every year, The National Archives collects information about new accessions from 250 archives across Britain and Ireland. This is known as the annual Accessions to Repositories’ survey.

This information is added to Discovery, our catalogue. It is also edited and used to produce thematic digests, including one relating to education history. The digests are made available through this website and distributed for publication in a number of learned journals and newsletters. Further information is available at Accessions to Repositories.

5. Major collections

The following is a list of repositories and institutions that hold major collections relating to Imperial and Commonwealth history.

University of Birmingham: Cadbury Research Library: Special Collections

Holds the Church Missionary Society Archive as well as the personal papers of numerous individual missionaries.
–
Borthwick Institute of Historical Research

Holds extensive primary source materials on southern Africa with a strong emphasis on Rhodesia and parts of South Africa in the post Second World War period, including papers of Joost De Blank, Sir Patrick Duncan, the Rev WD Grenfell, Dame Naomi Mitchison, Sir TIF Wilson and Sir Roy Welensky. See Tom Lodge, AV Akeroyd and CP Lunt Guide to the Southern Africa Archives in the University of York (1979).

British Library, Manuscript Collections

As one of the major national repositories for the United Kingdom the British Library holds papers of many eminent persons who served as colonial administrators. Some 53 such individuals are listed in the Commission’s guide to the Private Papers of British Colonial Governors 1782-1900, (HMSO 1986) and many others can be found in The British Library, Catalogue of Additions to Manuscripts (1986).

British Library, Asia, Pacific and Africa Collections

The single most important repository in the UK for records documenting the British presence in the sub-continent. Holdings include official records of the East India Company, Board of Control and India Office, taking in records of British administration in the Persian Gulf, East Africa and South Asia at different periods. Also holds extensive collections of personal papers of individuals who served in the area, notable examples being the Viceregal papers of Chelmsford, Curzon, Dufferin, Lansdowne, Mountbatten, Northbrook and Wavell. See Select List of the Private Collections in the European MSS (1985) and DM Blake, Catalogue of the European Manuscripts in the Oriental and India Office Collections in the British Library (1998).

Cambridge University: Centre of South Asian Studies

Holds records relating to the British presence in India, Pakistan, Ceylon, Burma, Nepal and Afghanistan, with a strong emphasis on the papers of civil servants and others who worked in government administration for the period 1760-1947. See Mary Thatcher Cambridge South Asian Archive (1973) and L Carter and D Bateson Principal Collections of Papers in the Cambridge South Asian Archive (3rd ed, 1995).

Cambridge University Library: Royal Commonwealth Society Library

Holds records of colonial officials and others including Lt-General Sir George Arthur, Sir John Glover and Frederick Grant Banks as well as a large collection of travel journals, diaries and papers. Records of organisations such as the Imperial Federation League, the Royal Colonial Institute and the Commonwealth Producers Organisation are also held. See DH Simpson Manuscript Catalogue of the Royal Commonwealth Society (1975)

Durham University Library, Special Collections

Holds papers of former officials, soldiers, missionaries and businessmen who served or lived in the Sudan 1899-1956. See Summary Guide to the Sudan Archive (nd).

London University: Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Holds major collections of primary sources relating to countries in the Commonwealth with a particular emphasis on southern Africa and the West Indies. Among the personal papers held are those of CLR James, Simon Taylor and Richard Hart, Richard Jebb, Sir William Ivor Jennings, Mary Benson and John Patrick Cope. Organisational holdings include records of the African National Congress, South African Congress of Democrats and the West India Committee.

London University: School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS)

An extensive collection of oriental and African MSS and related European MSS, including private papers of overseas administrators, businessman, scholars, teachers, missionaries and travellers. The School also holds many business records including the British India Steam Navigation Co Ltd, Guthrie and Co Ltd, India merchants, London and John Swire and Sons, oriental merchants and ship owners. The School is one of the main repositories for overseas mission records including the London Mission Society, the Methodist Missionary Society, the China Inland Mission, the United Society for Christian Literature and others; other organisational records include Liberation, formerly the Movement for Colonial Freedom and the China Association. See Guide to the Archives and Manuscript Collections (1987).

Musee Royale de L’Afrique Centrale

Holds, in addition to records relating to the Congo, papers of Sir Francis Walter De Winton and Sir Henry Morton Stanley.

National Archives of Canada

Holds papers of British colonial officials who served in Canada including Major-General Sir Isaac Brock, Lt-General Sir Archibald Campbell, General Sir William MacBean George Colebrooke, Admiral Sir Thomas Duckworth, John George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham and the Legge family, Earls of Dartmouth. See Union List of Manuscripts in Canadian Repositories, revised edition (1975).

National Record of Scotland

Holds papers of persons who served in the colonial administration including Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville, George William Hope, Lt-General Sir James Leith, Henry Brougham Loch, 1st Baron Loch and General George Ramsay, 9th Earl of Dalhousie.

National Archives of Zimbabwe

Holds a collection of non-official historical manuscripts comprised of private papers of former colonial officials including Albert Henry George Grey, 4th Earl Grey, Sir Leander Starr Jameson, Sir Harry Hamilton Johnson, Sir William Henry Milton, General Sir George Thomas Napier and Colonel Francis William Rhodes; also, business records including the Anglo-African Trading Co and records of missions and other organisations. See TW Baxter and EE Burke Guide to the Historical Manuscripts in the National Archives of Rhodesia (1970).

National Library of Australia

Holds private papers of officials including the Governor-Generals John Lawrence Baird, 1st Viscount Stonehaven, Thomas Denman, 3rd Baron Denman, Ronald Crauford Munro-Ferguson, Viscount Novar and Hallam Tennyson, 2nd Baron Tennyson.

National Library of Scotland, Manuscripts Collections

Holds records of eminent individuals who served in the colonial administration including Admiral of the Fleet Sir Alexander Forrester Inglis Cochrane, Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville, Admiral Sir Charles Elliot, Hugh Elliot, Gilbert John Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto and General Sir Thomas Hislop.

Oxford University: Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies

Holds manuscript collections relating mainly to Africa, including papers of colonial officials and other persons including Cecil John Rhodes, General Sir Richard Bourke and Lord Lugard, and papers of former British colonial officials and development administrators collected under the Oxford Colonial Records Project and the Oxford Development Records Project. Rhodes House Library also holds organisational records including the Fabian Colonial Bureau, the London Group on African Affairs and the Africa Bureau. See LB Frewer Manuscript Collections of Africana in Rhodes House Library, Oxford (1968) and Manuscript Collections (excluding Africana)(1970-1978).

Oxford University: St Antony’s College: Middle East Centre Archive

Holds the papers of over two hundred individuals who either served or had interests in the Middle East, with particular emphasis on Palestine during the period of the British Mandate and Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States since the First World War. Among individuals of note are Harold Richard Patrick Dickson, Cecil John Edmonds, Harry St John Philby and Major-General Sir Edward Louis Spears.

Rhodes University Cory Library for Historical Research

Holds collections that are particularly rich in the personal papers of Presbyterian and Methodist missionaries, soldiers and colonial officials.

Royal Geographical Society

Holds records of overseas expeditions and private papers, diaries and travel journals of British explorers in territories which subsequently became colonies. See The RGS Archives. A Handlist, compiled by Christine Kelly. (Reprinted from the Geographical Journal vols 141-3 and a supplement 1988 vol 154).

State Library of New South Wales, Mitchell Library

Holds papers of officials in the colonial administration, including Vice-Admiral William Bligh, General Sir Richard Bourke, Sir Evan Nepean and Sir Alfred Stephen.

6. Other useful resources

Archives Hub

The Archives Hub provides descriptions of collections held at archives in UK universities and colleges. At present the descriptions are primarily of the broad themes and subject matters of the collections, although where possible they are linked to more detailed descriptions of the records that make up each collection.

Archives in London and the M25 area (AIM25)

AIM25 provides online descriptions of collections held at the archives of over 50 higher education institutions and other academic and cultural organizations within the greater London area.

CASBAH

Research resources relating to Caribbean Studies and the history of Black and Asian peoples in the UK.

The database contains a sample of records held across the UK relating to Caribbean Studies and immigration to Britain.

MUNDUS (Internet Archive)

The Mundus Gateway is a web-based guide to more than 400 collections of overseas missionary materials held in the United Kingdom. These materials, comprising the archives of British missionary societies, collections of personal papers, printed matter, photographs, other visual materials and artefacts, are held in a large number of libraries, record offices and other institutions in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Scottish Archive Network (SCAN)

The project aims to revolutionise access to Scotland’s archives by providing a single electronic catalogue to the holdings of more than 50 Scottish archives.

7. Further reading

Some of the publications below may be available to buy from The National Archives’ shop. Alternatively, search The National Archives’ library catalogue to see what is available to consult at Kew.

General

A L P Burdett, Summary Guide to Archive and Manuscript Collections relevant to the Former British Colonial Territories in the United Kingdom (Commonwealth Archivists Association)1988)

L H Gipson, Guide to Manuscripts relating to the History of the British Empire 1748-1776 (1970)

A R Hewitt, Guide to Resources for Commonwealth Studies in London, Oxford and Cambridge (1957)

HMC Private Papers of British Colonial Governors 1782-1900 (1986)

HMC Private Papers of British Diplomats 1782-1900 (1984)

C A Jones, Britain and the Dominions. A Guide to the Business and related records in the UK concerning Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa (1978)

R B Pugh, Records of the Colonial and Dominions Offices (1964)

R Seton and E Naish, Preliminary Guide to the Archives of British Missionary Societies (Workshop on Missionary Archives at SOAS, 8-9/7/1992)

D H Simpson, Manuscript Catalogue of the Royal Commonwealth Society (1975)

Anne Thurston, Records of the Colonial Office, Dominions Office, Commonwealth Relations Office and Commonwealth Office (1995)

Anne Thurston, Sources for Colonial Studies in the Public Record Office Vol. 1. Records of the Colonial Office, Dominions Office, Commonwealth Relations Office and Commonwealth Office (1995)

Geoffrey Yeo, The British Overseas: A Guide to Records of their Births, Baptisms, Marriages, Deaths and Burials Available in the UK (1984)

Africa

R W Baldock, Survey of Southern African Manuscripts in the United Kingdom (1976)

T W Baxter and E E Burke, Guide to the Historical Manuscripts in the National Archives of Rhodesia (1970)

C Cook, The Making of Modern Africa. A Guide to Archives (1995)

Durham University Library, Summary Guide to the Sudan Archive (nd)

Tom Lodge, A V Akeroyd and C P Lunt, Guide to the Southern Africa Archives in the University of York (1979)

N Matthews, Materials for West African History in the Archives of the United Kingdom (1973)

N Matthews and M D Wainwright, Guide to Manuscripts and Documents in the British Isles relating to Africa (1971)

N Matthews and M D Wainwright, Guide to Manuscripts and Documents in the British Isles relating to the Middle East and North Africa (1980)

J D Pearson, Guide to Manuscripts and Documents in the British Isles relating to Africa, 2 vols (1993-94)

Anne Thurston, Guide to Archives and Manuscripts relating to Kenya and East Africa in the UK, 2 vols (1991)

The Americas and West Indies

C M Andrews, Guide to the Materials for American History to 1783 in the Public Record Office, 2 vols ((Kraus reprint)1965)

C M Andrews, Guide to the Manuscript Materials for the History of the US to 1783, in the British Museum, in minor London Archives, and in the Libraries of Oxford and Cambridge ((Kraus reprint)1965)

E C Baker, Guide to Records in the Leeward Islands (1965)

E C Baker, Guide to Records in the Windward Islands (1968)

H C Bell et al, Guide to British West Indian Archive Materials, in London and in the Islands, for the History of the United States (1926)

V Bloomfield, Resources for Canadian Studies in Britain, with some reference to related collections in Europe (2nd ed, 1983)

B R Crick, M Alman and J W Raimo, Guide to Manuscripts relating to America in Great Britain and Ireland (1979)

Guy Grannum, Tracing Your West Indian Ancestors (PRO Readers’ Guide No 11, 1995)

J S Handler, Guide to Source Materials for the Study of Barbados History 1627-1834 (1974)

C O Paullin and F L Paxson, Guide to the Materials in London Archives for the History of the US since 1783 ((Kraus reprint) 1965)

K E Ingram, Sources of Jamaican History, 1655-1838, 2 vols (1976)

L J Ragatz, Guide to the Official Correspondence of the Governors of the British West India Colonies with the Secretary of State 1763-1833 (1923)

L J Ragatz, Guide for the Study of British Caribbean History 1763-1834 (1932)

Peter Walne, Guide to Manuscript Sources for the History of Latin America and the Caribbean in the British Isles (1973)

B G Wilson and A Burdett, Manuscripts and Government Records in the United Kingdom and Ireland relating to Canada (1992)

Australasia

V Bloomfield, Resources for Australian and New Zealand Studies. A Guide to Library Holdings in the United Kingdom (1986)

Guide to Collections of Manuscripts relating to Australia, 3 vols (1965)

P Mander-Jones, Manuscripts in the British Isles relating to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific (1972)

Middle East

P Jones, Britain and Palestine, 1914-1948: Archival Sources for the History of the British Mandate (1979)

N Matthews and M D Wainwright, Guide to Manuscripts and Documents in the British Isles relating to the Middle East and North Africa (1980)

South Asia and South-East Asia

Brigid Allen, India Office Records: Diaries Held by the European Manuscripts Section (1981)

D M Blake, Catalogue of the European Manuscripts in the Oriental and India Office Collections in the British Library (1998)

L Carter and D Bateson, Principal Collections of Papers in the Cambridge South Asian Archive (3rd ed, 1995)

India Office Library and Records: Select List of the Private Collections in the European MSS (1985)

N Matthews and M D Wainwright, Guide to Manuscripts and Documents in the British Isles relating to the Far East (1977)

J D Pearson, Guide to Manuscripts and Documents in the British Isles relating to South and South-East Asia, 2 vols (1989-90)

R K Renford, Archival and Library Sources for the study of the activities of the non-official British Community in India – a brief survey ((SOAS) 1976)

G P S H de Silva, Survey of Archives and Manuscripts relating to Sri Lanka and located in major London Repositories ((UNESCO) 1981)

Mary Thatcher, Cambridge South Asian Archive: Records of the British Period in South Asia (1973)

Pitt Kuan Wah, Guide to the Public & Private Records Relating to Singapore in Nine Major Repositories in the UK (unpublished dissertation, microfiche copy available in the Open Reading Room, at The National Archives, Pamphlet 959.67 WAH)

In September 1940, the government started to collect information relating to damage sustained during bombing raids. This was known as the ‘Bomb Census’. Initially, only information relating to London, Birmingham and Liverpool was collated, but by September 1941 the Bomb Census had been extended to cover the rest of the UK.

Its purpose was to provide the government with a complete picture of air raids taking place to assess raid patterns, types of weapon used and the damage caused, in particular to strategic services, such as railways, shipyards, factories and public utilities.

Information was gathered locally by police, air raid wardens and military personnel. They noted where, when and what types of bombs had fallen during an air raid and passed this on to the Ministry of Home Security Bomb Census Organisation where regional technical officers plotted the positions of the bombs onto maps.

These bomb plots, along with the information gathered locally, were passed to the Ministry of Home Security Research and Experiments Branch.

The information was digested, summarised and sometimes collated with intelligence from other sources. The reports were distributed to the Cabinet, Air Ministry, local authorities and to government departments with responsibility for civil defence.

The Ministry of Home Security divided the UK into 12 civil defence regions and information about bomb damage was coordinated through these regions. London (region 5) was sub-divided into groups and further divided by borough. Appendix 1 maps out the civil defence regions and sub-groups, listed below:

1. Northern (HQ Newcastle-upon-Tyne)
2. North Eastern (HQ Leeds)
3. North Midland (HQ Nottingham)
4. Eastern (HQ Cambridge)
5. London
6. Southern (HQ Reading)
7. South Western (HQ Bristol)
8. Wales (HQ Cardiff)
9. Midland (HQ Birmingham)
10. North Western (HQ Manchester)
11. Scotland (HQ Edinburgh)
12. South Eastern (HQ Tunbridge Wells)

Northern Ireland seems to have been outside the regional structure but The National Archives does hold a small number of records relating to bomb damage in Northern Ireland.

HO 193/90 and chapter 7 of HO 191/203 include some information on the historical background to the Bomb Census survey.

3. Key records of the Bomb Census

There are three main types of records that made up the Bomb Census:

3.1 Bomb Census reports

Of particular significance among the records are the Bomb Census reports. These were mostly made up of forms called BC4s and were completed by the Research and Experiments Branch of the Ministry of Home Security.

BC4 forms contain the following information:

• date and time that the bomb fell
• type and size of bomb
• whether the bomb exploded
• brief description of damage caused, including the size of crater
• information on air raid warnings
• casualty statistics
• map sheet reference

Casualties are categorised as killed (K); seriously injured (S/I); or lightly injured (L/I) but do not give their names (see section 6 for advice on searching for casualties by name).

The BC4 form is often accompanied by a tracing of a map showing features such as the road layout, and the point of impact of the bomb.

The bombs in each raid are numbered in sequence on the BC4 form.

3.2 Bomb Census maps

The National Archives has maps and tracings for all of the London civil defence region, but far fewer for provincial towns and cities.

There are a variety of maps showing different analyses of the bomb fall.

Information is sometimes plotted directly onto an Ordnance Survey map and sometimes on tracings which overlay the maps.

Incendiary bombs are shown as a hatched area as they were impossible to count. Other bombs can be marked as small black dots or coloured circles denoting the day of the week the bomb fell.

On most maps the bombs are numbered to show the sequence in which they fell. The bomb number, date and time of the bomb is marked in the margin.

Accumulative maps show bombs dropped over periods varying between one night and a month.

3.3 Air raid damage files

Some air raid incidents were followed up with a more detailed investigation. There are over 1,000 files containing reports on specific towns or London boroughs which typically contain:

• copies of form BC4
• detailed technical report on the effects of the bomb and the extent of damage caused
• analysis of the size and type of bomb
• plans of buildings showing damage
• photographs

Some files provide a general analysis of bomb damage and its effects on industry, transport and public utilities, and some transcripts of interrogation of enemy personnel.

4. How to search for Bomb Census records

A search for documents at The National Archives begins in our online catalogue.

Every document we hold is listed in our catalogue by a unique reference (a code made up of letters and numbers). You will need to identify the unique reference to be able to see the record.

All document references begin with a department letter code. The records of the Ministry of Home Security Bomb Census Organisation, which administered the Bomb Census, fall under the umbrella of the Home Office, the department code for which is HO. Each department is then made up of multiple record series.

The following sections of this guide explain the key record series within the HO department that contain the Bomb Census. Searching within these record series will help you to target your catalogue searches more precisely to locate a full document reference.

Records of the Bomb Census are not viewable online so to see them you will have to either visit us in Kew or order copies.

4.1 Bomb Census reports

Bomb Census reports are in the record series HO 198.

These are organised according to the type of bomb that fell, as follows:

• bombs dropped from piloted aircraft: HO 198/1-73
• V1 flying bombs: HO 198/74-102
• V2 long range rockets: HO 198/103-109

Then arranged by civil defence region and then by date of the air raid.

Bombs dropped from piloted aircraft in London (region 5) are further divided into groups. Knowing this sub-group will help to narrow your search down (see Appendix 1).

V1 flying bombs and V2 long range rockets are not split into the sub-groups. If you know the date a bomb fell, this will help to narrow the results down.

If you do not know what type of bomb was dropped or a specific date, you may need to search in multiple documents.

4.2 Bomb Census maps

Bomb Census maps are in the record series HO 193.

These are also organised by the different types of bombs that were dropped and by date. Bombs dropped from piloted aircraft are divided into London raids and provincial raids:

• piloted aircraft in London raids: HO 193/1-11, HO 193/15-40and HO 193/84-87
• piloted aircraft in provincial raids: HO 193/55-67 and HO 193/73-81
• V1 flying bombs: HO 193/48-50
• V1 tracings to use with maps: HO 193/69-71
• V2 long range rocket maps: HO 193/48-50
• V2 tracings to use with maps: HO 193/72

For provincial towns and cities, the online catalogue mostly only lists the first and last place included. See Appendix 2 for the expanded list.

Alternatively, if you have a map sheet reference from a BC4 form, you can consult the printed catalogue, available in the reading rooms at The National Archives, which lists the relevant document per map sheet reference.

If a map sheet reference is not known, the printed catalogue also includes a map of Britain covered by grids which you can use to identify a numbered square. The numbered square, for example 56/20, is the basis of the map sheet reference.

If you do not know what type of bomb was dropped or a specific date, you may need to search across multiple maps and tracings.

4.3 Air raid damage files

Air raid damage files are in the record series HO 192.

Click on the following links relating to a specific civil defence region to browse the descriptions of the air raid damage files by place name or topic of the file:

1. Northern HO 192/75-128
2. North Eastern HO 192/129-163
3. North Midland HO 192/164-199
4. Eastern HO 192/200-327
5. London HO 192/328-809
6. Southern HO 192/810-861
7. South Western HO 192/862-923
8. Wales HO 192/924-931
9. Midland HO 192/932-946
10. North Western HO 192/947-956
11. Scotland HO 192/957-961
12. South Eastern HO 192/962-1094

For Northern Ireland, search our catalogue as described below.

4.4 Search for records using keywords

You can also search the catalogue using keywords and dates.

You can search any of the three key record series individually from the HO 198, HO 193 or HO 192 homepages. Alternatively, use the advanced search option to search across all three at the same time, placing HO 198, HO 193 and HO 192 in the reference boxes.

Use the following as keywords to search with:

• the name of a town
• a London borough
• a civil defence region or group number
• map sheet number
• a keyword such as ‘factory’, ‘shipyard’ or ‘airfield’

5. Other records of air raid attacks and damage

See the following record types, produced by branches of central government, for a broader picture of the effects of and responses to air raids.

5.1 Records of the Key Points Intelligence Directorate

‘Key points’ was the name used to refer to strategic targets such as factories, public utilities, service establishments and buildings of national importance.

The Key Points Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Home Security compiled and distributed information about attacks on these key points and produced reports on the damage sustained. These files include:

• general assessments and reviews of defence measures
• weekly reports summarising the damage to and effect on production
• daily damage reports giving the same information in tabular format

Search by year and month for reports in HO 201 or browse the 43 records in the series. Map tracings of air raid damage to key points are in HO 315 and are also only searchable by year and month.

5.2 Home Security War Room reports

These reports were made by the Home Security War Room and regional war rooms for the use of the Ministry of Home Security and other departments. They contain daily and weekly assessments of raids and damage. Arranged into ten records in the series HO 202, they are searchable only by report number range or date, so it’s easier to browse the series to locate one.

5.3 Home Security daily intelligence reports

These are reports received in the Home Security War Room summarising air raid damage and other information of importance to civil defence, collated for the benefit of the Minister, the Cabinet and other senior officials. Arranged into sixteen records in the series HO 203, they are searchable only by report number range or date, so it’s easier to browse the series to locate one.

6. Searching for casualties by name

Try searching on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website to trace a record by name of someone killed by a bomb. Try variations of a name if your first search does not yield results. For example, Bert may be listed as Albert, Bill as William, and so on.

Alternatively, you can consult the printed volumes of the Civilian War Dead 1939-1945 register, published by the Imperial War Graves Commission (now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission). A copy is available at the library of The National Archives. There are eight volumes arranged by county and borough and include the full name of the casualty, their age, names of parents and/or spouse and when and where they were injured and died. Sometimes the injury occurred at a domestic address, but the casualty died later in a hospital in a different borough.

It may, alternatively, be worth searching online for ‘civilian war dead’ by county or London borough.

7. National Fire Service and Air Raid Precautions

For the first two years of the war, fires were dealt with by locally run Auxiliary Fire Services, staffed by men who were unable to serve in the armed forces. In 1941 these were replaced with the National Fire Service (NFS). Personnel records for the NFS and ARP have not survived but you can search our catalogue for surviving policy files and other records relating to central government oversight of the two services.

Air Raid Precautions (ARP) was established well before the war, but the number of wardens and their responsibilities increased from 1939 onwards. ARP wardens had various responsibilities including

• making sure no lights were visible during the ‘blackout’
• issuing gas masks and air raid shelters
• searching for survivors after bombing raids
• recording information about size and location of bombs and related damage

Bomb disposal crews were drawn from the Army (Royal Engineers) or the Royal Navy.

8. Records in other archives and online sources

Some county and local archives hold records created locally relating to the area, such as incident maps and registers or ARP wardens’ logs. There are also some useful online sources relating to Second World War bombing.

8.1 Online sources

Bomb Sight – includes digitised images of selected Bomb Census maps from HO 193

The West End at War – based mainly on sources from Westminster City Archives

Bath Blitz Memorial Project – an historical record of the bombing of Bath during the Second World War

8.2 County, metropolitan and local archives

To find records held in local archives, search our catalogue and restrict your search results to ‘Other archives only’ using the ‘Held by’ filter. Alternatively, find contact details for archives elsewhere using our Find an archive tool.

8.3 The London Archives

The London Archives holds the London County Council bomb damage maps and other records relating to bombing incidents in London.

8.4 Imperial War Museum

The Imperial War Museum has many personal reminiscences, both written and oral, from civilians and civil defence workers as well as photographs of air raid damage.

9. Further reading

You can search The National Archives’ library catalogue to see what is available to consult at Kew. Alternatively, visit The National Archives’ shop for a range of publications about bombing in the Second World War. Useful publications include:

Basil Collier, The defence of the United Kingdom (HMSO 1957)

Norman Longmate, The Doodlebugs: the Story of the Flying-Bombs (Hutchinson 1981)

Norman Longmate, Hitler’s Rockets: the Story of the V-2s (Hutchinson 1985)

Terence Henry O’Brien, Civil defence (HMSO 1955)

Bob Ogley, Doodlebugs and Rockets: the Battle of the Flying Bombs (Froglets 1992) – focuses on the V weapons that fell on South East London

Ann Saunders (ed), The London County Council Bomb Damage Maps 1939-1945 (London Topographical Society 2005) – includes a very useful introduction by Robin Woolven

Neil Wallington, Firemen at War, The Work of London’s Firefighters in the Second World War (Jeremy Mills 2007)

Peter Doyle, ARP and Civil Defence in the Second World War (Shire 2010)

Appendix 1: Civil defence regions

Use the below map to determine the relevant civil defence region:

2. RAF, RFC or RNAS?

The Royal Air Force was formed on 1 April 1918 when the RFC and the RNAS were amalgamated. Officers and men of both services who continued service after this date transferred into the newly formed RAF and were joined by new entrants. From this date onwards the RFC and RNAS ceased to exist.

Someone who served in the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) or Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) as well as the RAF may have service records in more than one place and you may need to consult our guides to RFC officers, RFC airmen, RNAS officers and RNAS ratings for more detail.

3. Service records

3.1 Airmen (not officers) 1912-1939

Search for a Royal Air Force airmans’ service records (AIR 79) on findmypast (£). These are records of airmen with service numbers from 1 to 562875. Some files may contain information from the Second World War.

The records in AIR 79 usually contain the following information:

• date and place of birth
• physical description
• religious denomination
• next of kin
• spouse and children
• date of joining
• promotions
• units served in
• award of medals
• date of discharge

RAF service numbers between 313001 and 316000 indicate that the airmen previously served with the Royal Navy and then subsequently the Royal Naval Air Service, before transferring to the RAF. If the airman’s service number falls within this range there may be further records of his military service in Royal Naval Air Service records or Royal Navy records.

3.2 Airmen (not officers) after 1939

Records of RAF airmen who served after 1939, and of men whose service numbers were above 562875, and who completed their service before 1963 have recently been transferred from the Ministry of Defence. These records are in the process of being catalogued and being made available on Discovery.

Records which have been catalogued can be found by searching within the series AIR 85 by surname and year of birth (and by service number if the record relates to someone with a date of birth over 115 years ago).

For records that cannot yet be found through our catalogue, or for records that are currently closed, you can request to access them by using our Request a military service record service.

3.3 Officers 1918-1922

Search the Royal Air Force officers’ service records 1918-1919 (£) online for officers who served in the Royal Air Force during the First World War (AIR 76). By the end of 1919, 26,000 of the 27,000 serving RAF officers had been discharged, and it is largely their service details which are held in this series.

3.4 Officers after 1922

Records of RAF Officers who served after 1939 and who completed their service before 1963 have recently been transferred from the Ministry of Defence. These records are in the process of being catalogued and being made available on Discovery.

Records which have been catalogued can be found by searching within the series AIR 84 by surname and year of birth.

It may also be possible to search with a service or registered number, if this is known.

Many catalogue entries in AIR 84 do not include the service number but instead display a ‘registered number’. This number usually consists of a letter followed by six digits and then a slash followed by two further digits (e.g. A123456/40).

The final two digits refer to the date on which someone received their commission. For example, /40 means that someone was awarded a commission in 1940. It is possible to use this information to search in the Royal Air Force Lists and for a service number to be located. If, for example, you know that someone was awarded their commission in 1940, you would need to look up a List from after this date. It may also be possible to find an individual’s service number by consulting the London Gazette.

For records that cannot yet be found through our catalogue, or for records that are currently closed, you can request to access them by using our Request a military service record service.

Records of RAF officers who served after 1963 are still with the Ministry of Defence. Look on the GOV.UK website to find out how to obtain service records.

4. Operations Record Books and Combat Reports

In the absence of a service record, or perhaps to supplement one, Operations Record Books (ORBs) can prove very revealing. These daily records of the life of a squadron, and of other units within the RAF structure, can provide insights into what an airman or officer did during their time at war. Sometimes individuals are mentioned by name, though often it is just the activities of the unit as a whole which are recorded. ORBs can also include:

• nominal rolls
• lists of officers
• details of promotions, transfers or awards

Along with combat reports, operations record books can help to tell a serviceman’s story.

You need to know which squadron a serviceman or woman served with to locate these records. Consult our Royal Air Force operations guide for detailed advice.

5. RAF personnel missing in combat

Search for missing RAF personnel in AIR 81. Search these records by:

• surname of missing airman
• place/location of the incident in which air crew went missing
• date of the incident
• type of aircraft from which air crew went missing (for example, Blenheim)

These files may contain missing person and casualty action sheets, death certificates, personal letters and correspondence, exhumation reports, investigation reports, questionnaires by repatriated personnel and personal effects of POWs.

Please note that this series is still accruing and currently only goes up to June 1943.

6. Medal records 1914-1922

6.1 Campaign medals

If an individual in the RAF qualified for medal(s) after 1 April 1918, the only place you will find details about his medal entitlement will be on his service record.

6.2 Gallantry medals

For information on gallantry medals awarded to RAF personnel, read our British military gallantry medals guide.

7. Lists of RAF servicemen

7.1 Muster list from 1918

Consult the only complete muster roll of the RAF, compiled on its formation on 1 April 1918, on Findmypast.co.uk. The original documents are in AIR 1/819/204/4/1316 and also AIR 10/232-237.

7.2 Rolls of Honour: First World War

Browse the first series of Air Historical Branch (AHB) records in series AIR 1 for nominal rolls of individual units for the First World War.

Indexes and keys to AIR 1 are available with the printed version of our catalogue at The National Archives at Kew. The second series of AHB records, in AIR 5, contains little on individuals.

Look at AIR 2/219, the Roll of Honour for men from the USA and Dominions who served with the British Air Forces in the First World War.

7.3 Rolls of Honour: Second World War

Look at AIR 14/2091, the Roll of Honour for No. 5 Group in Bomber Command. This is the only known Second World War nominal roll for the RAF in The National Archives.

8. Records specific to officers

RAF officer ranks include:

• Flying Officer
• Flight Lieutenant
• Squadron Leader
• Wing Commander
• Group Captain

Records of officers are usually held in separate sets of files to those of ordinary airmen. Some records were created only for officers, including records of commissions. The following record types may prove useful when tracing the career of an officer:

8.1 The Air Force List

You can trace the commissions and promotions of an RAF officer’s career from March 1919 in the Air Force List, available at The National Archives at Kew and other specialist libraries and archives (see section 11). Up until 1938 the lists also provide details of where in the world an officer was posted.

From 1939 there is also the Confidential Air Force List, similar to the standard Air Force List but often with slightly more detail on the specifics of an officer’s duties. Search it in the following sets of documents:

• for April 1939 to 1945 in AIR 10/3814-3840
• for 1946 to 1950 in AIR 10/5237-5256
• for 1951 to 1953 in AIR 10/5413-5421
• for 1954 in AIR 10/5581-5582

8.2 Officers’ pension records 1916-1920

Look in PMG 42/13-16 to find payments made to invalided RAF officers from 1917 to 1920.

Browse by reference through PMG 44 to find records of pensions paid to relatives of deceased RAF officers from 1916 to 1920.

Look in PMG 43 for supplementary payments to RAF officers and their dependents from 1916 to 1920.

8.3 Air Historical Branch papers

For additional material on awards and promotions, as well as officers’ correspondence, browse or search the Air Historical Branch (AHB) papers in AIR 1. Indexes and keys to AIR 1 are available with the printed version of our catalogue at The National Archives at Kew.

9. Courts martial 1918-1986

Browse AIR 21 for courts martial records from 1918 to 1965. These give:

• name of prisoner
• rank of prisoner
• place of trial
• nature of charge and sentence

Click on AIR 18 and use the search box to search by surname to find the proceedings of district, general and field courts martial of officers and men from 1941 to 1986.

Look in series AIR 2 and AIR 20 for records of courts martial policy.

10. Prisoner of war records

Air Ministry (AIR) records do not generally contain detailed information on prisoners of war. You can, however, consult:

• a list of all aircrew known to have been held prisoner by Germany in AIR 20/2336
• escape reports and related files in AIR 40
• prisoner of war and internees’ files in FO 916

See also our guides to British prisoners of war c1790-1919 and British prisoners of the Second World War and the Korean War.

11. Records in other archives

For more information about the RAF, you may wish to:

• visit the RAF Museum website
• visit the RAF website to read about the histories of RAF squadrons
• consult the Air Force Lists (see section 8.1) at the British Library, the Society of Genealogists and some local archives

12. Further reading

Visit The National Archives’ bookshop for a range of publications on Royal Air Force personnel and the associated records. Alternatively, search The National Archives’ library catalogue to see what is available to consult at Kew. The following publications are recommended:

William Spencer, Air Force records for family historians (The National Archives, 2008)

Ian Tavendar, The Distinguished Flying Medal register for the Second World War: With Official Recommendation details (Savannah Publications, 2000)

Michael Maton, Honour the Air Forces: Honours and awards to the RAF and Dominion Air Forces during the Second World War (Token Publishing Limited, 2004)

Find details of men who joined the RFC between its formation in 1912 and August 1914 (numbers 1-1400) by reading Jack V Webb and Ian McInnes, A Contemptible Little Flying Corps (London Stamp Exchange, 1991)

Nick Carter and Carol Carter, The Distinguished Flying Cross and how it was won 1918-1995 (Savannah Publications, 1998)

Phil Tomaselli, Tracing your Air Force Ancestors (Pen & Sword, 2007)

2. What were muster rolls?

Regimental musters, from the early 18th century onwards, were taken every month or quarter (frequency varied over the years) for pay and accounting purposes. They, along with pay lists, were effectively the main everyday service records kept by the army of men in active service.

Muster rolls and pay lists contain soldiers’:

• enlistment dates
• movements
• discharge dates

From 1868 to 1883 there may be quarterly lists which contain details of ‘men becoming non-effective’. They are found at the end of each quarter (or the beginning for regiments stationed in India). They provide a soldier’s:

• birthplace
• trade
• date of death or discharge

From about 1868 musters may also include Marriage Rolls giving details of children and wives occupying married quarters.

3. How to search for musters and pay lists c.1730-1878

To trace a man’s army career by way of the musters, you will have to know the name of his regiment.

The musters are bound together in annual volumes for each regiment and are held in the War Office (WO) series, listed below.

Each series is searchable in Discovery, our catalogue. Search by name of regiment and specify the appropriate record series from the table below. If you are searching within WO 69, search by name of non-commissioned officer or soldier within WO 69.

To view the muster roll or pay list itself you will need to order the original document. The first entry for a recruit in a muster book usually gives his age, place of enlistment and trade.

Please note, a small  selection of muster rolls and pay lists from WO 12 are available online via Ancestry (£). You can browse these by regiment. For those covering the date of the Battle of Waterloo you can also search by an individual’s name.

Records of some soldiers’ children may be found among the papers of the Duke of York’s School and the Royal Hibernian School in WO 143, from 1801.

4. How to search for musters and pay lists 1878-1898

From 1878 to 1898, all muster rolls and pay lists are in WO 16. From 1888 onwards, the series contains only muster rolls, there are no longer any pay lists and by 1898 muster rolls were no longer kept by the War Office either. There are some difficulties in using WO 16, caused by the re-organisation of the Army in 1881.

4.1 Re-organisation of the Army: the Cardwell-Childers reforms

The Childers reforms of 1881 (a process which began with the Cardwell reforms of the 1870s) led to major changes within infantry (foot) regiments:

• Infantry regiments, which had been known by numbers (for example, 28th Foot), were to become known by a title, usually a county
• Regiments from the 26th Foot onwards were paired together to form new regiments (for example, the 28th Foot and the 61st Foot became the Gloucester Regiment)
• Each ‘new’ regiment was to have two battalions, as the first 25 Foot regiments already did
• The lower number became the 1st battalion and the higher number became the 2nd battalion (thus, the 28th Foot and the 61st Foot became the 1st and 2nd Battalions respectively of the Gloucester Regiment)
• All infantry regiments were placed into numbered regimental districts

4.2 Searching WO 16

The arrangement of WO 16 reflects the re-organisation of the army following the Cardwell-Childers reforms. If you are working backwards through the musters, you may need to find the previous regimental number of a 2nd battalion. To do this, you should consult the Army List. Each volume of the Army List has an alphabetical list of regiments: find the title of the regiment, and turn to the page indicated which lists the various designations over time of its component parts. You may also need to know the relevant regimental district numbers, a key to which can be found in the record summary of WO 16.

5. How to find description books

These give a description of each soldier, his age, place of birth, trade and service, and are in WO 25/266-688, which can be searched by regiment in our catalogue. The books themselves are in alphabetical order of soldiers’ names. The overall dates are 1756 to 1900, but for most regiments there are volumes for the first half of the 19th century only. Similar description books for depots, 1768 to 1908, are in WO 67. There are also description books for the Royal Artillery, 1749-1863 and 1773-1876, in WO 54/260-309 and WO 69/74-80, respectively, and for the Royal Irish Artillery, 1756-1774, in WO 69/620.

Description books of sappers, miners, artificers and the like, 1756-1833, are in WO 54/310-316.

6. The British Foreign Legion 1854-1856

During the Crimean War, men were recruited abroad to form the British German Legion, the British Italian Legion, and the British Swiss Legion. These forces were formed as a result of the Enlistment of Foreigners Act 1854 and they became known collectively as the British Foreign Legion. A total of 14,000 men were recruited, although none saw active service: they were disbanded after the war. The musters, service records and attestation papers of the German and Swiss Legions are in WO 15, searchable by regiment in our catalogue. Those of the Italian Legion no longer survive. See Mercenaries for the Crimea by C C Bayley (London, 1977).

7. Further reading

Watch our webinar on Army musters – more than just accounts which tells you what you can discover in the records.

Some or all of the recommended publications below may be available to buy from The National Archives’ shop. Alternatively, search The National Archives’ Library to see what is available to consult at Kew.

Mustor (muster) books and pay lists: General series: Cavalry (Swift, 1984)

Amanda Bevan, Tracing your Ancestors in the The National Archives (The National Archives, 2006)

J Gibson and M Medlycott, Militia lists and musters, 1757-1876: a directory of holdings in the British Isles (Federation of Family History Societies, 2004)

William Spencer, Army Records: A guide for family historians (The National Archives, 2008)

William Spencer, Records of the Militia and Volunteer Forces 1757-1945 (Public Record Office, 1997)