Make a records enquiry

Use this service if you have a specific question about records held by The National Archives or how to search for them.  

• We can provide guidance on how to search our catalogue and advise you on how to carry out your own research.  
• We cannot look at records on your behalf or identify all records that may be relevant to a particular subject.  

Our online catalogue gives you access to the same information about our records that our staff use. Everything we can see in the catalogue description is available for you to view online too. 

Before submitting your enquiry 

Please make sure you: 

1. Consult our research guides, which will tell you how you can find, access and understand the relevant records.
2. Search our catalogue using keywords and dates to try and identify records of interest.
3. Prepare a clear, focused question about the records held by The National Archives.
4. Verify any information given to you by AI. For example, please check AI-generated document references in our catalogue.

Submit a focused enquiry 

To help us answer your enquiry, please keep your questions concise and specific.

Effective enquiries: 

• Focus on a single research question.
• Tell us about relevant research you have done already (for example, research guides or books you have looked at).
• Include full catalogue references, where available, and where you have found these. 
• Are no more than a few short paragraphs. 

Enquiries containing lengthy background information, extensive AI-generated text, or broad requests to identify records may be returned with advice on how to narrow the scope of the enquiry. 

Based on the above, here is an example of an effective enquiry:

I’ve been researching a soldier’s service history using your ‘British Army soldiers of the First World War‘ research guide.

 

Based on this, I searched your catalogue for British military medical records. I found this record (Catalogue reference: MH 106/2381/1).

 

The catalogue description lists the soldier as ‘A. Jones’. How can I check that this is the Arthur Jones I am looking for (and not someone with the same first initial and last name)?’

Make sure that The National Archives is the right place to come 

• Birth, marriage and death certificates for England and Wales are held by the General Register Office.  

• Some Second World War personnel records are held by the Ministry of Defence – please see the Ministry of Defence service records project page. 

• Wills for England and Wales since 1858 are held by the Probate Service.

Ready to submit an enquiry? 

Please make sure that you have read and understood the above before submitting your enquiry.