Information about access to service records of members of the
of Royal Navy, Women's Royal Naval Service, and the Royal Marines
The most frequently asked
questions which we receive are in relation to accessing
service records, this page is aimed at providing a summary of the
facilities, procedures and regulations concerning access to them.
Who holds which records?
For more information
from the UK National Archive on searching for the military records
of members of the Royal Navy visit thier page
Some important information
1667 through to 1924: These records are held at the
National Archive |
The National Archive (formerly the Public Record Office)
holds the following records which are available for public
access:
- Royal Navy Officers who enlisted prior to 1914
- Royal Navy Ratings who enlisted prior to 1924
- Royal Naval Air Service Officers
- First World War records for Women's Royal Naval Service
- Royal Marine Officers and Other Ranks who enlisted before
1926
These records are freely available for public access; however the
National Archives does not have the manpower to perform searches.
Enquirers are instead welcome to visit the archive and perform their
own search, or hire an independent researcher - see the National
Archive website for further details.
Royal Naval Seamen (1873 - 1923) a new
searchable catalogue exists:
CLICK
HERE to
open the National Archive catalogue search page for Royal
Naval Seamen (1873 - 1923) - a search on
'service records' will display the relevant archives
Merchant seamen who enlisted in the Royal Navy under T124X and T124T contracts |
The National Archive (formerly the Public Record Office)
holds the following records which are available for public
access:
The reference BT 390
includes the T124X records detail the sea service of merchant seamen
who served on Royal Navy ships. The T124T records detail the sea
service of merchant seamen who served on tugs. Information is
contained in pouches and includes personal details such as name,
age, rank, rating/grade and qualifications, together with details of
the vessels on which the individual served. The pouches are
presented in alphabetical order by the seaman's last name.
CLICK HERE
to
open the National Archive catalogue search page:
HOW TO SEARCH THIS
REFERENCE - enter BT390 in the 'Department or Series code' box
and the name of the seaman you are looking for in the 'Word or
phrase' box then press the search button to generate a list of
matching records.
The records of seamen
who entered the Navy after 1923, and for those who saw service between 1928 and 1938 and who have subsequently
died |
All enquiries should be addressed to:
The
Directorate of Personnel Support (Navy)
Navy Search
TNT Archive Services
Tetron Point
William Nadin Way
Swadlincote,
Derbyshire
DE11 0BB.
Tel:
01283 227 910/911/912/913
Fax: 01283 227 942
Email:
navysearchpgrc@tnt.co.uk
you
can download a form to make a request for the service details
of a deceased ex-serviceman/woman (CLICK
HERE to get one) which you can fill in and submit to the
above address.
NOTE:
You must enclose also:
a. The written authority of the Next of Kin, if not yourself.
b. Evidence of the ex-serviceman’s/ woman’s death (e.g. a photocopy
of the Death Certificate) if he/she died after discharge from the
Service.
c. Evidence of the link with you, if appropriate i.e. marriage
certificate, birth certificate, etc
d. If you are NOT the surviving spouse of the deceased, the MOD will
levies a charge for the service (see the charge information on
the form)
For records of seamen who entered the Navy after 1924 that are still
living |
All enquiries should be addressed to:
Data Protection Cell (Navy)
Building 1/152
HM Naval Base Portsmouth
Victory View
Portsmouth
PO1 3PX
Royal Marine Officers and other ranks
who entered the the service after 1925 |
All enquiries should be addressed to:
DPS(N)2
Building 1/152
Victory View
PP36
HM Naval Base Portsmouth
Victory View
Portsmouth
PO1 3PX
NOTE: Prior to 1972 all RN personnel
were given their service record when they discharged. After 1972 the
RN retained pay details for pension purposes. Therefore the only
information held on RN personnel who served prior to 1972 are their
Service details (number, rank, name etc) and a list of dates and
ships/shore bases.
Some frequently
asked questions answered |
Q
Who can request information held on service records?
A
Anyone. Provided they have a valid reason - there are many reasons
for requesting someone’s service record. Some of the more common
reasons for requests are:
 Proof
of service for joining military associations or ex-services
organisations.
Proof
of service to enable welfare assistance from ex-service
organisations.
Proof
of occupancy of Married Quarters to qualify for local council
housing.
Researching
family trees or history.
Information
held on service medical records.
Q.
Will I have to pay?
A
Only if your request is for genealogical/family tree reasons.
Q
As a former member of the Armed Forces can I obtain my own service
record?
A
Yes. Requests from former Service personnel for his/her personal
data held by the Ministry of Defence are processed in accordance
with the Data Protection Act 1998; such requests are called Subject
Access Requests (SAR).
Click here for a downloadable copy of a Subject Access Request form.
After completion it should be submitted to the address on the form.
You will need to provide some form of ID, (e.g. a copy of a passport
or recent utilities bill) which should accompany your completed SAR
form.
Q
Can I request a complete copy of my service record?
A
Yes, write to the relevant record office listed above.
Q
As the widow/widower or legal next of kin of an ex-serviceman can I
obtain information held on my spouses/parents/relatives service
record?
A
Yes, but you will need to provide proof of death and of kinship.
Write to the relevant record office listed above.
Q
If I am not the widow/widower or legal next of kin of an ex-service
person can I still obtain information about the service record of an
ex-service person?
A
Only if you can obtain a letter of consent from either the person
the record belongs to or, if that person is deceased from the
widow/widower or legal next of kin. Write to the relevant record
office listed above.
Information contained on
this page is drawn from
the
Veteran's Agency
www.veteransagency.mod.uk/
and The
National Archives
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/
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