Military Records

The military records can be checked on the following websites:

  • Ancestry
  • Findmypast websites

Remember to check both these website as you may find details on one and not the other.

You may find their army record files which can include detailed information as to when and where they were taken prisoner of war and where they were held in Germany.

The Medal Roll Cards are useful, as it will give you the Regiment, Battalion and Regimental Number. Most Cards also give you the date the individual entered the “theatre of war.” This is the date when the individual set foot on foreign soil.

Many War Diaries can be found on the Ancestry site. To locate the War Diary you need to know the regiment and the division the regiment was part of.

The Longlongtrail website contains information on the various regiments, battalions and divisions.

Ancestry does not have digital images of all war diaries and therefore you may need to check The National Archives or the Regimental Museum. The Lancashire Infantry Museum at Preston has the war diaries for the East Lancashire and South Lancashire Regiments.

The Naval & Military Archive website that can be used to search war diaries. The site can also be used to search a soldier’s record.

Regimental Information

The Longlongtrail website contains a vast amount of information on the soldiers, units, regiments and battles of the British Army of the First World War, and how to research and understand them.

By using this website you can locate the history of the regiment and the individual battalions and well as the various divisions. The divisional history contains details of the various actionsthe regiment was involved in.

If you need to ask any questions about WW1 then it is worth registering to use The Great War Forum:

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Prisoners of War

During the First World War, 10 million people, servicemen or civilians, were captured and sent to detention camps.The belligerent countries involved provided lists of prisoners to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The ICRC created an index card for each prisoner and detainee. Now, you can search through all 5 million of them at . The website contains other information relating to POWs.

When using the website the search engine defaults to the Main File of the British Army and the Commonwealth. It is also worth checking the French, Belgian & British servicemen and civilians interned in Switzerland.

Websites

Ancestry:

Findmypast:

The National Archives:

Lancashire Infantry Museum:

Naval & Military Archive:

The Great War Forum:

Prisoners of War:

The Long Long Trail:

Australian records:

Canadian records:

Tony Foster ()