RESEARCH
In order to trace the service of soldiers from the First World War (or earlier), you must first determine whether or not their service record survived.
Regrettably, more than half of the service records were damaged or destroyed in September 1940, when a German bombing raid struck the War Office repository in Arnside Street, London. An estimated 2.8 million service records survived the bombing or were reconstructed from the records of the Ministry of Pensions (roughly 40 per cent of the total).
If it does survive, the service record will now be kept at the National Archives at Kew. They give advice for the pre-1913 service, and post-1913 service. The damaged records are referred to as the Burnt Records, and are held under TNA reference WO 363, and undamaged records from the same period exist in WO 364. These records have been digitised, and can be searched online.
Family Military History Research –
Starting your search
The first step on your journey is to talk to family members who may have knowledge of the person you are researching. Old photographs, passports birth certs, army discharge certificate, army pensions, letters and family bibles are good source of information. Below is a list of useful sites to assist you in your search.
Best of Luck on your research journey!!
CENSUS RECORDS
The first census was taken in Ireland in 1821 and every ten years after until 1911, unfortunately, only fragments of the 1821,1831,1841 and1851 are available, the 1901and 1911 are complete. All the above are available to view free at:
National Archive Of Ireland
CIVIL RECORDS
The free website has information on Births, Marriages and Deaths ranging from 1864-1966.
Irish Genealogy
parish records
Digital images of the registers are free to view on
Catholic Parish Registers at the NLI
Find My Past
ARMY RECORDS
Service records of the Connaught Rangers are held in the National Archives in Kew, London. Information is available on
National Archive UK
Wills of Irish soldiers who died during the first world war is available on the National Archive Ireland Website.
National Archive Ireland
A large collection of first world war service records are available on the UK Ancestry Website
Ancestry UK
war dead
The Commonwealth War Grave Commission has a searchable data base where those who have lost relatives in the Great War can gain information. Records can be accessed on this website.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
medal records
For those whose records were destroyed, service details can also be obtained by sourcing medal records from the UK National Archives. Information can be found engraved on the rim of service medals and on the back of campaign stars which includes number, rank and name of the recipient. Many records are only available online, sometimes on more than one site. We have listed the main sources but there may be others. Some records are free to view but others are available on either a subscription or pay per view basis. Eligibility for campaign and service medals is based on set criteria, usually being present in a particular theatre of war within given dates.
National Archive UK
Connaught Rangers Association Research
The Association operates as a charity and all members of the Committee give freely of their time. The CRA does not hold any historical records or have any access to any service records or service numbers. Nor unfortunately, do we have the resources to offer dedicated fulltime researchers. We offer a limited research service and try our best to answer all research queries. Please supply all biographical information available to assist with the search. The more information supplied the better the chance of a positive return. NB: We must point out at this stage that unless one has the full name and army number, the chances of tracing an individual who was not killed in action are very limited.
Please direct any queries to: