Casualty records may list those who were wounded, taken prisoner, killed in action or died as a result of their war service. Rolls of Honour can sometimes include those who served and returned. Nominal Rolls may occasionally be found in ship histories and periodicals. For more information about prisoners of war, see our Tracing Prisoners of War guide and The National Archives guide to tracing deaths during the First and Second World Wars.
Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Marine (RM) officers and ratings who were discharged from the navy from 1914–1920 due to sickness or wounds:
- Issued with a badge to wear on their civilian clothing – the Silver War Badge Roll (ADM 171 183–187) on microfilm at The National Archives (TNA)
Men who had plastic surgery 1917–1925:
- Information such as rank, tour dates, injuries, and admission and release from the hospital can be found in The Harold Gillies Plastic Surgery Archives on FindMyPast (£)
Naval ratings who received a war service pension:
- Summary cards and ledgers held by the Western Front Association (£). Apply for a search(£).
Officers deceased from 1916 to 1920:
- Pensions paid to relatives (PMG 44) at The National Archives
Officers invalided from 1917 to 1920:
- Officers' pension records (PMG 42) at The National Archives
RN (including some Royal Marines and Naval Reserve) officers killed 1914–1920:
- Card index (ADM 242/1–5) at TNA (free) and on FindMyPast (£)
Royal Navy and Royal Marine officers and ratings who died during the First World War:
- War graves roll 1914–1919 (ADM 242/7–10) at TNA and on FindMyPast, Ancestry and Naval and Military Press (£)
Royal Naval Reserve officers and ratings killed during the First World War:
- War Casualties Death Register 1914–1919 (ADM 242/13–15) at TNA
Royal Navy officers and ratings killed and wounded 1914–1929:
- Registers of naval personnel killed and wounded arranged by date (1914–1929) (ADM 104/145–149) on TNA and indexes in ADM 104/140–143 on TNA
Royal Navy Division (RND) officers and ratings who died 1914–1919 and those who died after discharge up to 1926:
- Royal Naval Divisions Casualties of the Great War 1914–1924 database on Ancestry (£)
- An index to RND personnel compiled from a number of sources on FindMyPast (£)
British and foreign subjects, passengers and seaman who died at sea and some seaman who died ashore:
- Register of deaths at sea 1891–1972 (BT 334) on TNA (free) and on FindMyPast (£)
Naval personnel missing during the Second World War:
- Admiralty Casualty Branch enquiries 1939–1945 (ADM 358) available to search online by name or ship and then view the record at TNA
Naval personnel who died during the Second World War:
- Naval Officers and Naval Ratings General Register Office War Deaths Indexes 1939–1948 on FindMyPast (£)
Service personnel who died between 4 August 1914 and 31 August 1921 and between 3 September 1939 and 31 December 1947:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) are responsible for the graves or official memorials to those with no known grave, including those buried at sea. You can search the details under Find War Dead or Find a Cemetery. IWM has a complete set of the CWGC's original published memorial and cemetery registers.
British personnel who died in the:
- Palestine Conflict 1945–1948 on FindMyPast (£)
- Malayan Emergency 1948–1960 on FindMyPast (£)
- Koran War 1950–1953 on FindMyPast (£)
- Cyprus Emergency 1955–1960 on FindMyPast (£)
- Aden 1955–1967 on FindMyPast (£)
- Falklands War 1982 on FindMyPast (£)
Military personnel who died in service after 1 January 1948 may have had either a private or a service funeral and headstone. Details of service personnel buried in 'non-World War' graves are available by writing to the Commemorations team at the Joint Casualy and Compassionate Centre.
Personnel who have died whilst on duty or as the result of terrorist activity since 1 January 1948 are commemorated on the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum. Search the roll of honour.
IWM's War Memorials Register records UK war memorials and the names of those they commemorate.
Rolls of Honour may list those who served as well as those who died or were killed in action. IWM holds a large collection of published rolls of honour for localities, schools, institutions and other organisations. Search our online catalogue.
For digitised versions of published Rolls of Honour and recent rolls available online see Tracing Your Army Ancestry Casualty Records.