Family history

Researchers and historians from The National Archives and elsewhere offer expert guidance on researching family history and unlocking the multitude of sources available.

A momentous question: decorating the Victorian home

The rise of an increasingly affluent Victorian middle class and the availability of mass manufactured goods, including furniture and textiles, contributed to an intense interest in the concept of ‘home’ and questions of taste. Magazines and books giving advice on ...
Hearth Tax: an introduction

The hearth tax was levied on householders in England and Wales between 1662 and 1689. Records of the assessments, returns and exemptions are a fruitful source for family, local and social historians, as they provide a remarkable insight into wealth, ...
The Final Whistle: the Great War in 15 players – a London rugby club at war 1914-1918

A missing war memorial first inspired a quest to discover club members who fell in the Great War. 85 names have now been identified. Some remarkable stories paint a miniature portrait of the whole war – every service, arm, theatre ...
What happened before today’s mutual Credit Unions? An introduction to Friends of Labour Loan Societies 1850s-1930s

Friends of Labour Loan Societies have been overlooked in analyses of mutual self-help organisations and working class organisations. Starting around 1851, on the initiative of a Chartist activist, these grew to comprise a major section of loan societies granted legal ...
Tracing battalions or regiments of the British Army during the Great War

This podcast gives you an introduction to the various records at The National Archives that can be used to trace the experiences of individual battalions or regiments during The Great War. These include unit war diaries, trench maps, Prisoner of ...
Where there’s a will…: probate records for family history at The National Archives and beyond

Whether your ancestor was leaving a fortune or just a few possessions, or making the parting shot in a longstanding grudge, they may well have left a will to record their last wishes. You may also find other helpful sources ...
Tracing Huguenot ancestors

Between the 16th and 18th centuries, many thousands of refugees fled from religious persecution in the Low Countries and France. These refugees left descendants in Britain and many people have family stories of Huguenot descent. This talk will help you ...
Morbidity and mortality on convict voyages to 19th century Australia

Between 1803 and 1853 some 67,000 convicts were transported from England and Ireland to the British penal colony of Van Diemen’s Land, later renamed Tasmania. Using a detailed reconstruction of 278 voyages (82 carrying female convicts and 196 male) this ...
Marjorie’s War: four families and the Great War

This podcast is based on the recently published book which tells the story of the author’s grandmother and nine young men from the four families. They were all served as junior officers and between them fought in all the major ...
Tracing marriages; legal requirements and actual practice, 1700-1836

Based upon studies of thousands of couples, this podcast explains how, when and where people in past centuries married. Family historians just starting out will find advice on where ‘missing’ marriages are most likely to be found, while those already ...
Keeping it in the family: professional dynasties in 19th century England

The 19th century witnessed a huge expansion in the number of people in Britain described as members of a profession, including lawyers, doctors, religious ministers and teachers, as well as newer service providers such as accountants, bankers and civil engineers. ...
Using The National Archives website for family history research

This talk provides an introduction to the main sources for family history research available through The National Archives website. The talk will include online resources, research guides and signposts and the online catalogue/Discovery. Gerry Toop has worked at The National ...
Coroners’ Inquests

Coroners’ inquests produce a wealth of information for family historians. Ancestors might have been involved in a number of ways, such as members of the jury or another court official or as witnesses. Inquests don’t just reveal how someone died – they ...
Colonial lives, careers and policies: researching printed papers of the British colonial governments

The printed papers of colonial governments held by the Colonial Office, including government gazettes and sessional papers of colonial assemblies and parliaments, contain a wealth of detail for historians and genealogists. This podcast outlines the content of the printed papers ...
Charities and their records for family historians

Please note: due to technical difficulties, the first few minutes of this talk are missing. We apologise for the inconvenience caused. Charities have been operating in many forms for nearly 800 years. They were at their most important in Victorian ...