Looking for my Dad's army records
William Ralph Embling was born 8-7-1909 in Wiltshire. His parents were Ralph Titcomb and Edith Emily Embling.
He married my Mum in 1942 at Edmonton Middx. I am looking for his army records, he served as a gunner in the Royal Artillery, do not know if it was in Wiltshire or London. Although I do know he was in Germany.Hopefully someone can help.
on 2013-06-30 11:15:51
kdms , from Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, England, has been a Family Tree Circles member since Aug 2012.
Comments
Hi,
World War 2 British Army, Navy and Air Force documents are still classified and are held by the Ministry of Defense. Family members can apply to get copies of personnel records by writing to the MOD. As your dad is now deceased you would need a copy of his death certificate and proof of next of kin or permission from next of kin. The following link will give you more information.
http://www.veterans-uk.info/service_records/army.html
If a member of your family was killed in WW2 they should be listed in the UK, Army Roll of Honour, 1939?1945 records which are available to search now. The easiest way to search is to use http://www.cwgc.org which is the commonwealth war graves commission web site, which holds records for those killed in both wars including civilians.
Another record set from WWII that is freely searchable is UK, British Army Prisoners of War, 1939?1945. If your ancestor was captured by the enemy, searching here can help you discover their rank, regiment, prisoner number, the type of camp they were held in and its location. I've had a look for your dad and he isn't listed.
The 75 year closure on the records ends in 2020.
I hope this helps your research
Hi Shelley,
Thank you for the information. I have tried the Forces war records to no avail. Will contact the people you gave me the e-mail address for. Patricia