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Before the Civil War (1642-49) there was no regular standing army in England. Regiments were raised by members of the nobility upon authority from the monarch to meet a particular requirement and were known by the name of the colonel who formed them. Due to the lack of a central military organization in early times no systematic records exist but there are many records which refer to individuals, especially officers.
Before the Civil War (1642-49) there was no regular standing army in England. Regiments were raised by members of the nobility upon authority from the monarch to meet a particular requirement and were known by the name of the colonel who formed them. Due to the lack of a central military organization in early times no systematic records exist but there are many records which refer to individuals, especially officers.
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The formal organization of the army started at the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. The records from 1660 to the 1750s are relatively sparse and do not really contain much biographical information of use to the researcher. Some of the best sources for this period are regimental histories, see Hook’s Armies of the Crown: The Bibliography of Their Regimental Histories, Great Britain, the Empire and the Commonwealth (2001-1) and Arthur White’s A Bibliography of the Regimental Histories of the British Army, these can be borrowed on Interlibrary Loan, and many are on film or fiche. Major references for the history and records of the Civil War and Restoration periods are Asquith’s The New Model Army, Dalton’s English Army Lists and Commission Registers 1661-1714 (1960), Fowler & Spencer’s Army Records for Family Historians, Gibson
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Dell’s Tudor
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Stuart Muster Rolls, Kitzmiller’s In Search of the Forlorn Hope. A Comprehensive Guide to Locating British Regiments and Their Records 1840-WWI, Newman’s Royalist Officers in England
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Wales: A Biographical Dictionary, Peacock’s The Army Lists of the Roundheads and Cavaliers, Rogers’ Battles and Generals of the Civil War 1642-1651, and Young’s The English Civil War Armies. The chart below Chart 4 presents a brief synopsis of important events in British military history that may affect the family historian.
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The formal organization of the army started at the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. The records from 1660 to the 1750s are relatively sparse and do not really contain much biographical information of use to the researcher. Some of the best sources for this period are regimental histories, see Hook’s
''
Armies of the Crown: The Bibliography of Their Regimental Histories, Great Britain, the Empire and the Commonwealth
''
(2001-1) and Arthur White’s
''
A Bibliography of the Regimental Histories of the British Army
''
, these can be borrowed on Interlibrary Loan, and many are on film or fiche. Major references for the history and records of the Civil War and Restoration periods are Asquith’s
''
The New Model Army
''
, Dalton’s
''
English Army Lists and Commission Registers 1661-1714
''
(1960), Fowler & Spencer’s
''
Army Records for Family Historians,
''
Gibson
and
Dell’s
''
Tudor
and
Stuart Muster Rolls
''
, Kitzmiller’s
''
In Search of the Forlorn Hope. A Comprehensive Guide to Locating British Regiments and Their Records 1840-WWI
''
, Newman’s
''
Royalist Officers in England
and
Wales: A Biographical Dictionary
''
, Peacock’s
''
The Army Lists of the Roundheads and Cavaliers,
''
Rogers’
''
Battles and Generals of the Civil War 1642-1651
''
, and Young’s
''
The English Civil War Armies
''
. The chart below Chart 4 presents a brief synopsis of important events in British military history that may affect the family historian.
CHART: Brief Historical Synopsis of Important Military & Maritime Dates since 1640 Information from Kitzmiller, Swinnerton, Abranson and Fowler & Spencer 1640-1697 Anglo-Dutch War, Irish War, Peace of Ryswick. 1642-1649 English Civil War. 1845 Formation of New Model Army. 1660 25 May Restoration of Monarchy (Charles II). 1661 Britain’s oldest regiment, the Coldstream Guards, formed. 1664 Royal Marines established. 1684 First pensioners admitted to Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Ireland. 1688 Glorious Revolution (James II deposed, William & Mary enthroned). 1692 First pensioners admitted to Royal Hospital Chelsea. 1697-1713 War of Spanish Succession, Queen Anne’s War. 1708 Pensions provided to officers’ widows. 1713-1748 War of Austrian Succession, King George’s War, and Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle 1748. 1715 1st Jacobite Rebellion. 1716 Royal Artillery founded. 1717 Corps of Engineers founded. 1740 First Army List published. 1740-1748 War of Austrian Succession. 1741 Royal Military Academy, Woolwich founded to train engineers and artillery. 1745 2nd Jacobite Rebellion. 1748-1763 Seven Years War, (called the French and Indian War in North America), ending with Peace of Paris 1763. 1757 Militia Act revives the local militias. 1757 Engineers given military rank. 1760 Soldiers’ pension documents started. 1760 China restricts all foreign trade to the port of Canton. 1767 HEIC starts selling opium to China to pay for tea. 1768-1772 James Cook’s first circumnavigation of globe on HMS Endeavour. 1772-1775 James Cook’s second voyage. 1773 Boston Tea Party. 1775-1783 American Revolution (War of Independence) ending with Treaty of Paris/Versailles. 1776-1780 James Cook’s third voyage. 1783-1815 Napoleonic Wars (French Revolutionary Wars) see Chambers for details. 1785 First regular transatlantic passenger line, from Lorient, France to New York. 1787 First convicts transported to Australia. 1787 Corps of Engineers became the Royal Engineers. 1789 Start of French revolution. 1789 Mutiny on HMS Bounty in the South Pacific. 1791 Ordnance Survey instituted for mapping of Great Britain by military engineers. 1793 Louis XVI of France guillotined. 1793 First free colonists in Australia. 1795 Royal Navy introduces compulsory daily issue of lime juice to prevent scurvy. 1796 Army Chaplains Department established. 1797 British navy mutinies at Spithead and the Nore. 1801 Battle of Copenhagen in which Nelson defeats Danish Navy. 1805 Battle of Trafalgar in which Nelson is killed but defeats Napoleon. 1808-1814 (Iberian) Peninsula Campaign. 1810 Army Medical Department established. 1811 Royal Corps of Sappers & Miners established. 1812-1815 2nd Anglo-American War (War of 1812). 1813-1822 HEIC loses its trading monopolies with India. 1815 18 Jun Battle of Waterloo in which Wellington defeats Napoleon. 1815-1854 Wars of Independence, Worldwide. 1822 Institution of Long Service and Good Conduct Medals. 1827 Last navy action under sail in which combined British, French & Russian fleet annihilates Turkish fleet in Navarino Bay in support of Greek independence. 1832 Launch of first fighting steamship, the French paddle frigate Gomer. 1837 Accession of Queen Victoria. 1837-1838 Canadian Rebellion. 1838 First crossing of Atlantic under steam by English paddle-steamers Sirius and Great Western. 1839-1842 First Opium War between Britain & China. 1839-1915 Hart’s Army List published. 1840 First British emigrants arrive in New Zealand. 1843 Launch of first big steel and screw ship, the Great Britain. 1844 Launch of American China packet Rainbow, considered the first true clipper. 1849 Repeal of the English Navigation Acts. 1850 First powered ship-of-the-line, the French Napoleon. 1851 First Australian gold rush. 1853 Continuous Service Act for Royal Navy enlistment for 10-year period. 1854 Institution of Distinguished Conduct Medal. 1854-1856 Crimean War. 1854 25 Oct Charge of the Light Brigade. 1855 Ordnance Board abolished. 1856 Victoria Cross instituted. 1856 International treaty puts an end to privateering. 1857 Army Hospital Corps formed 1857 Indian Mutiny. Many of troops discharged after Crimean War were recalled to quell the riot in India. 1857 Introduction of uniforms for Royal Navy Ratings. 1857-1858 Second Opium War between Britain & China. 1859 Volunteer Regiments formed. 1859 First ironclad, the French steam frigate Gloire. 1860, 1862-1864 Maori Wars in New Zealand. 1867 Second Class Army Reserve established. 1870 Red River Expedition, Canada. 1870-1871 Cardwell Reforms effected major re-organization of army, with abolition of purchase of officer commissions and promotion on ability instead, as well as changes to enlistment periods for ordinary soldiers, and much further modernization. 1871 Flogging abolished in Royal Navy, but only during peacetime. 1878-1879 Zulu War. 1878-1881 1st South African (Boer) War led to South African Independence in 1881. 1881 Abolition of numbered regiments of foot and their re-establishment as regiments with county affiliations. 1881 Army Nursing Service formed. 1882-1885 Egyptian and Sudan Campaigns. 1886 Institution of Distinguished Service Order. 1898 Sudan Campaign. 1898 Army Medical Department and Army Medical Staff Corps merged to form Royal Army Medical Corps. 1899-1902 2nd South African (Boer) War led to the unification of South Africa in 1910. 1900 28 Feb Relief of Ladysmith, South Africa. 1900 17 May Relief of Mafeking, South Africa. 1903 5 to 7 year service introduced in Royal Navy. 1914 14 Aug Lord Kitchener’s ‘Call to Arms’ for men aged 19-30. 1914 4 Aug 1918 11 Nov 1st World War. About 3 million English troops served in this war, 750,000 died. 1915-1916 Gallipoli Campaign, Turkey. 1916 27 Jan Conscription introduced for men aged 18-41. 1916 1 Jul- 8 Nov Battle of the Somme. 1916 31 Jul- 8 Nov Battle of Passchendaele (3rd Battle of Ypres). 1916 24 Apr -1 May Easter Rising, Dublin. 1918 Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service merged to form Royal Air Force. 1922 Irish regiments disbanded upon independence of Irish Free State. 1922 17 Dec Last British troops leave Southern Ireland. 1939 May Conscription of men aged 20-21 introduced. 1939 Sep Conscription extended to men aged 18-41. 1939 3 Sep- 1945 2 Sep 2nd World War. Over 1 million British soldiers and civilians died in the war. 1940-1944 Home Guard (Local Defence Volunteers) active. 1940 27 May -4 Jun Evacuation from Dunkirk. 1940 Jun-Sep Battle of Britain (RAF). 1940 7 Sep -13 Nov Battle for London (RAF). 1941 22 Apr -29 May Greek and Crete Campaigns. 1942 15 Feb Surrender of Singapore. 1942 10 Jul Start of Battle of El Alamein. 1943 10 Jul Allies land in Sicily. 1944 6 Jun Allies land in France (D-Day). 1945 8 May Germany surrenders (VE Day). 1945 14 Aug Japan surrenders (VJ Day). 1947 National Service Bill made every British male between 18 and 26 liable for 1-2 years of military service plus time afterwards in the reserves. 1947 15 Aug Last British troops leave India. 1948 14 May Last British troops leave Palestine. 1950-1953 Korean War. 1956 Suez Crisis. 1963 Last men finished compulsory service in the reserves.
CHART: Brief Historical Synopsis of Important Military & Maritime Dates since 1640 Information from Kitzmiller, Swinnerton, Abranson and Fowler & Spencer 1640-1697 Anglo-Dutch War, Irish War, Peace of Ryswick. 1642-1649 English Civil War. 1845 Formation of New Model Army. 1660 25 May Restoration of Monarchy (Charles II). 1661 Britain’s oldest regiment, the Coldstream Guards, formed. 1664 Royal Marines established. 1684 First pensioners admitted to Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Ireland. 1688 Glorious Revolution (James II deposed, William & Mary enthroned). 1692 First pensioners admitted to Royal Hospital Chelsea. 1697-1713 War of Spanish Succession, Queen Anne’s War. 1708 Pensions provided to officers’ widows. 1713-1748 War of Austrian Succession, King George’s War, and Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle 1748. 1715 1st Jacobite Rebellion. 1716 Royal Artillery founded. 1717 Corps of Engineers founded. 1740 First Army List published. 1740-1748 War of Austrian Succession. 1741 Royal Military Academy, Woolwich founded to train engineers and artillery. 1745 2nd Jacobite Rebellion. 1748-1763 Seven Years War, (called the French and Indian War in North America), ending with Peace of Paris 1763. 1757 Militia Act revives the local militias. 1757 Engineers given military rank. 1760 Soldiers’ pension documents started. 1760 China restricts all foreign trade to the port of Canton. 1767 HEIC starts selling opium to China to pay for tea. 1768-1772 James Cook’s first circumnavigation of globe on HMS Endeavour. 1772-1775 James Cook’s second voyage. 1773 Boston Tea Party. 1775-1783 American Revolution (War of Independence) ending with Treaty of Paris/Versailles. 1776-1780 James Cook’s third voyage. 1783-1815 Napoleonic Wars (French Revolutionary Wars) see Chambers for details. 1785 First regular transatlantic passenger line, from Lorient, France to New York. 1787 First convicts transported to Australia. 1787 Corps of Engineers became the Royal Engineers. 1789 Start of French revolution. 1789 Mutiny on HMS Bounty in the South Pacific. 1791 Ordnance Survey instituted for mapping of Great Britain by military engineers. 1793 Louis XVI of France guillotined. 1793 First free colonists in Australia. 1795 Royal Navy introduces compulsory daily issue of lime juice to prevent scurvy. 1796 Army Chaplains Department established. 1797 British navy mutinies at Spithead and the Nore. 1801 Battle of Copenhagen in which Nelson defeats Danish Navy. 1805 Battle of Trafalgar in which Nelson is killed but defeats Napoleon. 1808-1814 (Iberian) Peninsula Campaign. 1810 Army Medical Department established. 1811 Royal Corps of Sappers & Miners established. 1812-1815 2nd Anglo-American War (War of 1812). 1813-1822 HEIC loses its trading monopolies with India. 1815 18 Jun Battle of Waterloo in which Wellington defeats Napoleon. 1815-1854 Wars of Independence, Worldwide. 1822 Institution of Long Service and Good Conduct Medals. 1827 Last navy action under sail in which combined British, French & Russian fleet annihilates Turkish fleet in Navarino Bay in support of Greek independence. 1832 Launch of first fighting steamship, the French paddle frigate Gomer. 1837 Accession of Queen Victoria. 1837-1838 Canadian Rebellion. 1838 First crossing of Atlantic under steam by English paddle-steamers Sirius and Great Western. 1839-1842 First Opium War between Britain & China. 1839-1915 Hart’s Army List published. 1840 First British emigrants arrive in New Zealand. 1843 Launch of first big steel and screw ship, the Great Britain. 1844 Launch of American China packet Rainbow, considered the first true clipper. 1849 Repeal of the English Navigation Acts. 1850 First powered ship-of-the-line, the French Napoleon. 1851 First Australian gold rush. 1853 Continuous Service Act for Royal Navy enlistment for 10-year period. 1854 Institution of Distinguished Conduct Medal. 1854-1856 Crimean War. 1854 25 Oct Charge of the Light Brigade. 1855 Ordnance Board abolished. 1856 Victoria Cross instituted. 1856 International treaty puts an end to privateering. 1857 Army Hospital Corps formed 1857 Indian Mutiny. Many of troops discharged after Crimean War were recalled to quell the riot in India. 1857 Introduction of uniforms for Royal Navy Ratings. 1857-1858 Second Opium War between Britain & China. 1859 Volunteer Regiments formed. 1859 First ironclad, the French steam frigate Gloire. 1860, 1862-1864 Maori Wars in New Zealand. 1867 Second Class Army Reserve established. 1870 Red River Expedition, Canada. 1870-1871 Cardwell Reforms effected major re-organization of army, with abolition of purchase of officer commissions and promotion on ability instead, as well as changes to enlistment periods for ordinary soldiers, and much further modernization. 1871 Flogging abolished in Royal Navy, but only during peacetime. 1878-1879 Zulu War. 1878-1881 1st South African (Boer) War led to South African Independence in 1881. 1881 Abolition of numbered regiments of foot and their re-establishment as regiments with county affiliations. 1881 Army Nursing Service formed. 1882-1885 Egyptian and Sudan Campaigns. 1886 Institution of Distinguished Service Order. 1898 Sudan Campaign. 1898 Army Medical Department and Army Medical Staff Corps merged to form Royal Army Medical Corps. 1899-1902 2nd South African (Boer) War led to the unification of South Africa in 1910. 1900 28 Feb Relief of Ladysmith, South Africa. 1900 17 May Relief of Mafeking, South Africa. 1903 5 to 7 year service introduced in Royal Navy. 1914 14 Aug Lord Kitchener’s ‘Call to Arms’ for men aged 19-30. 1914 4 Aug 1918 11 Nov 1st World War. About 3 million English troops served in this war, 750,000 died. 1915-1916 Gallipoli Campaign, Turkey. 1916 27 Jan Conscription introduced for men aged 18-41. 1916 1 Jul- 8 Nov Battle of the Somme. 1916 31 Jul- 8 Nov Battle of Passchendaele (3rd Battle of Ypres). 1916 24 Apr -1 May Easter Rising, Dublin. 1918 Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service merged to form Royal Air Force. 1922 Irish regiments disbanded upon independence of Irish Free State. 1922 17 Dec Last British troops leave Southern Ireland. 1939 May Conscription of men aged 20-21 introduced. 1939 Sep Conscription extended to men aged 18-41. 1939 3 Sep- 1945 2 Sep 2nd World War. Over 1 million British soldiers and civilians died in the war. 1940-1944 Home Guard (Local Defence Volunteers) active. 1940 27 May -4 Jun Evacuation from Dunkirk. 1940 Jun-Sep Battle of Britain (RAF). 1940 7 Sep -13 Nov Battle for London (RAF). 1941 22 Apr -29 May Greek and Crete Campaigns. 1942 15 Feb Surrender of Singapore. 1942 10 Jul Start of Battle of El Alamein. 1943 10 Jul Allies land in Sicily. 1944 6 Jun Allies land in France (D-Day). 1945 8 May Germany surrenders (VE Day). 1945 14 Aug Japan surrenders (VJ Day). 1947 National Service Bill made every British male between 18 and 26 liable for 1-2 years of military service plus time afterwards in the reserves. 1947 15 Aug Last British troops leave India. 1948 14 May Last British troops leave Palestine. 1950-1953 Korean War. 1956 Suez Crisis. 1963 Last men finished compulsory service in the reserves.