British Rolls Of Honour and Nominal Rolls, First World War

You will find the following rolls of honour in this collection:

• 39th (Deptford) Divisional Artillery 1915-1918
• Activities of The British Community in Argentina During The Great War 1914-1919
• Birmingham Employers Roll of Honour 1914-1918
• Board Of Trade Rolls of Honour 1914-1918
• Bradford Pals 1914-1918
• Coventry Roll of Honour 1914-1918
• Edinburgh Pals 1914-1918
• Essex, Clacton Roll Of Honour 1914-1918
• Etonians Who Fought In The Great War 1914-1919
• Glasgow Pals 1914-1918
• Honourable Women of The Great War, 1914-1918
• Jersey Roll of Honour 1914-1918
• Kempston Servicemen 1914-1920
• Leicestershire and Rutland, Soldiers Died 1914-1920
• Liverpool Pals 1914-1918
• Lloyds of London Memorial Roll 1914-1919
• London County Council Record of War Service 1914-1918
• London Library
• London Stock Exchange Memorial Roll 1914-1918
• Manchester City Battalions Book of Honour
• Manchester Employers' Roll of Honour 1914-1916
• Manchester University Roll of Service (Pub 1922)
• Oldham Pals 1914-1920
• Oldham Pals Roll of Honour
• Oxford University Roll of Service (2nd Edition, 1916)
• Oxford University Roll of Service (3rd Edition, 1920)
• Plymouth and Devonport World War One Rolls of Honour 1914-1919
• Railwaymen Died in the Great War
• Royal Artillery Commemoration Book
• Royal Fusiliers, Stockbrokers' Battalion 1914-1918
• Southwark
• South Down Battalions, Royal Sussex Regiment, 1914-1918
• The 23rd (Service) Battalion Royal Fusiliers (First Sportsman's): A Record
• The Birmingham City Battalions Book of Honour
• The Lancashire Fusiliers: The Roll of Honour of the Salford Brigade
• Trade Union Members, Service & Casualties 1914-1918
• University of Aberdeen Roll of Service in The Great War 1914-1919
• University of Durham Roll of Service 1914-1919
• University of Edinburgh Roll of Honour 1914-1919
• University of London Officers' Training Corps Roll of War Service 1914-1919
• University of St Andrew's Roll of Honour & Roll of Service 1914-1919

Expect to find the following information about your ancestor

• First name
• Last name
• Regiment
• Unit
• Rank
• Regimental number (not applicable for officers)
• Source (ie the roll of honour in question)
• Date of death (if a roll of honour)

There are over 310,000 records in this collection and for some men you may also find a photograph. The Manchester City Battalions Book of Honour, for instance, is a roll of the original members of the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd and 23rd Battalions of the Manchester Regiment. These battalions were respectively known as the 1st to 8th Manchester Pals, or the 1st City Battalion, 2nd City Battalion, 3rd City Battalion etc.

In late 1914 or early 1915 the men were grouped by platoon and then photographed. Every man in the photograph was named and it has been a constant source of frustration to researcher ever since that the order of the names does not tally with the order in which the men are standing. So you may be able to identify which photograph your ancestor appears in – but you may not necessarily be able to pick him out.

Nevertheless, this is a superb resource which gives great detail down to platoon level, of where a soldier served. There were four companies in a battalion – designated as A, B, C and D Company - and four platoons to a company – designated by roman numerals. Platoon no I was the first platoon in A Company, while platoon number XVI was the last platoon in D Company. Using this logic, if you know your ancestor’s platoon, it is possible to work out which company he must have served with. Platoon V would, for instance, belong to B Company.

Most of the men in these Manchester photos are wearing uniform, but some are in civilian clothes, their uniforms not having arrived. Many of these men would also have worked for local Manchester firms and you may also find them in the Manchester Employers’ Roll of Honour which also forms part of this larger collection.

Also included in this collection are rolls of honour from universities and public schools, trades unions and county, city and town rolls. One roll focuses purely on all those men from Leicestershire and Rutland who made the supreme sacrifice.