Research Enquiries
Cumbria’s Museum of Military Life offers a service to help you find out more about a soldier who served in one of our Regiments. It is an important part of what we do and we answer a great deal of research enquiries every year.
If you wish to make an enquiry about a soldier from one of our Regiments, please read the following before doing so.
What information can we tell you?
Through our records and various online subscriptions (including ancestry.com and findmypast.co.uk) we have access to documents held by the National Archives at Kew, as well as other sources of information.
Typically, we can provide copies of medal index cards, service records (where they survive, and not for soldiers who served after 1920), and Regimental histories covering background information, as well as sections of some War Diaries of Border Regiment Battalions.
One of our research assistants will write to you and help make sense of the documents that we send.
For more detailed examples of what information we can give you, please use the following links:
Pre-1914
First World War
Second World War – Please contact the Museum before purchasing a Second World War Enquiry
What information can’t we tell you?
We cannot give you copies of service documents of soldiers who served from 1920 onward (or those who enlisted before 1920 but continued to serve afterwards) as these are currently held by the MoD. Nearest next of kin can apply for these records via the following link: www.gov.uk/requests-for-personal-data-and-service-records
It is unlikely that we will be able to give you a copy of a photo of individual soldiers. We do have a large photo collection, and many of these have been digitised, but a large proportion of them are unnamed and as such we do not always know who is in them. We are always looking to expand our photo collection. If you have a picture of a Border Regiment Soldier, especially if he is named and/or in uniform, we would very much like to see any.
How much does it cost and how do I pay?
The charge is £25.00 per soldier. This is to cover the time a researcher devotes to looking into your enquiry and preparing a response, as such, this fee is non-refundable even if no information can be found. We accept payment via cash, cheque, credit/debit card or PayPal.
Payment must be made before one of our researchers can begin looking into your enquiry. Additional postage charges may be necessary if posting outside of the UK.
How long does it take to get a response?
We aim to get back to you within 30 days of receiving payment. We receive a large quantity of research enquires and our small team of staff and volunteers will get through them as quickly as possible. If it is likely to be longer than 30 days, we will inform you at the time of enquiry.
How do I make a research enquiry?
The three main pieces of information that we need to start an enquiry are:
1. a soldiers’ name
2. the regiment that they served in
3. their service number
It is extremely difficult to find any information without a service number.
Click here to make an online enquiry
Alternatively you can click here to download a hard copy of our form and post it, along with payment, to:
Cumbria’s Museum of Military Life
Alma Block
The Castle
Carlisle
CA3 8UR
You can also speak to someone by phoning 01228 532774 during our opening hours.
Are there any other places where I can get information?
There are a few places that you can get further information and these are listed below.
For general background reading there are several books that give a good overview of the Regiment’s involvements in various conflicts:
First World War
The Border Regiment in the Great War (general)
‘Glory is No Compensation (1st and 6th Battalions in the Gallipoli campaign)
Second World War
When Dragons Flew (1st [Airborne] Battalion)
Other
Lions & Dragons (King’s Own Royal Border Regiment 1959-2006)
Lions of England (King’s Own Royal Regiment [Lancaster])
If the soldier in question was killed during the First or Second World War, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website has all of the details of where they are buried or commemorated: http://www.cwgc.org/
Contemporary local newspapers often have obituaries in. If you know a soldier was killed or died of wounds, it is worth having a look at these to see if there is any further information.
If the soldier in question enlisted, or was transferred to a Regiment other than the Border Regiment, the corresponding Museums can be found via the Army Museums Ogilby Trust website: http://www.armymuseums.org.uk
Ready to make an enquiry?
Thanks for taking the time to look through the information above. If you want to go ahead and make an enquiry then please click the link below and follow the instructions carefully. The more information you can give us in the form the better.
