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Dr Stuart C Blank Presents Military Archive Research Member of the Orders & Medals Research Society
(OMRS)
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 South Africa 1879 medal |
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Operational Records for the Royal Navy (since 1660)
The Operational Records for the Royal Navy can be divided into four main eras and then by categories of documents. The following breakdown is to provide some indication of the records available. Pre-World War 1 (1914) Records
Second World War (1939 - 1945)
Post 1945 Operations and Policy
Pre-World War 1 (1914) Records For the pre-WW1 period the most important source for data on RN operations is the correspondence of the Admiralty Board. This record series can be difficult to use but it may be fruitful. The Admiralty Board has both In- and Out-Letters. The In-Letters survive from about 1698 and include the reports of proceedings and other correspondence from Flag officers and commanding officers of HM ships, vessels and establishments. These are index from 1793. Out-Letters for 1660 to 1869 are available but the series is incomplete. They include Lords Letters (signed by 3 or more Lord Commissioners), correspondence with the Secretary of State, formal orders to sea officers afloat and ashore, and various correspondence of the Admiralty Secretariat. The some of the minutes of the Admiralty Boards and Lord Admirals' Councils from 1689 to 1802 and the rough minutes' (working papers) from 1793 to 1839 survive to the present day. These record the decisions taken by the Board and not the discussions that preceded or the motives which directed them. Secretaries of State and Navy Board During the period 1689 to 1782 the control of strategy and naval policy rested with the Secretary of State. This was particularly so during wartime. The appropriate correspondence in State Papers Naval and the Navy Board contains much information on operations. Stations and Movements of HM Ships There are Abstracts of Ships' Journals, Muster Books and Stations of Ships via which it should be possible to discover the station and movement of HM ships. It may also be possible to discover the employment of HM ships. However the records combined are not complete. There are Admirals' Logs (from 1702), Masters' Logs (detailing the ship's movements and the weather), Captains' Logs (shipboard routine and loss / damage of stores and any data the Captain felt appropriate) and Lieutenants' Logs (of anything thought appropriate by the Lieutenant) The Progress Books for 1620 - 1912 give abstracts of the date, cost and nature of building, repairs and refitting work conducted on HM Ships. For the 19th century the Ships' Books give similar details but only a small selection of them have survived. Details of dimensions, reports on sailing qualities, draught and armaments may also be found but the series is far from complete. The main operational records for WW1 RN operations exclude those for administration, supply, research or personnel. These records are found outside of those discussed below. The best place to start with WW1 RN operations is the "Official History of the Great War". This multi volume series was produced by the Historical Section of the Committee of Imperial Defence and is based on the official records. The papers used in the Official History are mainly "telegrams, signals and operational reports from ships, squadrons and stations covering individual actions and complete operations and campaigns" also included are details of convoys and minesweeping. The papers not used in the Official History include those for (some) actions, courts of enquiry, casualties, recommendations for honours and awards for individual ships. Also excluded from the Official History are The Admiralty's own case files concerning larger operations and campaigns and operational reports for the RNAS & RNVR Anti Aircraft Corps, and Grand Fleet Orders. The following briefly summaries other WW1 RN Operational Records
Second World War (1939 - 1945) The integration of the armed forces, the civil government and allied forces was greater than on any previous occasion. As a result of this there is a large amount of material on naval operations located in records not relating specifically to the RN. These documents are not mentioned below. This guidance summary does not include records of the administration, supply, research or higher direction of the war. There are limited personnel records available and not all of the records on RN operations have been transferred into the public domain. Official Histories and Monographs The part of the Official History of the Second World War dealing with naval operations is entitled "The War at Sea". It was produced in two versions - a published version and a confidential set. The references in these publications use the old Admiralty system of registering papers which has been subsequently re-arranged. Unfortunately these references are now almost impossible to use. There are Monographs on the development and operations of mines, minesweepers, net defences, anti-submarine weapons, demolitions, torpedo aircraft and submarine attacks. The Confidential Edition of the Navy List is an excellent source of information on officers and ships. This includes location of ships in ports of all HM Ships and Air Squadrons, locations of minor war vessels in home waters, Landing Ships and Landing Craft etc and shipbuilding notes. The Main Series of Operational Records and Reports There are three main series of records. The original records of the Secretariat of the Admiralty comprise two of these series and the third series is a collection made by the Official Historians. The more popular topics amongst these records include:
Other Operational Records and Reports Various reports on actions and operations in the Channel are in the Portsmouth Station Records. The South Atlantic Station Records contain some material extracted from other stations. The Western Approaches Command's (incomplete) records consist of reports by Senior Officers of Escorts etc. These are indexed by convoy and by Senior Officers' Ships. No other station records have been transferred into the public domain. There are incomplete collections of Submarine Patrol Reports
and Convoy Packs records. Unfortunately about half of these were destroyed. There are surviving logs from submarines, destroyers, battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers and armed merchant cruisers. Naturally there are gaps due to enemy action and there are large gaps in the collection. There are Admiralty records including Minutes of the Board of Admiralty, Admiralty Fleet Orders, The First Sea Lord's papers and minutes of the War Cabinet on the Battle of the Atlantic and Anti U Boat Warfare. Many of the records concerning Combined Operations are in the main series discussed above. The papers of the Combined Operations Headquarters have their own series and so too are those for the Royal Marine Headquarters (including the Mobile Naval Base Defence Organisations and RM Units' War Diaries) . Some of the reports and records of the Naval Intelligence Division (NID) are preserved in their own document series. These include transcripts of German naval wireless traffic (ENIGMA) and Special Intelligence Reports. It should be noted that selected ENIGMA traffic and documents relating to the Battle of the Atlantic have been published in 2 volumes by the Naval Records Society. Other intelligence records include daily / weekly intelligence summaries, "operational packs" regarding specific engagements / operations. Texts of enemy signals (naval and other) decrypted by the Government Code an Cypher School are also stored in their own series. Fleet Air Arm and Coastal Command Many ORBs for FAA Squadrons have survived and there are Reports of Proceedings regarding ships and squadrons. Coastal Command's papers are filed with those for the RAF (i.e. Coastal Command's ORBs and Headquarters Papers). There are no surviving Aircraft Carrier Flying Log Books but FAA & Coastal Command combat reports are filed with those for the RAF. The logs of some RAF personnel operating with the FAA have survived and operational / technological histories of the FAA are with the naval papers. Similar comments are to be made about WW2 ships' photographs as mentioned for WW1 ships' photographs above. These records are primarily those from the Admiralty Research Laboratory, Director of Naval Construction and the Directorate of Naval Operational Studies. Losses of Merchant Navy vessels were recorded in "Board of Trade: Register General of Shipping and Seamen: Daily Casualty Registers, War of 1939 - 1945. Post 1945 Operations and Policy The High Command consists of the Cabinet and the Ministry of Defence / Admiralty. The former creates the senior strategy and policy such as the annual Defence White Paper, Defence Reviews and major decisions. Most other defence policy matters after 1945 were increasingly dealt with by the Defence Committee. The Ministry of Defence hosts the Chiefs of Staff Committee consisted of the professional heads of the three armed services. In 1964 the Admiralty, War Office and the Air Ministry were amalgamated to form the Ministry of Defence. The Board of the Admiralty was dissolved and replaced by the Admiralty Board. As a result of this merger the registered paperwork for the operations and policy of the navy is more likely to be located in a separate series to those for the Admiralty. Specific Operations and Campaigns Generally there are records available for operations / campaigns such as Yangtse Incident (1949-50), the Korean War (1950-53), Suez Operations (1956) the First Cod War (1958-61) (but not the Second and Third Cod Wars), the Indonesia Confrontation (1963-65) and the Biera Patrol (1965-1974). With the exception of 7 pieces the papers relating to the Falklands War (1982) have not been released. Overseas Fleet and Station Records Papers survive for the Mediterranean Station / Fleet (1843 - 1966), East Indies Station (1856 - 1960) and the Naval Commander in Chief, Germany (1945 - 1949). The ships' and submarine logs generally contain navigation and routine material but sometimes they have more specific information on particular incidents. Court Martial and Boards of Inquiry There are Court Martial records for post 1964 cases. Board of Inquiry records exist for pre 1951 and (approximately) post 1970. Unit War Diaries are kept for 1941 - 1967 and Unit Newsletters for post 1960. The latter are official internal documents written by and for each Commando. They often contain details of operations and social / sporting events. The squadron records for 1943 -1955 provide a day to day account of operations of individual squadrons. Some contain unofficial accounts of recreational and social activities. There are accounts of aircraft trials, some squadron histories and accident summaries from 1967 onwards. Aircraft accident summaries from 1953 to 1955 are filed separately to those dating 1943 to 1962. Please note that there appears to be some slight overlapping of dates. |
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