Royal Artillery Heritage

Royal Artillery Museum

The Royal Regiment of Artillery, generally known as the Royal Artillery or the Gunners, provides firepower, surveillance and target acquisition for the British Army. Formed in 1716, it has been involved in almost every battle and operation the Army has fought over the last 300 years.

To celebrate the Royal Artillery’s heritage and return its internationally important historic collection to public display, we are creating a new museum on Salisbury Plain where Gunners have trained for over a century.

Through inspiring exhibitions, live storytelling and hands-on activities the museum will bring to life the history of the Royal Artillery and the bravery, sacrifice and ingenuity of its men and women. It will explore the evolution of artillery technology from the earliest medieval cannon to the latest rockets and drones.

The museum will also tell the story of the Army’s remarkable relationship with Salisbury Plain over the past 130 years, explaining why it bought land here in the first place, the training it undertakes here and the positive impact it has had on the area.  

We are currently working with the Army to identify the best site on which to build the new museum, and hope to have more news on this soon.

Visit the Royal Artillery Museum Website HERE

Royal Artillery Records and archive

We do not hold service records for people who served with the Royal Artillery.  Service records post-1920 are held by the MoD: www.gov.uk/get-copy-military-service-records 

If you know which unit your ancestor was with (Battery, Regiment/Brigade) then we may have further information on the unit’s activities. The following records which we hold are available on-line via www.findmypast.co.uk  They are both for Other Ranks rather than Officers:

  • Attestation Ledgers (1880-1942). Enlistment records of soldiers joining the Royal Artillery

Please be aware that the records do not catalogue all soldiers who enlisted.  They give more information for the years before 1929; they are less detailed for later years.  

  •         Casualty Cards (1939-1947).  Created for soldiers who died during the War.

These research guides at The National Archives are a useful source for Family History:

Records at the Royal Artillery Museum Archive  

Following our move from Woolwich to Larkhill in Wiltshire, please be aware that a large portion of our collection is in deep storage, and is not accessible.  We are therefore not able to answer some questions.  We will be transferring more records here over time. The records to which we currently have access are at the bottom of this message. In the meantime it might be worth seeing if the following organisations can help you:

The following are now at the Archive & Library at Larkhill:

  •         Battery Digests of Service (peace-time details of the activities of individual Batteries, c.1890-1939)
  •         Annual Historical Returns (as with the Digests of Service, but c.1945 onwards)
  •         Part of the WWI War Diary collection ·        
  •         Part of the ‘MD’ collection (personal papers of former Gunners)
  •         Part of the ‘AL’ collection (photos and photograph albums)
  •         Gun Handbooks
  •         Gun Training Pamphlets
  •         Gunner Magazine (c. 1919)
  •         Royal Artillery Journal (c.1860 )
  •         Royal Artillery News (1899-1970)
  •         Royal Artillery Distribution List (1868-1938)
  •         Regimental ‘Blue’ Officers’ Lists (early copies, from 1904)
  •         WWII Tracer Cards (on microfilm)
  •         Establishment Lists  

For any other enquiries then please email: enquiries@royalartillerymuseum.com