Welcome to Military Ancestors

The starting point for this project was the Bromley and District Times, based in Kent. The creation of the tables has been a labour of love. Between 1914 and 1919, there were in the region of 30,000 references to soldiers. The newspaper listed those men, often with their addresses, who enlisted from 1914 to the beginning of 1916 when conscription was introduced. Similarly it listed the names and addresses of some 1,500 men of the Bromley area who had signed up for the Derby Scheme, (a precursor to conscription and a failed attempt to prevent it), in 1915.

There were wonderful letters: from the Western Front, India, S. Africa, Gallipoli, and Mesopotamia. These are not given in full, but the sources are given and they can be found. There are obituaries; the information varies, and often includes details of schooling, occupations, leisure interests together with war service and details of wounds and the circumstances in which they died. There are details of medals awarded, often with descriptions of how they were won. The men came, not only from the Bromley area, but from further afield within the UK, but also from Canada and Australia. We see this particularly in the reports of marriages. There are inquests and court cases involving soldiers.

Although this was supposed to be a site about the soldiers, I found the Special Constables sneaking in, and once the VAD Commandants and nurses of the local VAD Hospitals started receiving their decorations and awards, they could not be left out.

I would like to think that the work achieved so far, was the start of something really exciting. Already I have been given a brief biography of a soldier from a local family history. If you would like to add your relatives, please contact me on the Contact email above.