Do you have ancestors who were members of the Allied Forces during the Second World War? Explore this unique collection of World War 2 records, handpicked by our in-house military experts. It brings together over 15 million records from the Allied Forces. The collection includes service records, draft registrations, enlistment records, prisoners of war as well as casualty lists, cemetery indexes, and rolls of honour from those who served during World War II.
Do you have ancestors who were members of the Allied Forces during the Second World War? Explore this unique collection of World War 2 records, handpicked by our in-house military experts. It brings together over 15 million records from the Allied Forces. The collection includes service records, draft registrations, enlistment records, prisoners of war as well as casualty lists, cemetery indexes, and rolls of honour from those who served during World War II.
With each result, you will be provided with a transcript. The details revealed in each transcript will vary depending on the source material. Below are some of the facts you may discover about your ancestor:
Findmypast is excited to bring together this unique collection of World War 2 records handpicked by our in-house experts. World War 2 Allies Collection brings together more than 15 million records from across a wide variety of records from the British, United States and Canadian armed forces. This new collection gives family historians the chance to search for their ancestors who served in World War 2 all in one place. Findmypast pulled together records that include the following individuals:
Individuals who signed up and served in the British, United States and Canadian armed services.
Individuals who were buried in Commonwealth War Grave.
Individuals who were buried in National Veterans Cemeteries
World War 2 Allies Collection gives family historians the chance to trace their ancestors’ military service like never before.
Available sources:
Below is a full list of all the records available within this collection:
British
American
World War II Prisoners of War
Massachusetts Index of Casualties, World War II
Canada
Australia
Australia, Military Commemorative Rolls & Rolls of Honour
Rest of the World
Indian Army Records of Service 1900-1947
In late August 1939, Adolf Hitler and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin signed the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact, which incited worry in London and Paris. Adolf Hitler had long planned an invasion of Poland, a nation to which Great Britain and France had guaranteed military support if it was attacked by Germany. The pact with Stalin meant that Hitler would not face a war on two fronts once he invaded Poland, and would have Soviet assistance in conquering and dividing the nation itself.
The German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, was the start of World War II. Britain, France, Australia, and New Zealand all declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939. Nepal, Newfoundland, Tonga, South Africa, and Canada followed suit within days.
On September 17, 1939, the Soviets invaded Poland from the East. The following year, the U.S.S.R. annexed the Baltic States together with parts of Romania and attacked Finland.
With Germany invading the U.S.S.R on June 22, 1941, the German-Soviet agreement was brought to an end.
The United States joined the Allies following the attack on Pearl Harbour, on December 7, 1941. The attack on Pearl Harbour served to unify American public opinion in favour of entering World War II, and on December 8 Congress declared war on Japan with only one dissenting vote. Germany and the other Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria) promptly declared war on the United States.
The Allies, who won, were also the architects of the United Nations, the United Nations is an international, inter-governmental organisation whose goal is to resolve conflicts peacefully and to establish a world of peace, freedom, and justice for all.
The Declaration by the United Nations was signed on January 1, 1941, the declaration stated that a complete victory against their adversaries was necessary if "life, liberty, independence and religious freedom" were to be defended, human rights and justice preserved in "their own lands as well as in other lands, and that they (were) engaged in a common struggle against savage and brutal forces seeking to subjugate the world."
Almost all the founding members of the United Nations had been anti-Axis during the war. Many of the Allies of World War II were also co-founders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949.
Begin your search broadly. Start with only a first and last name and year range. If needed, you can continue to edit your search by adding a service number or keyword.
Try different name combinations if you are having difficulty locating your ancestor’s entry. Occasionally, a first name was recorded as an initial only. Try searching with only a last name and year.
The keyword field will search all the text available in the transcript. For example, the word France will return all the records that list France as the burial country.
It is important to note that in some cases the Country listed may not be the individual’s birth place or the country of their origin. For example, a service person being killed in action and buried in the Netherlands will have the Netherlands listed as their Country.