Researching Australian War Records

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The following is a selection of helpful online resources for researching Australian military service in World War 2. Many of the sites also provide information on other conflicts.

Australian War Memorial

The Australian War Memorial maintains an extensive archive as well as a museum and shrine. The memorial's website provides guidance on using the extensive collections.

Australian War Memorial - understanding the memorial's collections

Australian War Memorial - researching a person

Australian War Memorial - researching an event

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission databases record the details and commemoration location of every casualty from the First and Second World Wars for which the Commission is responsible.

Commonwealth War Graves - Find Records

Department of Veterans' Affairs

The Department of Veterans' Affairs maintains nominal rolls and service records, as well as providing providing information about war graves and memorials.

Department of Veterans' Affairs - Records and military history

National Archives of Australia

The National Archives of Australia holds Army, Navy and Air Force service records. This includes service records for World War 1 and World War 2.

The National Archives of Australia - Defence and war service records

Army - World War 2

Trove

The National Library of Australia's TROVE enables users to search for books, journals, photographs, digitised newspapers and other material held by a range of Australian libraries, archives and cultural institutions.

TROVE

WW2 Red Cross Missing Wounded and Prisoner of War Enquiry Cards

University of Melbourne Archives has digitised the Red Cross WW2 Missing Wounded and Prisoner of War Enquiry Cards which can be viewed on the Digitised Items Catalogue. The collection reference number is: 2016.0049.

For more information about the cards, see the article, ‘A Humane and Intimate Administration’: The Red Cross’ World War Two Wounded, Missing and Prisoner of War Cards by Senior Archivist Fiona Ross.

The AIF Project (World War 1)

The AIF database is drawn from a range of official sources, including personal files on the National Archives website, and Embarkation and Nominal Rolls on the Australian War Memorial website. A number of Australians served in both World War 1 and World War 2.

The AIF Project - Search