Historical sources
Parish records, census returns and historical documents from across Wales.
Pick a period
Our sources cover more than a thousand years of Welsh family history, from medieval royal lines to modern parish registers. Choose the period your ancestor lived in to see what survives.
Medieval sources
Before 1485 · kings, lords and warriorsRoyal and tribal lines and noble pedigrees from the age of the Welsh kingdoms: manuscripts, heraldic records and the old genealogies.
Medieval records →Renaissance sources
1485–1660 · Tudor and StuartWelsh families through the Tudor and early Stuart years: Acts of Union records, early parish registers, heralds' visitations and estate papers.
Tudor and Stuart records →Modern sources
1660 onwards · parish records and censusFrom the Restoration to today: parish records, census returns, civil registration and records of industrial-era migration.
Modern records →Kinds of source
Parish registers
Baptisms, marriages and burials from Welsh parishes, from the 1500s onwards and fuller over time.
Census returns
Household lists from 1841 to 1921: relationships, jobs and birthplaces.
Royal and noble records
Medieval chronicles, royal genealogies and noble pedigrees of the great families of Wales.
Legal documents
Wills, deeds, court records and estate papers, for families of every class.
Official records
Government papers, tax records and military service lists.
Published genealogies
Books, family histories and research by historians who specialise in Welsh lines.
Gravestones and memorials
Transcribed gravestones and church memorials, with dates and family ties.
Industrial records
Mining company records, employment registers and union papers from industrial Wales.
Migration records
Passenger lists, immigration papers and records of Welsh communities overseas.