Hi to everyone, i need help. I'm searching document, about a place in my zone, but to do a research in the TNA, i need the WO (that i don't know). Someone know who fought in the Auditore battle? Exactly i need bout Auditore and Poggio S. Giovanni, on the gothic line (Italy august/september 1944). Thanks in advance
Hi Bosco, Your asking where to look in WO suggests you've yet to do as suggested above. British Army operations in the Second World War may, for example, be the best place for you (or anyone researching WW2 in general there) to start. It contains classified links to (probably) all the individual WO series you are likely to want. Once in the catalogue at any one of those linked series levels, you may then conduct a localised search for relevant individual pieces within it (e.g. ORBs [war diaries]).
You need to looking for files on the 4th Division, also go on line and see if you can find The Tiger Triumphs, then chapter 13 it gives a brief discription of the fighting.
Hi know that in my zone is the WO 169, but how i can find the rest of the numbers? Normally is for example WO 169/18978, the part of 18978 stand for?
Hi know that in my zone is the WO 169, but how i can find the rest of the numbers? Normally is for example WO 169/18978, the part of 18978 stand for? TNA's catalogue has help (button on every page), including pages describing its structure and how to search it, but here's an example - use the 'Refine search' button to see search terms. (NB: I got 'Operation Olive' from here). Also note that all 10 results here are in WO 204 (one of two series for Headquarters papers: Allied forces in North Africa, Italy and France 1942-1945).
The 18978 part is the actual file number refering a unit e.g. infantry, artillery or RASC this is the piece you need to be looking for in respect of yoour research.
Ok, but i'm searching document about a place. If i tip the name of place, the TNA don't find anything. How i can find numbers about the WO if i don't know who fight in this place?
Please think laterally. TNA simply don't have the resources to digitise the content of all the material in their care - so you're going to have to work, more pragmatically, with their digitised indices. And a caveat worth noting here, although unlikely to apply to WW2 holdings, is that some of their indices are very sketchy in the extreme - an anomaly they are working to eradicate (slowly as it's time-consuming of their limited manpower). Since local place-names are probably only cited within the bodies of documents, you need to concentrate on how the documents you want are likely to be described at the index level - as outlined in the aforementioned research guide. I've already given you a search example for "Operation Olive" and, because that's how HQ would have described it, the results were all HQ orders, reports, etc. Lower down the command chain, documents like war diaries were kept for individual operational units and not-infrequently split into date-ranged volumes. Thus you're more likely to succeed at the coal-face by searching on the names of the units involved. And if you don't know those, then you're going to have to find out before proceeding. For that, Oldman has already pointed you toward the 4th Division and suggested you refer to The Tiger Triumphs. I've also flagged up TNA's HQ overviews, for which you could turn to their DocumentsOnline service if need be, and there may even be more online than you've already found.
No need to use the NA search engine. I downloaded all the files on to Excel: http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/research-material/29605-national-archives-catalogue-excel.html See Post 14 for all the WO 169 files. If you can't find what you are looking for try WO 170. If you still can't find what you are looking for give me a shout. Ps these are only unit War Diaries and not reports on specific battles
