Portugal Military Records

Military Records
Portuguese military records date back to the creation of the Kingdom of Portugal in the 12th century. A permanent Navy was established in 1317, and the army was established in 1570.

Until 1990, all Portuguese men were required to serve in the armed forces in times of peace as well as war. Because of this national conscription, the Portuguese government recorded all youth eligible for military service, as well as details on all individuals once they entered service. These records are stored in the two military archives of Portugal, and portions of the collection have been digitized.

Online Military Records
Genealogy in Military Records (GERMIL) is an online database with descriptions, transcriptions, digitizations, and catalog information for military records in the Military History Archive. This includes military service records, pensions, commendations, and information on campaigns and battles.

Portugal Military Archives
Portugal has two military archives. For contact information for these archives, visit Portugueses Military Archives.

Military History Archive
The Military History Archive (Arquivo Histórico Militar) holds records of all those who have served in the armed forces. These service records are in the process of being digitized through the GERMIL project.

General Archive of the Army
The General Archive of the Army (Arquivo Geral do Exército) holds all records of communication between units of the Portuguese army and the registration of young men eligible for military service. These records have not been digitized or microfilmed. Requests for the record can be made, so long as the name, birth date, and place of ancestor of the individual being researched is provided.

Military Records at the FamilySearch Library
The FamilySearch Library has a select number of military records for Portugal. To access them, perform a subject search at the FamilySearch Catalog for PORTUGAL - MILITARY RECORDS.