Austria, Carinthia, Military Personnel Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Record
Österreich Armee. Kärnten, Grundbuchblätter

What is in This Collection?
These records are written in German.

The collection consists of Austrian personnel records giving details on the soldier's birth, enlistment, and military service. The records will include the provinces of Austria as well as areas formerly part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, primarily Hungary, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and the Czech Republic. Any additional records will be added as they are completed. The original records are housed in the Österreichisches Staatsarchiv, Vienna.

The text was handwritten in German. See the section title For Help Reading These Records in this article for translation tools. This collection of records is listed in alphabetical order by year and surname, which makes it easier to research. The records cover the years 1846-1897.

For a list of records by date or locality currently published in this collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.

In 1820, the regimental muster rolls (musterlisten), which contained basic information for each soldier, were replaced by formatted sheets (grundbuchsblatt) bound into books as a register (grundbuecher), then handled as loose sheets (grundbuchsblaetter). The documented registers were kept by the regiments and periodically sent to the central authority, the War Council Ministry of War, in Vienna for preservation.

The Austrian military system requires that all military personnel be registered with all personal and related information, which is kept in a personal file when the person is enlisted. Men exempt from military service included clergy, nobility, certain government officials, and workers employed in mining, iron production, and necessary agricultural occupations.

Sample Images
The records may include the following information:


 * Name of soldier or officer
 * Date of birth
 * Place of birth
 * Religion
 * Occupation
 * Name of regiment
 * Date of service

How Do I Search This Collection?
It is helpful to know at least one of the following:
 * Your ancestor's name
 * Residence
 * Age or birth date
 * Occupation

Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information in the list to what you already know about your ancestor to determine if it is the correct family or person. You may need to compare several persons in the list before you find your ancestor.

When searching: As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor's given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence, age, estimated [event] year, and family relationships.

To browse by image: To search the collection: ⇒ Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒ Select "Record Type and Year Range" ⇒ Select the "Name Range" which takes you to the images.

These records are in German. For help with reading the records, see the following wiki article:


 * German Word List
 * Germany Resources
 * Germany Handwriting

What Do I Do Next?
Whenever possible, view the original records to verify the information and to find additional information that might not be reported. These pieces of information can lead you to additional records and family members. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

I Found Who I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Use the age in the record to find an approximate birth year.
 * Use the soldier's age and location of the military unit to find his family in census, church, and land records.
 * Use the county code and the certificate number to obtain a copy of the original death certificate from the county.
 * Use the parents’ places of origin to find former residences and establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * Use the couple’s marriage date and place to find records of their children
 * Use the burial place to help you identify their migration pattern
 * Use the surname to compile baptism entries for each child and sort them into families based on the names of the parents.
 * Continue to search the index and records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have served in the same unit or a nearby unit.
 * Search the records of nearby military units.
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found to find more generations of the family.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc.
 * Search the records of nearby localities (or military units, counties, parishes, etc.).
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images. *Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Look for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume. In addition local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.

Known Issues With This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.


 * Collection Citation:

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