National Records of Scotland NRS (formerly National Archives of Scotland)

Overview

The National Records of Scotland (NRS) is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government responsible for preserving and providing access to Scotland's national archives and public records, as well as publishing official Scottish statistics. NRS was formed on 1 April 2011 through the merger of the General Register Office for Scotland and the National Archives of Scotland (NAS), combining archival, genealogical, and statistical functions under a single institution. The head office is located at HM General Register House on Princes Street in Edinburgh, one of the oldest purpose-built public record repositories in the British Isles.

History and Founding

The antecedents of the National Records of Scotland date to the 13th century, when Scottish records were first entrusted to a government official. The office of Clericus Rotulorum (Clerk of the Rolls) is first recorded in 1286. The current General Register House, designed by Robert Adam and opened to the public in 1788, was constructed on a site chosen in the 1760s with funding from forfeited Jacobite estates. The institution was known as the Scottish Record Office from the 19th century until it was renamed the National Archives of Scotland in 1999. The merger with the General Register Office in 2011 created the current NRS.

Collections and Holdings

NRS holds approximately 80 kilometres of records spanning the 12th to 21st centuries, making it one of the most varied archival collections in Britain. Holdings include statutory registers of births, deaths, and marriages (from 1855); Old Parish Registers (1553–1854); census records (1841–1911); soldiers' and airmen's wills; valuation rolls; wills and testaments (1513–1925); Catholic parish registers; Court of Arms records; and a vast range of public, private, legal, and ecclesiastical records. NRS maintains the ScotlandsPeople website in partnership with the Court of the Lord Lyon, providing online access to genealogical records.

Notable Materials Related to Journalism and Media

NRS holds records of newspaper publishers, printing companies, and trade associations operating in Scotland, as well as regulatory and licensing records related to the press. The Scottish Register of Tartans is also maintained by NRS. The archives document the role of the Scottish press through official correspondence, parliamentary records, and private papers.

Access and Usage

NRS is open to the public at the Historical Search Room in General Register House. Research is free for non-legal purposes. The ScotlandsPeople website provides paid online access to digitized genealogical records. NRS provides training in palaeography and maintains online research guides and finding aids. The NRS Web Continuity Service has been archiving Scottish government websites since 2017.