The Royal Welch Fusiliers Museum at Caernarfon Castle, North Wales

Welcome to the website of the Royal Welch Fusiliers Museum

Visitor Notice

Due to Covid-19 guidance from the Welsh Government, The Museum of The Royal Welch Fusiliers is closed to the public until further notice.

The Museum is housed in two towers of Caernarfon Castle. In it you will find a wealth of original exhibits, supported by film, sound and models, which tell the story of over 300 years of service by Wales' oldest infantry regiment, in peacetime and in war, all around the world.

You can learn how the Regiment won 14 Victoria Crosses and hear the words of the famous writers who served with the Royal Welch during the First World War - Siegfried Sassoon, Robert Graves, 'Hedd Wyn', David Jones and Frank Richards. You will see what life was like for the ordinary soldier and his family and discover the Regiment's unique traditions.

Royal Welch history begins with the campaigns of William III, and includes Marlborough's wars, the American War of Independence, the wars with Revolutionary and Napoleonic France, the Crimean War, the Boer War and China. Many battalions of the Regiment saw action in the First and Second World Wars. In peacetime the Royal Welch has provided garrison troops in Canada, India, Hong Kong and the West Indies.

More recently the Royal Welch has carried out many tours of duty in Northern Ireland and has been deployed on peace-keeping and humanitarian operations, often under the UN or NATO. These have included missions in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan.

On the 1st March 2006 the two line Welsh Infantry regiments combined to form a new regiment - The Royal Welsh. Between 2006 and 2014 the title of the Royal Welch Fusiliers was retained as 1st Battalion Royal Welsh (The Royal Welch Fusiliers). With further defence cuts in 2014 the 1st and 2nd Battalions were combined to form the 1st Battalion, The Royal Welsh (23rd/24th/41st of Foot). The values, traditions and heritage of the Royal Welch Fusiliers are now preserved in the regular 1st Battalion, The Royal Welsh and the Reserve 3rd Battalion, The Royal Welsh.

North Wales is the traditional home of the Royal Welch Fusiliers but recruits have come from all over the United Kingdom and Ireland, particularly during the two World Wars. This means that the Regiment has connections with families worldwide and we will be pleased to help with your family history research. Our Enquiries page will tell you how to proceed.

Royal Welch Fusiliers Art Works

Researching Family/ Military History?

The RWF Museum Trust has a long-term partnership with Wrexham County Borough Council. They manage on our behalf the extensive RWF Archive & RWF Museum Reserve Collection at Wrexham Museum & Archives, Regent St, Wrexham LL111RB. Any family research queries should be initially directed to their RWF Enquiries Service at: localstudies@wrexham.gov.uk or Tel: 01978 297480 (A small fee may be incurred).

Find Out More

FIND MY PAST

You can also view over 96,000 digitised records from the RWF Museum Archives at www.findmypast.co.uk Covering the period 1807-1948. The Records are offered to subscribers of FMP or via “pay-per-view. The record sets include the following: