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In the 1890s there was consulate in Kobe, and I am trying to determine whether the consulate issued a particular certificate of marriage.

Did the consulate provide witness to such marriages?

If the consulate did them, would there be records in The National Archives?

The candidate for my great-grandfather is Cecil Zohrab Ede. There are records of him in the National Archives but they concern his probate.

The National Archives sent this email to me.

Thank you for contacting the National Archives. Details of the types of record we hold for overseas marriages can be found here. (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/birth-marriage-death-sea-or-abroad/)

I couldn't search for C.Z. Ede's records. Does anyone know how to do so remotely?

Harry V.
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    We know that there is no mention in the GRO records so I think the most relevant section is part 3: "Records of overseas births, marriages and deaths from the Foreign Office and Colonial Office (c1820-c1950)

    Consult records of overseas births, marriages and deaths in various FO and CO series.

    These records are not searchable by name on our catalogue and are held in various record series. Read Tracing your Ancestors in The National Archives by Amanda Bevan (TNA, 2006) to obtain a record reference from a comprehensive list arranged by country." Does anyone have a copy of Bevan?

     – user3310902 Jul 27 '15 at 18:19
  • @user3310902 I have a similar problem trying to locate BMD records of British Subjects abroad in the 19th century http://genealogy.stackexchange.com/a/1615 so that reference from Bevan looks useful. – PolyGeo Jul 27 '15 at 22:10
  • As described in the National Archives research guide you link to, some of these records are on line at findmypast.co.uk or ancestry.co.uk. However, the only records at either site for C.Z. Ede relate to his death in China or his probate. It's not clear if paying a UK researcher will move you much further forward. The DNA evidence you already have may be the best evidence you can get. –  Jul 28 '15 at 16:18
  • @ColeValleyGirl Not sure if this is quite correct. TNA's response quoted above includes link which refers to "Records of overseas births, marriages and deaths from the Foreign Office and Colonial Office (c1820-c1950)" as being unindexed. Are these records available online? If so, where? They are not the same as the GRO records. – user3310902 Jul 28 '15 at 22:19
  • @user3310902 The FO and CO records aren't online, but the RT, GRO and some others are -- the research guide to which the OP was pointed is explicit about what is and isn't available on line. –  Jul 29 '15 at 06:19
  • @ColeValleyGirl In which case, currently the main unexplored avenue is the FO/ CO records? I agree that the DNA is the best shot, but let's not write them off. They may come online at some point. – user3310902 Jul 29 '15 at 23:49

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