Discover your family's wartime story
To commemorate Remembrance we’ve worked with renowned poet, Nikita Gill to create a poem about the wartime experiences of the ordinary people of Britain. All stories featured are inspired by real records found on Ancestry®.
To commemorate Remembrance, we are proud to have partnered with Nikita Gill, the talented poet, playwright, writer and illustrator to create the poem ‘Who You Are’.
Inspired by records and imagery available from Ancestry’s collection of over 2 billion wartime records, Gill’s specially commissioned work illustrates the wartime experiences of ordinary people both at home and overseas.
Gills shares, “This commission really speaks to me on a personal level – both my grandfathers were in the army so it’s a real privilege to be able to commemorate the experiences of those who experienced wartime Britain through poetry. I hope that by seeing how I used Ancestry’s UK Wartime Records to uncover the everyday – and not so everyday – stories of those on the frontline and the homefront, people are inspired to look into their own family wartime history and learn more about the experiences of ordinary people during those turbulent times, as I did."
Using historical documents, you could also discover your own family’s untold wartime stories, and what roles your ancestors played during the world wars to ensure their memory and contributions live on.
The poem ‘Who You Are’ was inspired by real records found on Ancestry®. Explore these collections and discover fascinating stories of everyday people and their experiences during the World Wars.
Learn more about the making of 'Who You Are', dive deeper into key wartime
collections and read top tips to help you uncover your family's untold stories.