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Baptisms and burials

 
Parishes have been required to keep records, and store them securely in a parish chest, since 1538. However it was an order signed by Elizabeth 1 in 1598 that effectively consolidated the practice, and added the requirement to send annual copies to the diocesan bishop (hence Bishop's transcripts).

It should be remembered that parish registers record the dates for baptisms and burials, not births and deaths.

Most of the older parish registers for the Greenwich area are deposited at London Metropolitan Archives, but in some cases transcripts and copies of microfilm are available at the Heritage Centre.

The registry office holds records of every birth, marriage and death that has taken place in the borough and can provide copies of certificates on request.

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