Sir Winston Churchill himself is mentioned so many times in the collection that he is named WSC and Lady Clementine Churchill is CSC.

Otherwise people in the catalogue are described by the name (and, where appropriate, the title and rank) by which they were known at the time of the creation of the document concerned, with any earlier or later names given in square brackets (e.g. John Seely [later Lord Mottistone]).

For untitled people, the usual form is the main forename in full (where this can readily be established) followed by the surname, except in a few cases where a person is better known by some other form such as their forename initials (e.g. F E Smith rather than Frederick Smith).

Titled people below the rank of Duke or Duchess (i.e. barons, earls and marquises) are described as Lord or Lady followed by the title name (e.g. ‘Lord Crewe’ rather than ‘the Earl of Crewe’), whilst different holders of the same title are distinguished by a number (e.g. ‘10th Duke of Marlborough’). Women holding rank by marriage are given in the form ‘Cornelia, Lady Wimborne’, whilst those holding rank by birth are given in the form ‘Lady Sarah Spencer Churchill’.

If you’re not sure about the form of a name, just type in the part (for instance the surname or the main part of a title) that you are sure about. Separate the elements in a double-barrelled surname with a space rather than a hyphen.