Hello List I'm helping the father of a friend try and trace the marriage record of his birth parents. First question: where would one find details of a marriage by proxy, c1940? Known details: Ronald William WILSON (b 3 Apr 1914, nr Hunterville) - Royal Navy, NZ Div, WW2. (Survived the war) - Served on HMS / HMNZS "Leander" married, by proxy, c 1940 Effie LANGMAN (aka Shona - b 17 Jan 1920, NZ) . Apparently the proxy marriage took place on the "Leander", somewhere in the Red Sea; conducted by the Captain, with 2 witnesses. Meanwhile, back in NZ, the bride also had to provide 2 witnesses for the proxy marriage. I've not come across anything like this before. Can anybody elucidate further, please? Where would the civil records be found, given that it was wartime? Also, where would the records for the "Leander" be found, if they have survived? I would imagine the Captain would have logged the marriage, but I'm not sure if they would be in TNA, Kew, given that it was Royal Navy, or if they will be found in NZ, given that it was the NZ Division of RN (later the RNZN). Any help would be gratefully received, and even better if there's anybody out there who can throw further light on Ronald William WILSON and Effie / Shona LANGMAN. (The latter was known to the family. She died in the Porirua area in the 1990s). Thank you in anticipation. Blanche Charles Kapiti Coast, NZ