Civil registration of births, marriages and deaths was introduced in England and Wales on 1 July 1837. The records for the whole of England and Wales are held centrally by the General Register Office. Local registrars hold copies of the records for their own districts.

Microfiche copies of the General Register Office's indexes to births, marriages, and deaths from 1837 to 1998 are available for searching free of charge at The National Library of Wales as well as a computerised index from 1984 to 2000. 

The indexes may also be searched free of charge  within the Library through Ancestry Library

Once you have found a likely entry in the indexes, you may apply for a certificate containing the corresponding details of birth, marriage or death.

The National Library of Wales does not issue certificates, but will carry out a search of the indexes  if sufficient information can be provided.

Certificates are available, upon payment of the appropriate fee, from the General Register Office (postal applications to: General Register Office, PO Box 2, Southport, Merseyside PR8 2JD) or from the Superintendent Registrar of the district in which the event occurred.