by SRD » Tue Jun 25, 2013 7:18 am
Just joining one of the sites doesn't necessarily give you full access, some have varying levels.
Not all Parish records are available. Ancestry has London ones (but not complete although they do reach into Surrey as well, often through Bishop's Transcripts), I think there are some Lancashire ones as well and there are probably others. Several local groups have transcribed Parish Records, most charge for access although some local councils do make records available for free (although there are fewer of those nowadays) and there is the Parish Clerks project.
Military records are variable, many of the pre WWII records were destroyed in WWII so no longer exist anywhere. There are more Officer than Other Ranks records available as they were kept by more organisations, especially the London Gazette (but their search engine ain't wonderful) and Schools (especially Private ones) and Colleges often have full career details of their Alumni, some charge some will give you info for free.
I'm afraid it isn't just that easy to join one site and have all the info at your fingertips, you have to hunt around.
Currently investigating the Hillmans of Sussex.