UK and Ireland: Handwriting

• The National Archives' Palaeography Tutorial (how to read old handwriting)
• Medieval Writing (archived copy) - a very extensive tutorial, by Dianne Tillotson
• English Script Tutorial - provided by the BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy.
• Handwriting Analysis - from the London Census 1891 Transcription Blog.
• How to Read 18th Century British-American Writing - from the DoHistory website.
• English Handwriting 1500-1700 - an online course, from Cambridge University.
• Scriptorium - Medieval and Early Modern Manuscripts Online, from Cambridge University
• A useful description of old handwriting has been made available by Sabina J. Murray.
• Andrew Booth has prepared some examples of old handwriting for tutorial purposes (archived copy)
• Secretary Hand (Society of Genealogists site) " was used in the British courts and parishes from 1500-1750, when it was slowly replaced by Italic Hand,....."
• Basic advice for reading Secretary Hand, from Folgerpedia
• List of online resources for medieval and early-modern palaeography.
• Old English Paleography, by Jean Cruickshank, on LDS FamilySearch.
• Palaeography aids, from the companion website to the Old English mailing list.
• Introduction to Reading and Understanding Medieval Documents, from Nottingham University.
• David Manthey's 18th Century Ligatures and Fonts, though intended as an aid to replicating 18th century printed texts, can also be of help in reading old printed documents.
• A Nevv Booke, containing all sorts of hands vsvally written at this day in Christendome - downloadable PDF of a 1611 book. (Shows "the English and French Secretary, the Roman, Italian, French, Spanish, high and low Dutch, Court and Chancerie hands".)
• 800 Years of English Handwriting - an online exhibition, on Google Arts and Culture, by Derbyshire Record Office.
• Introducing Palaeography - "Practice reading old handwriting with our free guide", from IHGS.

Hector, L. C. The Handwriting of English Documents (2nd. rev. ed.), Hodder & Stoughton (1966) 136 pp. [ISBN-10: 071315182X] [This has photographs of the various hands from Domesday book to 1830 with the transcripts in the text.]

Newton, K.C. Medieval Local Records: A Reading Aid, The Hist. Assoc (1971) 28pp.

Wright, A, Court Hand Restored, or the Student's Assistant....., Clarke & Sons London, 1818. [Particularly useful if the text is in latin because it has appendices listing the latinised place names, surnames and Latin words, and plates showing the alphabets and abbreviations used.] [Reprinted by, e.g. Hardpress Publishing (2013)]