Magnus you say, are you an Earl of OrkneyI've researched on Ancestry.co.uk since 2010 ( my Great Grandmother left some comprehensive family tree work too) I find it fascinating to see the occupations of relatives on the census forms which date back to 1841. Beyond which you are mostly reliant on church records - births, deaths, marriages and christening, which go back to Cromwell (he insisted on churches keeping their records in secure coffers). If you get lucky and find links to the Peerage then you can go back to Charlemagne. I did, thus Hugo Magnus.