How to retrive old messages

What do you mean be retrieve old messages? Are these messages that you deleted? How long ago did you delete them? If Messages in iCloud is enabled, the messages cannot be retrieved. If you're unsure if this feature is turned on, here's how to check: Use Messages in iCloud. If Messages in iCloud isn't turned on, and you have a backup that contains the messages, they can be restored with these steps: Restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch from a backup. Keep in mind, any data that has been put onto your iPhone after the backup was created will be lost. If you have made a backup of the iPhone since you deleted the message, you will not be able to retrieve it either.