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Legal Records Information 23

Where to Look for a Will or Grant of Administration

While a few original wills may be found among private papers, the most reliable place to search for a will is among the records of the court where probate was granted, i.e. where the will was given official approval empowering the executor to act. In cases where no will was made, letters of administration were granted to the next-of-kin, giving him or her the authority to distribute the intestate's estate (The word 'estate' is used here meaning the personality, i.e. chattels, cash, debts, leases, etc., of the deceased. The ecclesiastical courts had no jurisdiction over bequests of freehold property. If such bequests were in dispute, recourse was had to Chancery or Common Law. Mixed wills, that is of personalty and realty, were nevertheless registered in the ecclesiastical courts). The Principal Probate Registry started functioning on 12 January 1858. From this date a copy of every will proved is to be found at the Probate Search Room, First Avenue House, 42-49 High Holborn, London WC1V 6NP (tel: 0171-936 7000) But prior to the Court of Probate Act of 1857, the proving of wills and the granting of administrations lay with ecclesiastical courts and some manorial courts. There was an elaborate network of probate courts; the factors which determined in which court a grant should be made were the place of death and the size and distribution of the estate in question. See Wills and their Whereabouts, ed. A J Camp (private publication, 1974) for background information on wills and court hierarchy.

The searcher for a pre-1858 probated will or grant of administration has two initial problems, namely to decide in which court the grant was made, and to ascertain where the records of that court are now kept. The estate of a person of small means was usually dealt with in the lowest permissible court, that of the archdeacon. The will of a person with goods in more than one archdeaconry was proved in the diocesan court. There were also various 'peculiar' jurisdictions, such as those exercised by the deans and chapters of cathedrals. Those leaving goods in more than one diocese or peculiar to the value of £5 (£10 in London) or more were deemed to be in possession of bona notabilia and, as such, their estates came under the cognizance of one or other of the provincial courts, the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC) or the Prerogative Court of York. If goods were held in both provinces the grant could be made either solely in the court of the Archbishop of Canterbury, or in both provincial courts. The records of the minor probate courts are deposited in county record offices or other local repositories. The location of the records is explained Probate Jurisdiction: Wills and Where to Find Them by J Gibson (FFHS, 4th edition1994). The problem of deciding on the right court is more complex, and it may be necessary to search the records of several.

Documents Available in the Public Record Office

Death Duty Registers

If the grant of probate or administration was made after 1796 and the court of probate is not known, the Legacy Duty Registers and their indexes may be useful (Public Record Office, IR 26 and IR 27). If legacy duty was payable on the estate in question these registers indicate in which court the grant was made.

There is a separate leaflet on the contents and use of these registers.

Registers of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury

The only probate court records deposited in the Public Record Office are those of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 1383-1858.

The PCC was the metropolitan probate court for the Southern Province and, as such, was by far the busiest and most prestigious court. It sat in London, in Doctors' Commons, and had overriding jurisdiction in all England and Wales. It had sole jurisdiction where the deceased posessed bona notabilia in two bishoprics or two peculiars in the southern province, and also over estates of people who died at sea or abroad leaving personal property here. (During the Interregnum, 1653-60, the Prerogative Court, in the form of a civil Court of Probate of Wills and Granting Administrations, was the only court). In the early 19th century the Bank of England ruled that, for their purposes, when transfers of government stock holding were involved, only PCC grants of probate were valid. This meant a considerable increase in business. Many of the smaller courts were, in fact, moribund by 1858. A searcher for a 19th. century will has much more chance of finding it in the PCC records than a searcher for a will of an earlier date. Ledgers of Bank of England will abstracts 1717-1845, are at the Society of Genealogists, 14 Charterhouse Buildings, Goswell Road, London EC1M 7BA (tel: 0171-251-8799). There is a printed Index to the Bank of England Will Extracts 1807-1845 (Society of Genealogists, 1991)

The records fall roughly into two categories: those emanating from the ordinary common form proving of a straight-forward will or the granting of a simple administration, and those records relating to the procedure in the contesting of a grant. Obviously, if there was litigation much more information will be forthcoming: the depositions of witnesses, pleadings, exhibits, etc.

Wills and Administrations

The most useful and informative classes are the court copies of the probated wills (PROB 11) and the original wills (PROB 10). Probate Acts Books (PROB 8) and Act Books of Limited Probate (PROB 9) identify the parish where the testator died. The Administration Act Books (PROB 6 and PROB 7) provide more or less all the information that is obtainable in common form grants of administration. The means of reference to wills, administrations and the act books are the Register Books (PROB 12), available on the open shelves. They are arranged annually by the initial letter of the deceased, but not in strict alphabetical order. Strict indexes for wills (1701-1800) and administrations (1701-1749, and 1853-1858) are available.

There are indexes to PCC wills (1383-1700) and administrations (1559-1660) printed by the British Record Society. In the two volumes of wills for the period 1383-1558 vacancy wills proved by the Dean and Chapter of Canterbury have been included. The wills to which they refer are now kept in Canterbury Cathedral Archives, The Precincts, Canterbury, Kent CT1 2EH (tel: 01227-463510). These volumes also include some wills entered in archbishops' registers, some belonging to peculiar jurisdictions, and some proved during the vacancies of bishoprics. These registers are kept at Lambeth Palace Library, Lambeth Palace, London, SE1 7JU (tel: 0171-928-6222). The Society of Genealogists have a strictly alphabetical card index of administrations 1750-1800, which staff will search for a fee. See also Wills Indexes and Other Probate Material in the Library of the Society of Genealogists, Ed. N J Newington-Irving (Society of Genealogists, 1996), and the printed abstracts in American Wills and Administrations in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 1610-1857, compiled by P W Coldham (Genealogical Publications Co., Inc., 1989)

Records in Litigation

Records in causes present two immediate problems. The first is simply that of ascertaining whether or not a will or administration was disputed. Secondly, there is the problem of finding the name of the case (A con B), as up to the mid 18th century some of the most interesting classes have contemporary indexes arranged by the name of the promoter (plaintiff). To find out whether an estate was litigated, recourse should be had to the Register Books (PROB 12). In some of these volumes some of the causes are indicated by an entry of "by sent." or "by decree" as a marginal note against the name of the deceased. If the sentence was registered reference is given to the folio number in PROB 11. The sentence gives the name of the case. Indexes to various classes are in preparation; they provide a means of cross-reference from the name of the deceased to the name of the case. Only in the Acts of Court Books (PROB 29) and the loose Acts (PROB 33) is there mention of every case that came before the court. Classes containing most information are the pleadings, PROB 18 and PROB 25; depositions, PROB 24, PROB 26, PROB 28, PROB 37; and exhibits, PROB 31, PROB 36, PROB 42.

Inventories and the Value of Estates

Up to 1782 it was obligatory for every executor or administrator to return into the registry of the court an inventory of the deceased's goods. After this date an inventory might be called for by an interested party, but it was no longer an automatic part of common form procedure. Only about 800 pre-1660 inventories have survived; there is a list and index of names and places (PROB 2). For the period 1660-1782 inventories are in the following classes: PROB 3, PROB 4, PROB 5, PROB 16, PROB 32. For the period 1722-1858, they are mostly in PROB 31.

Inventories are lists of the personalty held by the deceased: leases, chattels, debts owed and owing, cash, crops, stocks, slaves, etc. No account of real estate is normally taken in estimates and totals. Reference may be made to freehold where it was relevant to the settling of the deceased's debts.

Various other classes give information as to the value of estates. The bonds entered into by all administrators and some executors give a rough idea (PROB 46). In the 16th and 17th centuries the amount of the bond appears to have approximated to the value of the personalty. In the 18th and 19th centuries the situation is not clear: the bond was either double the value or roughly equivalent. From 1796 the value of the estate was entered into the Probate and Administration Act Books. Estimates of servicemen's estates and those under £40, £20 and £5, respectively, are noted on some of the 17th century warrants and most of the 18th and 19th century warrants (PROB 14). Pauper estates are noted in some of the Register Books (PROB 12). Orders for the distribution of some intestates' goods specify the sums available for distribution (PROB 16). Orders for the revaluation of some 19th century estates are entered in the Orders of Court Books (PROB 38).

Estate values can be found also in the Death Duty Registers, 1796-1903 (see above).

Appeal lay from the PCC to the Court of Arches (the records of which are now in Lambeth Palace Library), or to the High Court of Delegates (now in the PRO). The functions of the latter were transferred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in 1834. There is a printed Index of Cases in the Court of Arches at Lambeth Palace Library 1660-1913, ed. J Houston (British Record Society, vol. 85, 1972) and an index of cases in the High Court of Delegates, 1651-1857 in The Genealogist, vols. 11 and 12.

Location

Death Duty Registers (IR 26) up to 1857 on microfilm at The Family Records Centre;

after 1858 original documents at Public Record Office (some require 5 days' notice).

Death Duty Register Indexes (IR 27) on microfilm at both sites.

Administrations (PROB 6) on microfilm at both sites.

Wills (PROB 11) on microfilm at both sites.

Indexes to Administrations (published lists) up to 1661 on open shelves at both sites.

Indexes to Wills (published lists) up to 1700 on open shelves at both sites.

Indexes to Administrations (PROB 12) 1661-1700 on open shelves at The Family Records Centre and on microfilm at the Public Record Office.

Indexes to Wills and Administrations (published lists) 1701-1800 on open shelves at both sites.

Indexes to Wills and Administrations (PROB 12) 1801-1858 on open shelves at the Family Records Centre and on microfilm at the Public Record Office.

Original Wills (PROB 10) original documents at the Public Record Office (require 5 days' notice).

Indexes to Wills and Administrations, 1858-1943, on microfiche at the Family Record Centre.

All other PROB classes mentioned in this leaflet can be consulted at the Public Record Office.

Other Sources

There are various testamentary oddments scattered in other groups, a selection of which are listed in A Guide to the Wills and Administrations etc. in the Public Record Office, (Baltimore, 1968), copies of which are at both sites. An index to wills among the Chancery Masters' Exhibits (C 103-C 114) is available in the Reading Rooms at the Public Record Office. Both The Family Record Centre and the Public Record Office have copies of many indexes to wills proved in other local courts.

Readers should note that some of the records mentioned in this leaflet are not yet available for inspection because editorial and conservation work on them is still in progress.

Commissary Court of London

Will Abstracts

Jurisdiction: parts of the City of London; Shoreditch and Clerkenwell in Middlesex.

Records: cover the period 1393 to 1807. There were very few wills proved or administrations granted after 1781. The main series are:

Act books, 1564-1807 (Ms 9050) Use of microfilm compulsory after 1600

Will registers, 1393-1807 (Ms 9051) Use of microfilm compulsory after 1600

Indexes are available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room; further details are given at the end of this leaflet.

c) The Peculiar Court of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral

Jurisdiction: a few parishes and precincts in the City of London, Middlesex, Essex and Hertfordshire.

Records: cover the period 1535 to 1837. Very few wills were proved or administrations granted after ca. 1781. The main series are:

Act books, 1646-1837 (Ms 25625) Use of microfilm compulsory

Will registers, 1535-1837 (Ms 25626) Use of microfilm compulsory

Indexes are available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room.

Note: the microfilms are available on a self-service basis in the lower part of the Manuscripts reading room. Catalogues of the records referred to above may be found on the table adjacent to the microfilm cabinets. Print-outs may be taken from the microfilm (by personal callers only) using Manuscripts self-service reader-printer. If you wish to use an original act book or will register prior to 1600 for the Commissary Court or Archdeaconry Court, please ask staff at the Manuscripts enquiry desk for assistance.

Copies of some wills and letters of administration are to be found in the Bishops Registers (Ms 9531). There is an index by personal name to those for 1313-1548 on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room. London Consistory Court Wills 1492-1547 edited by Ida Darlington (London Record Society, Volume III, 1967) contains a list of clerical wills, 1508-14, copied into the back of Ms 9531/9. Wills and administrations for 1514-59 are also indexed in a calendar to the Consistory Court wills held at London Metropolitan Archives (not available at Guildhall Library).

In addition, the Library holds the probate records of the Royal Peculiar of St Katharine by the Tower (covering the period 1688 to 1818), which had jurisdiction only over the precinct of St Katharine, a small area immediately east of the Tower of London. For further details, see the two calendars of the St Katharine's Hospital archive (Mss 9742-2A) on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room.

The Library also holds copies of the published calendar, in two volumes, of wills, 1258-1688, for the Court of Husting, which had jurisdiction over the City of London (available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room). The original wills are kept in the Corporation of London Records Office. Very few wills were proved in this court after the early 16th century.

Note: probate inventories for the 17th and 18th centuries exist for all of the probate courts whose records are held by Guildhall Library. Those for the Commissary Court and Archdeaconry Court have been indexed by surname and the indexes are available in the card index drawers opposite the Manuscripts enquiry desk. Those for the Peculiar Court of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's are currently being indexed onto computer. It is hoped eventually to include the probate inventories for all the courts in this index, which will be arranged by personal name, parish and occupation. Interim print-outs are available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts Reading Room.

Wills not found in the records of the above-mentioned courts may be located in the records of the following, which were the two superior courts with jurisdiction in the London area:

a) The Prerogative Court of Canterbury

Records: (covering 1383 to 1858) Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section

Leaflet Guides to Records:

Probate Records (wills and administrations) at Guildhall Library

This is a brief introduction to searching for probate records, with particular reference to those held by the Manuscripts Section of Guildhall Library and elsewhere which relate to inhabitants of the City of London and surrounding areas. Enquirers who need a more detailed explanation should consult A. Camp, Wills and Their Whereabouts (London 1974) or J.S.W. Gibson Wills and Where to Find Them (Chichester, 1974) and Probate Jurisdictions: Where to Look for Wills (Federation of Family History Societies, 4th edition, 1994). These books are available at Guildhall Library and most public reference libraries and record offices.

Before 12 January 1858 the probate of wills, and the granting of letters of administration for the estates of persons who died without leaving a will, took place in an ecclesiastical probate court. There were at least 300 probate courts throughout England and Wales. The court in which a will would be proved, or letters of administration granted, depended on the place where the deceased person held his property, as each court had jurisdiction over particular places and the courts' jurisdiction frequently overlapped. If you know where a person held property (usually, where he lived), you can search the records of the appropriate court(s) for relevant information. The publications mentioned above and the information given below will help you to find the appropriate court(s).

Sometimes a search in these records fails to produce any information. Reasons for this are:

The will was not proved (or administration granted) in the court where you would expect to find it. In a number of circumstances (for example, when a person owned property in more than one place) probate business might be dealt with by a different, often a higher, court; and so it may be necessary to search the records of several courts.

The deceased did not have enough property to leave a will, or for his estate to be the subject of a grant of administration. It has been estimated that the the estates of only about one person in ten were dealt with by the probate courts; it is unlikely that there will be any surviving record of the estates of the rest of the population.

Increasingly, in the first half of the 19th century, the system of ecclesiastical probate courts was breaking down, particularly in London. The significance of the individual jurisdictions was diminished and the courts' importance declined generally. Again it may be necessary to search the (increasingly sparse) records of several courts.

Guildhall Library holds the records of three ecclesiastical courts, each of which had nominal probate jurisdiction over parts of the Diocese of London:

a) The Commissary Court of London (London Division)

Jurisdiction: parts of the City of London and Middlesex; a few parishes in the south-western part of the county of Essex; also some jurisdiction (of uncertain extent) over persons who died at sea.

Records: cover the period 1374 to 1857. Few wills were proved or administrations granted after c.1830: the later wills and administrations are chiefly for merchant seamen. The main series are:

Act books, 1496-1858 (Ms 9168) Use of microfilm compulsory after 1600

Will registers, 1374-1857 (Ms 9171) Use of microfilm compulsory after 1600

Indexes are available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room; further details are given at the end of this leaflet.

b) The Archdeacoilable on microfilm at the Family Records Centre, 1 Myddleton Street, London EC1 (originals held at the Public Record Office, Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Surrey TW9 4DU). The following published indexes are held by the Printed Books Section of Guildhall Library (indexes compiled by the British Record Society, covering 1383-1700 in 12 volumes; the Friends of the Public Record Office, 20 microfiche covering 1701-49; and the Society of Genealogists, covering 1750-1800). The period 1853-7 is covered by the National Probate Calendar (see below). The FRC have an online information leaflet on wills and probate records <./p>

b) The Consistory Court of London

Records: (covering 1492 to 1858) held at London Metropolitan Archives, 40 Northampton Road, London EC1R OHB. A published calendar of some of the Consistory Court wills, 1492-1547, is held by the Manuscripts Section of Guildhall Library on the bookshelves in the upper reading room.

Details of other London courts, and the location of their surviving records, may be found in the publications by Camp and Gibson mentioned above.

The London Probate Index, 1750-1858, compiled by David Wright, draws together into a single alphabetical sequence by personal name all wills and administrations in nine courts undertaking probate business in London. The probate courts are those for the Consistory Court of London; Commissary Court of London; Archdeaconry Court of London; Archdeaconry Court of Middlesex; Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's; Royal Peculiar of St Katharine by the Tower; Royal Peculiar of the Commissary Court of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster; Archbishop's Peculiar of the Deanery of Croydon; and Archbishop of Canterbury's Peculiar of the Deanery of Arches. The index is complete and open for searches for 1750-1800 and 1828-1858. An SAE and £5 will supply up to ten entries of a surname and specified variants from either or both sections. Dates of death, even if approximate, should always be supplied. An estimate will be given for any remainder at 50 pence per entry. Enquiries, enclosing an SAE, should be addressed to David Wright, 71 Island Wall, Whitstable, Kent CT5 1EL.

All existing probate jurisdictions were abolished by the Court of Probate Act of 25 August 1857 which came into force on 11 January 1858. This Act of Parliament established a Principal Probate Registry and 40 District Probate Registries for England and Wales. Enquiries about wills proved and administrations granted after 11 January 1858 may be seen at thePrincipal Probate Registry reading room at Somerset House, London WC2R 1LP. It is due to be relocated in June 1998 to First Avenue House, 42-48 High Holborn, London WC1V 6HA. Postal enquiries should be addressed to the Chief Clerk, York Probate Sub-Registry, Du ncombe Place, York Yo1 2EA.

Guildhall Library holds a microfiche copy of the National Probate Calendar for the period 1853-1943. This printed calendar (published by HMSO) records brief details about all grants of probate and letters of administration made in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 1853-7, and in the Principal Probate Registry and District Probate Registries, 1858-1935.

The National Probate Calendar is arranged alphabetically by surname within the period 1853-7, and then alphabetically by surname within each year; wills and administrations are recorded in separate sequences. The amount of information given varies, but usually includes the full name of the deceased, their place of abode, their date of death, where they died and the value of their effects; also where the will was proved or the letters of administration granted and to whom the grant of probate or letters of administration was made.

The calendar is held in the Printed Books Section of Guildhall Library in the microfiche cabinets; staff in that section will be pleased to give further advice. Copies of the calendar are also available in some other libraries and record offices.

GUIDES TO INDEXES: COMMISSARY COURT OF LONDON

The will registers (Ms 9171/1-98) are bound volumes of the registered copies of wills made at the time of probate.

The act books (Ms 9168/1-48) are bound volumes containing copies of probate acts, by which original wills were confirmed. They also record the decision of the court to appoint administrators if the deceased died intestate (without leaving a will).

To find out whether an individual appears in the will registers and/or act books, consult the indexes available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room.

Note. The indexes also record references to original wills (Ms 9172). These are not yet available on microfilm. Readers are requested to use the will registers wherever possible; use of microfilm is compulsory for post-1600 registers.

INDEXES

Indexes for the years 1374-1649 and 1661-1700 (Surnames A-S only from 1626) appear in Index to Testamentary records in the Commissary Court of London (London Division), volumes I-IV part II (ed. Marc Fitch):

Vol I - index to will registers (Ms 9171/1-7) and act books (Ms 9168/1) for 1374-1488;

Vol II - index to will registers (Ms 9171/7-16) and act books (Ms 9168/1-13) for 1489-1570;

Vol III - index to will registers (Ms 9171/16-24) and act books (Ms 9168/13-17) for 1571-1625;

Vol IV - index to will registers (Ms 9171/24-50 part 1) and act books (Ms 9168/17-29) for 1626- 1649 and 1661-1700 (SURNAMES A-S ONLY).

The published indexes use the following conventions:

[ ] indicates information derived from the act books (Ms 9168);

< > indicates information derived from original wills (Ms 9172);

No brackets indicates information derived from the will registers (Ms 9171).

Unpublished indexes for 1625-1858 (Ms 9173A/10-39) are available on the bookshelves in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room.

GUIDE TO INDEXES: ARCHDEACONRY COURT OF LONDON

The will registers (Ms 9051/1-19) are bound volumes of the registered copies of wills made at the time of probate.

The act books (Ms 9050/1-25) are bound volumes containing copies of probate acts, by which original wills were confirmed. They also record the decision of the court to appoint administrators if the deceased died intestate (without leaving a will).

To find out whether any individual appears in the will registers and/or act books, consult the indexes available in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room.

Note. The indexes also record references to original wills (Ms 9052). These are not yet available on microfilm. Readers are requested to use the will registers wherever possible; use of microfilm is compulsory for post-1600 registers.

INDEXES

Indexes for the years 1368-1649 and 1661-1700 appear in Testamentary records etc. in the Archdeaconry Court of London, volumes I-II (ed. Marc Fitch):

Vol I - index to will registers for 1393-1640/1 (Ms 9051/1-8), original wills for 1524-(1662) (Ms 9052/1-13) and act books for 1564-1649 (Ms 9050/1-8);

Vol II - index to will registers for 1661-1680 (Ms 9051/9-10), original wills for (1646)-1700 (Ms 9052/13-32) and act books for 1660-1700 (Ms 9050/8-18).

The published indexes use the following conventions:

[ ] indicates information derived from the act books (Ms 9050);

< > indicates information derived from original wills (Ms 9052);

No brackets indicates information derived from the will registers (Ms 9051).

Wills 1700-1807 have been indexed by personal name, place and subject in Cliff Webb, An Index of Wills Proved in the Archdeaconry Court of London 1700-1807 (Society of Genealogists, 1996)

Unpublished indexes for 1368-1781 (with a few entries to 1807) (Ms 9054/1-3) are available in the upper part of the Manuscripts reading room.

The unpublished indexes use the following conventions:

A.B. + number indicates the act book and relevant volume;

Reg. + number indicates the will register and relevant volume.

However, they remain difficult to intepret. The staff at the Manuscripts enquiry desk can give advice.

Revised June 1999

Leaflet Guides to Records

Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section

Last changed: 09/01/2006, 00:49:56