WILLS BEFORE 1858 - ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, WALES AND IRELAND.

By the Wills Statute of 1540 a Will was defined as the direction of the deceased covering Real Estate, property, land, buildings etc., and the Testament as the direction covering the personal property of the deceased, ie., the money, tools etc., The property had to be worth more than £5. The deceased would have named an executor in the Will, and the Administration (Admon) would be granted to that person. If the deceased died intestate then the next of kin would be sworn as Administrator if the goods were worth £5 and above.

A Will is worth looking at as all sorts of relatives can be mentioned and all sorts of people made them. Wills are full of names, places, relationships and sometimes mention of earlier Wills and generations.

There are several points to note:

1. Witnesses could not benefit.

2. Verbal death bed Wills acceptable if three witnesses sworn and if resident in the place of death for 10 days or more. This is known as a Memorandum Quod. In 1836-7 Non-Cupative Wills were abolished.

3. Early Wills include money to be directed to praying for the deceased soul, later replaced by bequests to the poor.

4. Personal estate could be limited to the wife so that should she remarry she would not take the inheritance to another family.

5. Wills could be made by males over 14 and females over 12 (period 1540-1837).

6. Wives (though there are Admons) could not make Wills, as also could not lunatics, prisoners, apostates and traitors. Widows and spinsters could.

7. Indexes should be searched for several years.

8. Non-Conformist Wills and those of Seamen, soldiers and those with property abroad would be proved at the PCC.

9. From 1653-1660 all Wills were proved at the PCC.

10. From 1796 Legacy Duty Registers exist to record duty on legacies and estate residues. They were expanded from 1805 to 1815. These are at the PRO.

11. Up to 1782 Inventories of personal estate can exist and can include valuable family information.

12. PCY Wills are in the Borthwick Institute in York.

13. Welsh Wills are in the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth.

14. Scottish Wills are at the SRO in Edinburgh or in the Sheriffs Courts.

15. Surviving Irish Wills are either at the PRO in Dublin or at the PRO in Belfast.

PROBATE COURTS

Whilst there were over 300 Courts in England there were two main ones, THE PREROGATIVE COURT OF CANTERBURY (PCC) [the senior Court based in London] and the PREROGATIVE COURT OF YORK (PCY). From Cheshire and Nottingham North the PCY covered and the rest of the Country South of that line was covered by the PCC. York Wills survive 1389-1858 and Canterbury Wills 1383-1858. In addition there were the Bishops Court, the Archdeacons Court and Peculiars which cover local Courts.

FOR FURTHER BOOKS OF USE IN SEARCHING FOR WILLS SEE THE READING LIST.