Discover whether your Surrey ancestors left a will that was proved by the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The court in Canterbury was the most senior of the pre 1858 ecclesiastical courts and had jurisdiction over all of England and Wales. The wills of those who died abroad were usually proved here.
Discover whether your Surrey ancestors left a will that was proved by the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The court in Canterbury was the most senior of the pre 1858 ecclesiastical courts and had jurisdiction over all of England and Wales. The wills of those who died abroad were usually proved here.
Each record contains a transcript of the index to the original wills. The information given varies but you can find out the following about your ancestor:
The Prerogative Court of Canterbury was the senior and most important of the pre 1858 ecclesiastical courts claiming over-riding jurisdiction over the whole of England and Wales. Wills of those dying overseas were also usually proved in the PCC.
Before 1858 all wills had to be proved before one of the Church of England ecclesiastical courts. After 1858 this function fell to the civil courts.
All names and places appearing in the will plus incidental information such as occupations etc., where found in the original documents, are included in the transcript.
Names are arranged alphabetically. This means some name variants may not appear clustered together. Names in the index are according to the spelling used in the documents, usually based on the signature of the testator.
Pre 1752 Dates are given in 'Old Style' or Julian Calendar.