Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury

Country

GB

Name of institution (English)

The National Archives

Name of institution (official language of the state)

The National Archives

Language of name of institution

eng

Contact information: postal address

Kew, Richmond TW9 4DU, London

Contact information: phone number

0044 (0) 2088763444

Contact information: web address

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

Contact information: email

Contact form

Reference number

PROB

Type of reference number

Archival reference number

Title (official language of the state)

Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury

Language of title

eng

Creator / accumulator

Prerogative Court of Canterbury

Date note

1383/circa 1900

Language(s)

eng

lat

Extent

57 series

Type of material

Textual Material

Scope and content

This collection comprises records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury and related jurisdictions, including wills and other probate matters. Some early wills and all probate acts until 1733, except in the Interregnum, are in Latin, while most wills after c. 1500 are in English.
Although wills could be proved by a number of courts, the National Archives only preserves those proved by the Prerogative Court of Canterbury up to 1858. This court, located in London, was the senior church court and dealt with the wills of relatively wealthy people living in the south of England and Wales, and the estates of people who died at sea or abroad leaving personal property in England or Wales.
The Prerogative Court of Canterbury is divided into 57 series, which are arranged into four divisions:
- Wills and Letters of Administration, containing wills (PROB 1, PROB 10, PROB 11, PROB 20, PROB 21, PROB 22 and PROB 23), indexes (PROB 12, PROB 13 and PROB 15), commissions for wills (PROB 52 and PROB 56), act books (PROB 6, PROB 7, PROB 8 and PROB 9), warrants (PROB 14), commission books (PROB 17) and administration bonds (PROB 46, PROB 51 and PROB 54).
- General and Miscellaneous Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury and Related Jurisdictions, containing papers of court officials (PROB 39 and PROB 57), muniment books (PROB 16), and miscellaneous registers (PROB 45).
- Exhibits (PROB 31, PROB 32, PROB 33, PROB 36, PROB 42 and PROB 49), also containing original files of exhibits (PROB 35), inventories (PROB 2, PROB 3, PROB 4 and PROB 5), proxies (PROB 19 and PROB 55), and instruments from other courts (PROB 44).
- Litigation records, containing allegations (PROB 18), with answers (PROB 25); depositions (PROB 24 and PROB 26); acts of court books (PROB 29), with loose acts (PROB 30); sentences (PROB 27), with orders (PROB 38), cause papers (PROB 28 and PROB 37), caveat books (PROB 40 and PROB 41), assignations (PROB 43), proctors case papers, etc. (PROB 47), processes (PROB 48), bills of costs (PROB 50), and early proceedings (PROB 53).
The records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury include numerous wills and probates of members of the Sephardic elite of London, such as António Fernandes Carvajal (PROB 11/296/118), Diogo Rodrigues Marques (PROB 11/358/140), Diego de Aguilar (PROB 11/848/375), Elias Lindo (PROB 11/619/258), Álvaro Lopes Suasso (PROB 11/796/183), Benjamin Mendes da Costa (PROB 11/898/175), among several others. In addition, it is also possible to find in this fonds wills of Sephardim from Amsterdam, the Hague, Bordeaux, Bayonne, or Livorno whose heirs were living in London, for instance. Some examples are António Lopes Suasso, Baron of Avernas, from the Hague (PROB 11/1014/42), Manuel Gomes da Costa from Amsterdam (PROB 11/787/157), Daniel Sacuto from Livorno (PROB 11/946/112), James Rodrigues Alpalhão from Bordeaux (PROB 11/934/109), or Fernando/David da Fonseca Chacon from Bayonne (PROB 11/869/183). The collection also includes wills of Sephardic Jews from British colonies.

Source:

The National Archives research guides: Wills and probate before 1858

The National Archives online catalogue

Archival history

The records, coming from the Principal Probate Registry, have been incorporated into the National Archives from 1964.

Administrative / Biographical history

From at least the 13th century Archbishops of Canterbury had claimed some prerogative authority to grant probate and administrations where persons died with personalty or debts in more than one diocese. It is not, however, until the 15th century, during the archiepiscopate of John Morton (1486-1500), that there is a clear mention of a Prerogative Court with its own officers.
The Court, which from the 16th century sat mainly in Doctors' Commons, London, exercised jurisdiction where the deceased had bona notabilia, namely personal property, credit or debts, to the value of £5 or more, within the jurisdiction of more than one bishop within the southern province of the church (£10 in some dioceses by special composition). The Court's jurisdiction did not, however, extend to real estate. From the 1570s a similar court existed at York for the northern province. Where the personal estate was divided between the two provinces Canterbury dealt with the southern element; it also exercised jurisdiction where death occurred at sea or abroad.
After 1534, the papal role was replaced by delegates of the Crown in Chancery, later collectively known as the High Court of Delegates. This Court continued to function until 1832 when its powers were transferred to the King in Council and subsequently to a Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
In 1653, during the Interregnum, the Prerogative Court of Canterbury was replaced by a Court for Probate of Wills and Granting Administrations, whose jurisdiction covered the whole of England and Wales. With the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, however, the Prerogative Court of Canterbury was reinstated, along with the lesser ecclesiastical courts.
Under the Court of Probate Act 1857, the Prerogative Court of Canterbury was abolished and a Court of Probate was established as part of the state judicial system. Consequent upon this the Principal Probate Registry started functioning on 12 January 1858.

(source: The National Archives online catalogue)

Access points: locations

Amsterdam (Netherlands)

Barbados

Bayonne (France)

Bordeaux (France)

Jamaica

Livorno (Italy)

London (UK)

The Hague (Netherlands)

Access points: persons, families

Fernandes Carvajal, António