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Wills often furnish vital information for genealogists.

They can:

• define precise relationships within family groups
• name relatives in different parts of the country and the world
• name children, nephews or nieces whose existence you never suspected
• bring to light family skeletons such as acknowledging illegitimate children
• add "flesh to the bones" of a genealogical study by providing a guide to the wealth and life style of an ancestor

National Probate Calendar / Index (index to wills and letters of administration proved from 1858 onwards)

• Annual index for the whole of England and Wales arranged in surname/forename order of the deceased
• Deceased - forenames, surname, address, date of death, place of death
• Probate Grant - date grant issued, issuing registry office, type of grant, names of executors or administrators, value of the estate
• Executors/Administrators - names, addresses, relationship to deceased

• Wills vary widely in the information they provide
• However many wills provide names of spouses, children, grandchildren and other relatives
• Many also clarify family relationships if there is more than one person with the same forename
• Wills can also clarify the marital status of a daughter (i.e. if referred to as "spinster") or assist in locating a daughter's marriage by giving her husband's surname
• Addresses of relatives may be given which may show immigration
• Provide an indication of the wealth and lifestyle of the deceased

• Deceased - forenames, surname, date of death, place of death, occupation, address
• Will administrator - forenames, surname, relationship to deceased, occupation, address

Named relatives

• Wills only reflect the situation at their time of writing (which can be a long time before the deceased's death) so do not assume that all the relatives named in the will are still alive when the will is carried out
• In older wills, 'in laws' are commonly referred to as just brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, etc. without the 'in law' suffix

• Never assume that all the deceased's children are referred to in a will - it was quite common to make lifetime gifts to children instead, particularly the eldest son

• Prior to the 1882 Married Women's Property Act only spinsters, widows and married woman who had their husbands consent left wills

• It is wise to search the indexes for at least 3 years after the date of the ancestor's death

• Before 1733 (apart from 1651-60) texts, sentences and probate clauses were written in Latin  

• The full set of indexes from 1858 to the present day can now be searched online at the Probate Registry website by surname and year of death - once you've found your match you can view the original printed image - this usually provides the deceased's name, date of death, place where the deceased lived, the name of the executor (who is often another member of the family) and the value of the estate - armed with all these details you will be able to obtain a copy of the will far quicker from the Probate Registry than would otherwise be the case (see below)
• The indexes from 1858 to 1966 can also be searched online at ancestry.co.uk - the search facility at this site is more comprehensive than that at the Probate Registry website, allowing you to search by first name, surname, date of death and county of death
• The indexes for 1858 to 1959 can also be searched at FindMy Past  - like ancestry.co.uk, the search facility is more comprehensive than that at the Probate Registry website allowing for searches to be conducted by year range for date of death, first letter of surname and two freeform keywords

• The indexes from 1858 to 1957 can be viewed on microfiche at your local LDS Family History Centre
• The indexes from 1858 to 1943 can be viewed on microfiche at the National Archives at Kew, at the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies and at some Record Offices

• Order by post from The Postal Searches and Copies Department, Leeds District Probate Registry, York House, York Place, Leeds LS1 2BA. The PA1S order form can be downloaded from www.courtservice.gov.uk. The form requires details of the deceased (name, date of death, address) which can be found in the National Probate Index (see above). Tick the box for a General Search (the box for a Standing Search is only for deaths in the last 6 months). Please note that this department is not contactable by telephone and can only answer written enquiries.
• Alternatively you can order in person at the London Probate Registry or at other registries and sub-registries
• The minimum information required when ordering is the deceased's full name and the date of death as close as you can get to it. It costs £10 for the search and a single copy of the grant of probate together with the will (if any).
• To narrow down the search you may wish to consult the National Probate Calendar index yourself first. See above for where you can access this index. You will then be able to provide details of the actual date of death, the grant type, the issuing Registry and the grant issue date. This will considerably speed up the supply of the copied will.

• Consult the annual indexes to Death Duty Registers to determine which ecclesiastical court proved a will - microfilmed copies of the indexes from 1796 onwards can be viewed at the National Archives or at your local LDS Family History Centre - however bear in mind that only wills on which duty was payable are listed
• If your ancestor lived south of the River Humber or in Wales and was relatively wealthy or died after 1800 there is a fair chance that the will was proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC)
• If you ancestor died abroad or at sea leaving behind property in England or Wales then the court having jurisdiction would also be the central Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC)
• By the 1830s over a third of all wills in England and Wales were proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC)
• If your ancestor was relatively wealthy and lived in the northern counties then it is possible that the will was proved in the central Prerogative Court of York (PYC)
• Otherwise if none of the above applies, it is most likely that the will was proved in one of the many lower level ecclesiastical courts of which there were over 250

• The index to and scanned images of the original Perogative Court of Canterbury Wills (over 930,000 records) can now be accessed online at the Genealogist subscription site
• All wills that were proved at the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC) between 1384 and 1858 are held at the National Archives at Kew
• Any PCC will can be viewed there provided 3 days notice is given (the wills are stored off-site.

• All wills that were proved at the Prerogative Court of York (PYC) between 1389 and 1858 are held at the Borthwick Institute
• Microfilmed copies of the indexes to the PYC wills can be viewed at your local LDS Family History Centre, at the National Archives, at the Society of Genealogists, several Record Offices or at Borthwick Institute itself

• Most wills for other ecclesiastical courts (archdeacon courts, bishop diocesan courts, peculiar courts) are held in the relevant Record Office
• Note however that the jurisdiction of dioceses or archdeconries did not coincide with county boundaries - probate records of the church courts are sometimes held in the record office for the county in which the seat of the bishop or archdeacon was located - for example the records for Derbyshire and Staffordshire are held at the record office in Lichfield, the records for Surrey are held at the London Metropolitan Archives, those for Rutland are held at the Northampton Record Office and so on.
• In the case of Yorkshire, this is the Borthwick Institute except for wills proved in the Archdeaconry of Richmond and the peculiars of Arkengarthdale, Hunsingore, Knaresborough, Masham and Middleham in which case the wills are held at Leeds Archives
• Most of these wills have been indexed and many of the indexes can be viewed at your local LDS Family History Centre

• Wills proved between 1521-1858 in ecclesiastical courts in Wales are held at the National Library of Wales
• The index to these wills can be viewed at the National Library of Wales