Bedfordshire Probate Records

England Bedfordshire

Getting Started
Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. Probate records include wills and administrations. This article is about probate records in Bedfordshire. For a general description of England probate records, click here.

1858 to the Present
Beginning in 1858, the Principal Probate Registry had the authority for probating estates. Click on the link to learn more.

Before 1858
Before 1858, Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process. To search for a pre-1858 probate record in Bedfordshire, follow these steps:

Step 1. Search Indexes
Here are some online indexes to probate records that include individuals who lived in Bedfordshire. Search these indexes first:


 * http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SussexFHGprobate.shtml -- compiled by the Sussex Family History Group which has transcribed the names of 12,300 individuals found in Sussex wills, including testators, executors, beneficiaries or witnesses. The information recorded includes name, date and place.
 * The Sussex Record Society has published four volumes of indexes to Sussex wills, and these can be viewed on their website. They are arranged by parish then by surname.
 * Prerogative Court of Canterbury wills (1384-1858).

Did you find a reference to a probate record?


 * If yes, go to Step 4 below.
 * If no, go to Step 2 below.

Step 2. Identify when and where your ancestor died
Determine when your ancestor died. If you aren't sure, use an approximate date.

Determine where your ancestor died. It is easier to find a probate record if you know whether the place where your ancestor lived or died is a parish. To learn whether it is a parish, look it up in a gazetteer. Here is a link to the 1872 Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales online:


 * Vision of Britain

The gazetteer will either tell you:


 * A place is a parish, or
 * What parish it is a part of, or
 * What place it is near.

If the latter, look that place up in the gazetteer and see if it is a parish.

Once you have identified the parish, go to Step 3.

Step 3. Identify court jurisdictions by parish
Once you have identified the parish where your ancestor lived or died, learn which courts had jurisdiction over it then search indexes for those courts. Every town and parish in Bedfordshire fell under the probate jurisdiction of a primary court and several secondary courts. Click on a link below for the letter the parish begins with.

Majority of the County
Before 1858, every town and parish in Bedfordshire was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary court and several secondary courts. The court that had primary jurisdiction over most of Bedfordshire, with just a few exceptions, was the Court of the Archdeaconry of Bedford.

Exceptions
For a list of the Bedfordshire parishes that were exceptions to this, and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them, click here.

Bedfordshire Probate Courts
Most of Bedfordshire was under the pre-1858 probate jurisdiction of the Court of the Archdeaconry of Bedford. The majority of probate searches will be in the records of this court and its superior courts, which were the Court of the Bishop of Lincoln (Episcopal Consistory) before 1837, and the Court of the Bishop of Ely (Episcopal Consistory) starting in 1837. The courts should be searched in that order. The Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury (and the appeals courts if necessary) should be searched last.

However, the following courts also had some pre-1858 jurisdiction within the county. Click on a court name to learn about records and indexes.


 * Court of the Archdeaconry of Bedford
 * Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln
 * Court of the Peculiar of Aylesbury
 * Court of the Peculiar of Biggleswade
 * Court of the Peculiar of Leighton Buzzard

In addition, the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury had jurisdiction over the whole of England and specifically in the following cases.


 * Wealthy individuals
 * Interregnum, 1649-1660, because the Prerogative Court was the only court.
 * Property in more than one diocese in the Province of Canterbury.
 * Property in both the Province of Canterbury and Province of York.
 * People who died outside England, including British citizens and others who held property in England.

Appeals Courts
Any probate that was disputed and could not be settled by the lower courts could be sent to these higher appeals courts:


 * Court of Arches
 * High Court of Delegates

The Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury also served as an appeals court.

Probate Indexes Online
Prerogative Court of Canterbury wills (1384 - 1858)

Probate Indexes

 * Index of Bedfordshire probate records, 1484-1858 This includes indexes for the Court of the Archdeacon of Bedford, the Peculiar Court of Biggleswade and the Peculiar Court of Leighton Buzzard
 * Court of the Archdeaconry of Bedfordshire. FHL films 88007-88009
 * English wills, 1498-1526 which are transcribed and many from the Archdeacon of Bedford
 * Bedfordshire wills, 1480-1519
 * The Peculiar Court of Leighton Buzzard : persons named in wills proved 1701-1846
 * Index of Bedfordshire probate records,1484-1858 The Peculiar Court of Leighton Buzzard
 * Wills and administrations, 1624-1858 See FHL fims 95109 and 95100
 * Prebendal Court (Leighton-Buzzard) Probate records, 1537-1842 Index 1736-1846
 * Index of Bedfordshire probate records, 1484-1858The Peculiar Court of Biggleswade
 * Index to records of Lincoln Peculiar Courts with Peculiar of Biggleswade
 * Probate records for the Commissary Court of Lincoln for the Archdeaconry of Huntingdon, 1559-1857, 1559-1857 The Act books contain some Admon Grants from the Peculiar Court of Biggleswade
 * Some transcripts of Bedfordshire Wills at Lambeth and Lincoln 1387-1570 v. 14
 * Bedfordshire wills 1601-1652 at probate registry Lincoln, England, all name index
 * Everton and Swineshead parishes have some references in the following court record Probate records for the Commissary Court of Lincoln for the Archdeaconry of Huntingdon, 1559-1857, 1559-1857

Estate Duty Records
Starting in 1796, a tax or death duty was payable on estates over a certain value. Estate duty abstracts may add considerable information not found elsewhere. Estate duty indexes may help locate a will. For more information, go to Estate Duty Records.

Probates After 1857
Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. For more information, go to Principal Probate Registry.