Sussex Probate Records

England Sussex

For an explanation of probate records in England, click here.

Getting Started
Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. The Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process until 1858. Beginning in 1858, authority over probate matters was taken from ecclesiastical courts and put under the civil authority of the Principal Probate Registry. The Post-1857 Probate Records section below contains links to additional information about the records of this court.

To look for a probate record before 1858:


 * 1) Discover when and where your ancestor died. If you don’t know, use the approximate date and place where they lived.
 * 2) Go to Court Jurisdictions section below.
 * 3) Click a letter or span of letters for your place name. This opens a jurisdictions table.
 * 4) Follow the instructions on the jurisdictions table page.

Sussex Probate Courts
Most of West Sussex was under the pre-1858 probate jurisdiction of the Court of the Bishop (Episcopal Consistory) of Chichester for the Archdeaconry of Chichester and East Sussex under the jurisdiction of the Court of the Bishop (Episcopal Consistory) of Chichester for the Archdeaconry of Lewes. The majority of probate searches will be in the records of these courts and their superior courts. 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 Peculiar of the Exempt Jurisdiction of the Deanery of Battle
 * Court of the Peculiar of the Archbishop of Canterbury for the Exempt Deaneries of Pagham and Tarring
 * Courts of the Bishop (Episcopal Consistory) and Archdeaconry of Winchester
 * Court of the Peculiar of the Archbishop of Canterbury for the Exempt Deanery of South Malling
 * Court of the Peculiar of the Dean of Chichester

In addition, the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury had jurisdiction over the whole of England, particularly in cases of wealthy individuals, people who owned property in more than one county or court's jurisdiction, people who lived or owned property outside of England, and military and Naval personnel.

Appeals Courts
Any probate that was disputed and could not be settled by the county 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.

Court Jurisdictions by Parish
Before 1858, every town and parish in Sussex fell under the probate jurisdiction of a primary court and several secondary courts. When looking for the will of an ancestor, you should search the courts in the order given. Search indexes first. For indexes, click on the court name links above [soon to be constructed].

Here are links to an alphabetical list of Sussex parishes containing a prioritized list of courts with pre-1858 jurisdiction over each. To see which courts to search for probates of persons living in or owning property in particular parish, click on the letter the parish name begins with.

For an authoritative treatise on each Sussex probate courts pre-1858, see Anthony J. Camp's publication, Wills and Their Whereabouts; also available at the Family History Library, book #942 S2wa.

Probate Indexes Online
Before looking for a will, you should search the following index:

http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SussexFHGprobate.shtml

Here is an index compiled by the Sussex Family History Group which has transcribed 12,300 individuals as found in Sussex Wills, including Testators, Executors, Beneficiaries or Witnesses. The following information is recorded.


 * Name – Forenames and surname of individual mentioned in the will
 * Town location

The Sussex Records Society has done a great job in putting up many of their index listings including probate. The following is the link to their publications on probate indexes. [n] Prerogative Court of Canterbury wills (1384 - 1858) [n]

Probate Indexes
Bishop of Chichester. Consistory Court (Archdeaconry of Chichester) Wills and administrations, 1511-1865 Indexes 1511-1857. Deanery Court or Peculiar Court (South Malling) Probate records, 1588-1858 The jurisdiction for this court includes the parishes of: Busted, The Cliffe or St. Thomas Lewes, Edburton, Framfield, Glynde, Isfield, Lindfield, Mayfield, Ringmer, South Malling, Stanmer, Uckfield and Wadhurst. Many of these volumes have indexes. Diocese of Chichester. Consistory Court (Archdeaconry of Lewes) Probate records, 1527-1858 Printed book Indexes and FHL Film 97227, 97228, 97229, 97230 and many of the films have indexes at the beginning or end Dean of Chichester. Peculiar Court Wills and administrations, 1553-1861 Jurisdiction includes Chichester (St. Andrew, St. Bartholomew, St. Martin, St. Olave, St. Pancras, St. Peter the Great, St. Peter the Less, and the Close), New Fishbourne, and Rumboldswyke. Many of the films have an index at the beginning or end Archbishop of Canterbury. Peculiar Court (Exempt Deaneries of Pagham and Tarring) Wills and administrations, 1520-1907 Jurisdiction includes South Bersted, Chichester (All Saints), part of Horsham, East Lavant, Pagham, Patching, Slindon, Tangmere, and West Tarring. Many of these films have an index at the beginning or end. Diocese of Chichester. Peculiar Court (Exempt Deanery of Battle) Probate records, 1531-1857 The jurisdiction for this court includes only the parish of Battle. Transcripts of Sussex wills : as far as they relate to ecclesiological and parochial subjects, up to the year 1560 Calendar of wills and administrations in the Archdeaconry court of Lewes in the bishopric of Chichester : together with those in the Archbishop of Canterbury's Peculiar jurisdiction of South Malling and the Peculiar of the Deanery of Battle; comprising together the whole of the eastern division of the county of Sussex and the parish of Edburton in West Sussex, from the earliest extant instruments in the reign of Henry VIII to the Commonwealth [1509-1660]  Index to Some Wills proved and Admons Granted in the Peculiar Deanery of South Malling, 1560-1567. Included are also an index to an additional 216 Susses Wills. The indexes comprise pages 138-152 Sussex archaeological collections - v. 50 (1907) Calendar of wills in the Consistory court of the Bishop of Chichester, 1482-1800  Calendar of administrations in the Consistory court of the Bishop of Chichester, 1555-1800 : Calendar of wills and administrations in the Peculiar court of the Archbishop of Canterbury, 1520-1670 : Calendar of Wills and administrations in the Peculiar court of the Dean of Chichester

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. Between 1796-1858 estate duty indexes may help locate a will. For more information, go to Estate Duty Records.

Post-1857 Probate Records
Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. The system consists of 11 district registry offices and 18 sub-district registries, located throughout England and Wales, and the principal registry office located in London. The records are available through the office of Her Majesty's Courts Service. To learn more, go to the HMCS website.

A country-wide surname index to the records is available, so it is much easier to look for post-1857 wills. The indexes for 1858-1957 and the records for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.