Court of the Peculiar of the Custos and College of Vicars Choral in Exeter

England Devon  Devonshire Probate Records

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

Step By Step
Follow these steps 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 the Court Jurisdictions section below. 3. Click a letter or span of letters for your place. This opens an article showing a table of places and the courts that had jurisdiction over them. 4. Follow the steps at the top of the table to search for a will.

Printed and Published Indexes

 * Calendar of wills and administrations relating to the counties of Devon and Cornwall proved in the Consistory court of the Bishop of Exeter, 1532-1800
 * Calendars of wills and administrations relating to the counties of Devon and Cornwall : proved in the Court of the principal registry of the Bishop of Exeter, 1559-1799. And of Devon only, proved in the Court of the Archdeaconry of Exeter, 1540-1799.

Search the indexes listed under the Manuscript Records subheading in Devonshire Probate Records.

Archive Location
Virtually all records for this court were destroyed in 1942, but don't give up until you have searched the manuscript collections and all other possible courts. These include:


 * Court of the Bishop of Exeter (Episcopal Consistory)
 * Episcopal Principal Registry of Exeter
 * Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury

Copies of some post-1796 probates may have been deposited in the Estate Duty Registers.

Archive Records
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