Researching your ancestors from Great Britain and Ireland

A guide to researching your ancestors in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, using resources at State Library Victoria.

England & Wales

Prior to 1858 the granting of probate came within the jurisdiction of ecclesiastical courts administered by the church. There were over 300 church probate courts arranged in a hierarchy of jurisdiction. Most of their records are now kept in local archive offices.

The old system was abolished in 1858 when probate jurisdiction was passed from the Church to a newly created Court of Probate. From this date onwards records were collected in a Calendar index. These indexes summarise probate grants for a particular year and act as a table of contents for the vast store of records held by the Probate Registries.

Where to start

There are three steps to locating probate records.

Determine the year and the parish in which your ancestor died
Determine the court or courts that had jurisdiction over the parish
Locating the correct court can be a difficult task as several probate courts may have jurisdiction within one county. To find the name of the archive where the relevant record collections are held, consult the set of maps featured in the following publication -
Probate jurisdictions : where to look for wills.
Or you can use GENUKI to search for a county's probate records. This will provide links to any digitised collections as well as the names of relevant archival offices.
Search the indexes and records of the court[s]

Pre 1858 wills

Records available from home

Search the National Archives UK index to Wills 1384-1858 for Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC) wills made between 1384 and 12 January 1858.
Search the National Library of Wales index to Wills proved in the Welsh Ecclesiastical courts before 1858.

Records available in the library

Ancestry Library Edition
Includes -
UK, Extracted Probate Records 1269-1975
Wales, Wills and Probate, 1513-1858.
Westminster, London, England, Wills and Probates, 1504-1829
England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858
England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995
Many other county indexes and abstracts are also available.
FindMyPast
Includes -
Index to Death Duty Registers 1796-1903
Prerogative & Exchequer Courts Of York Probate Index, 1688-1858
Prerogative Court Of Canterbury Wills Index 1750-1800
Many other county indexes and abstracts are also available.

In the Family History & Newspaper room you will find a wide range of indexes to county wills. Search the library catalogue for the name of the county and the keyword `wills', i.e. Hertfordshire wills.

Post 1858 wills

Records available from home

Search for the will or probate of any person in the UK who died after 1858 via the GOV.UK Probate Search. Copies of wills can be downloaded for £10.

Records available in the library

Ancestry Library Edition
England & Wales National Probate Calendar (Index of wills and administrations), 1858-1966.
This collection contains summaries of a vast majority of the probate cases approved between 1858-1966.
FindMyPast
Includes -
England & Wales Government Probate Death Index 1858-2019
England & Wales Probate Calendars 1858-1995
Each entry gives the size of the estate and lists the executor and administrator of the will, and sometimes the main beneficiaries.

Soldiers Wills

Search for the will of a soldier who died while serving in the British armed forces between 1850 and 1986 via the GOV.UK Probate Search. Copies of wills can be downloaded for £10.

Further information

Wills & probate records: a guide for family historians Nigel Taylor. Call number: G 941 G766WI