Bedfordshire Probate Records: Difference between revisions

== Court Jurisdictions  ==

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 Archdeacon of Bedford]].   

The secondary courts over most of Bedfordshire 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 order of primary court first and secondary courts second.  The [[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury]] (and the appeals courts if necessary) should be searched last.  

For a list of the Bedfordshire parishes that were exceptions to this, and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them, click [[Bedfordshire Probate Court Jurisdictions|here]]. <br>

== Estate Duty Records<br> ==