Scotland Probate Records: Difference between revisions

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Scotland has no 'probate' records - the term is 'confirmation.' The primary document is called a 'testament.'  

*[https://search.findmypast.com/search-world-Records/scotland-will-and-testament-index-1481-1807 Scotland, Will and Testament Index 1481-1807] - FindMyPast ($)

*[https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/advanced-search#{%22category%22:%22legal%22,%22record%22:%22legal-wills-testaments%22} ScotlandsPeople: Wills and testaments] ($) - free, searchable index but pay to see image

'''To learn more about Scottish probate records:'''

*[https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/guides/wills-and-testaments ScotlandsPeople]

*[https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/guides/wills-and-testaments National Records of Scotland]

Testaments are court records dealing with the distribution of a person’s estate after death. These records can be very helpful because they were recorded long before statutory birth, marriage, and death registration began in 1855.

Testaments were made primarily by the middle and upper classes, most of whom were:

*Nobility

*Gentry

*Merchants

*Tradesmen.

However, they are a very valuable source not to be overlooked regardless of the social standing of your ancestors.  

Information recorded in testaments may include:

*Death dates

*Names of Heirs and Guardian

*Inventories of the estate (including household goods)

*Names of witnesses.

On the other hand, as there were very strict rules about the distribution of ''moveable'' property, there was no need to name a widow/widower or children, and often they are not named at all.  

Essentially, a surviving spouse had to inherit a third, the children one third and the deceased could dispose of the last third (''the deid's part'') by a ''latterwill'' or ''legacie''. There were further rules to complicate matters, but that's the essentials of it.

   

In Scotland before 1868, it was not possible to leave ''immoveable'' property (land, buildings, titles or other ''heritables'') to a person by means of a will. It was only possible to give personal property, known as ''moveable'' property, by means of a testament.  

There are two types of testaments:  

*Both of these will also contain an ''inventar'' (inventory of moveable property)

To inherit immovable property such as land, heirs had to prove to an ''Inquisition'' (essentially a jury of local people) their right to inherit. The records granting these rights are called [[Service of Heirs or Retours|''retours'' or ''services of heirs'']]. Records of actual transfers of land are called ''[[Sasines|sasines]]''. You will find more information about these records in the [[Scotland Land and Property|Land and Property]] section of the Wiki.  

Before the Scottish Reformation and the establishment of the Presbyterian Church in 1592, confirmation of testaments was the prerogative of Episcopal (bishop’s) courts. Their subordinates, called official or ''commissariat ''courts actually carried out the probate function.  

Also available:  

*Kathleen Cory. ''Tracing Your Scottish Ancestors, Third Edition''. Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2004. Appendix III provides a table listing all parishes, among other things identifying Commissariot(s) which included that parish, and date of first testament or inventory for the parish.

After 1823 (the system took a few years to fully evolve), testaments were confirmed by commissariat departments within the sheriff courts. The boundaries of these courts’ jurisdictions are the same as the county boundaries, but the names of the courts are not necessarily the same as the names of the counties.  

In 1876 the commissariats were absorbed by the sheriff courts, which now handle executory matters.  

The original records of the commissariat and sheriff courts are housed at the [http://www.nas.gov.uk/ National Archives of Scotland] in Edinburgh.  

The Family History Library has microfilm copies of the commissariat court records to 1823 and some sheriff court records. To find these records, look in the Locality Search of the [https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog FamilySearch Catalog] under:  

*Scotland, [County] -- Probate records

You may also access testamentary records online through the ScotlandsPeople web site (see Indexes below).

To find a record of interest, you should first search an index. Scottish testamentary records, for 1513-1925, are indexed online on the [http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk ScotlandsPeople] website. You must register to use the website then it is free to search the index. Once you have found a probate of interest in the index, you may pay to view a copy of the records if you wish, then you can print and/or save it to your computer.  

Other printed and microfilmed indexes are available through FamilySearch. To find them listed in the  [https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog FamilySearch Catalog], do a Place search for:  

*Scotland, [County] -- Probate records--Indexes

For the years 1876-1936, the FHL has bound volumes and microfilms of the [https://familysearch.org/search/catalog/307501 Calendars of Confirmations and Inventories]. You can obtain information from the Confirmations such as name of deceased, where living at time of death, when and where died, occupation, and the person or persons named as executors or administrators.

If you have difficulty locating a testament, keep these points in mind:  

*Testaments for women may be under their maiden name.

*Gouldesbrough, Peter. ''Formulary of Old Scots Legal Documents''. Vol. 36 Edinburgh: The Stair Society, 1985. (FHL call no. 941 B4st v. 36)