London Probate Records

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

Court Jurisdictions

Here is a list of London parishes beginning with letters A-G and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them.  For parishes beginning with H-R or S-Z, click on the letter links.

PARISH	PRIMARY COURT	SECONDARY COURTS - IN SEARCH ORDER
All Hallows Barking	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
All Hallows Bread Street with St John the Evangelist	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division) Court of the Peculiar Jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Deaneries of the Arches, Croydon and Shoreham; Court of the Royal Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division) Court of the Royal Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster 2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury Court of the Peculiar Jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Deaneries of the Arches, Croydon and Shoreham 2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
All Hallows Staining	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
All Hallows the Great and All Hallows the Less	Court of the Archdeaconry of London	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
All Hallows, Lombard Street	Court of the Peculiar Jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Deaneries of the Arches, Croydon and Shoreham	Court of the Peculiar Jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Deaneries of the Arches, Croydon and Shoreham 2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
All Hallows, London Wall	Court of the Archdeaconry of London	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Audley Street, North	Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 4 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Ball’s Pond	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Barnard's Inn	Search the courts of the surrounding parishes	.
Bedfont	Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 4 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Bridewell	Search the courts of the surrounding parishes	.
Brompton	Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 4 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Brompton, West	Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 4 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Burleigh Street	Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 4 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Chester Square	Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 4 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Christ Church, Newgate Street with St Leonard, Foster Lane	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
City Road St Matthew	Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral	2 - Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex and Hertfordshire Division) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Close of the Collegiate Church of St Peter	Search the courts of the surrounding parishes	.
Curtain Road	Court of the Archdeaconry of London	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Dalston [St Philip]	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
DeBeauvoir Town	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Endell Street	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Finsbury St Paul	Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)	2 - Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory) 3 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Furnival's Inn	Search the courts of the surrounding parishes	.
Glasshouse Yard	Search the courts of the surrounding parishes	.

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 the Principal Registry and the District Registries for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.