Fonds
Welsh Probate Records, Diocese of St Davids
Catalogue reference: SD
What’s it about?
This record is about the Welsh Probate Records, Diocese of St Davids dating from 1556-1858.
Is it available online?
Maybe, but not on The National Archives website. This record is held at National Library of Wales: Department of Collection Services.
Can I see it in person?
Not at The National Archives, but you may be able to view it in person at National Library of Wales: Department of Collection Services.
Full description and record details
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Reference (The unique identifier to the record described, used to order and refer to it)
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SD
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Title (The name of the record)
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Welsh Probate Records, Diocese of St Davids
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Date (When the record was created)
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1556-1858
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Description (What the record is about)
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56,930 original wills, inventories, administration bonds, administration grants and miscellaneous other probate records, 1556-1858 (mainly 1564-1653, 1660-1858) from parishes in Pembrokeshire, Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire and the Gower peninsula, and stray documents from elsewhere in Wales, England, overseas and on board ship; 14 vols register copy wills, 1703-1858 (mainly 1703-1731, 1814-1858); unproved wills, uncompleted administrations and separate inventories, 1620-1814 (uncatalogued)
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Arrangement (Information about the filing sequence or logical order of the record)
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Divided into original probate records arranged chronologically within the diocese, and further sub-divided by parish and surname, except for records dated 1837-1858, which were retained as previously numbered; and register copy wills arranged chronologically by volume
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Related material (A cross-reference to other related records)
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<p>Register copy wills of the District Probate Registry of Carmarthen, 1858-1941, are held by NLW and by the Principal Registry of the Family Division, London. Some wills and administrations are included in the consistory court papers filed with the diocesan records of the Church in Wales, held at NLW. Other sources of probate records from Wales are the records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC) and those of the Court of Civil Commission, available for consultation at the National Archives, Kew</p>
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Held by (Who holds the record)
- National Library of Wales: Department of Collection Services
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Language (The language of the record)
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English, Latin, Welsh
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Creator(s) (The creator of the record)
- <corpname>Church of England, Diocese of St Davids</corpname>
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Physical description (The amount and form of the record)
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56,930 items, 14 vols
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Restrictions on use (Information on restrictions to the use or reproduction of the material)
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Usual copyright laws apply
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Access conditions (Information on conditions that restrict or affect access to the record)
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Public records. Some items unfit for production
Mainly English, some Welsh, small proportion of Latin pre-1733
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Immediate source of acquisition (When and where the record was acquired from)
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Deposited by Carmarthen District Probate Registry in 1945
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Physical condition (Aspects of the physical condition of the record that may affect or limit its use)
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Some items damaged
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Custodial history (Describes where and how the record has been held from creation to transfer to The National Archives)
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In 1858 the earlier probate records from the Consistory Court were transferred to the District Probate Registry at Carmarthen. They were conveyed thence to the National Library of Wales in 1945, in accordance with the Direction of the President of the Probate Division of the High Court of Justice
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Unpublished finding aids (A note of unpublished indexes, lists or guides to the record)
- <p>For original probate records: NLW, Database of pre-1858 Welsh Probate Records (available only at NLW, June 2006); and hard copies of the unpublished St Davids Probate Indexes, 1556-1699, 1700-1749, 1750-1858. Abstracts and Indexes of Original Wills, St Davids Diocese, are available on microfiche, compiled by the Genealogical Society of Utah. Act books, 1836-1868, may supply details where original documents do not survive. For register copy wills: NLW, integral idexes to volumes for 1703-1708, 1814-1858. For unproved wills, a manuscript index exists, entitled Unprobated Wills, 1600-1858. Hard copies of the NLW indexes to original pre-1858 wills of the Diocese of St David are held by Carmarthenshire Archives Service, Pembrokeshire Record Office, Ceredigion Archives, West Glamorgan Archive Service, The Family Records Centre and the Society of Genealogists, London. N.B. For best results in personal name searches, possible alternative spellings of each name should be considered</p>
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Selection and destruction information (Information about how the record was selected for archiving)
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All records retained
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Administrative / biographical background (Historical or biographical information about the creator of the record and the context of its creation)
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In England and Wales prior to 12 January 1858, wills were proved and letters of administration granted in ecclesiastical courts, each having its own area of jurisdiction. Which court had jurisdiction in a particular case depended mainly on the place of death and the extent and location of the deceased's estate. The Consistory Court of St Davids was responsible for for probate and administration in the counties of Pembroke, Cardigan, Carmarthen and part of Glamorgan (twenty three parishes in the Deanery of Gower). During the Commonwealth, 1653-1660, the Consistory Court of St Davids, in common with other church courts in England and Wales, ceased to function and a Court of Civil Commission was established in London. After the Restoration the business of probate was once more under the jurisdiction of church courts. In 1858 the responsiblity for probate was transferred from the ecclesiastical courts to a simpler system of civil probate registries
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Publication note(s) (A note of publications related to the record)
- <p>Peters, H. A., 'The Welsh Probate Records - Research at the National Library of Wales', The Carmarthenshire Antiquary 1999, pp. 105-9</p>
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Record URL
- https://beta.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/id/aa9db58a-6b4e-4c02-8bba-0304836d2c32/
Catalogue hierarchy
This record is held at National Library of Wales: Department of Collection Services
You are currently looking at the fonds: SD
Welsh Probate Records, Diocese of St Davids