Wills and probate
Free access via Ancestry at Hampshire Libraries and Record Office
- Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wills and Probates 1398-1858
- 100,000 wills and other probate of Hampshire and Isle of Wight people proved in the church courts of the Diocese of Winchester
- England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury wills, 1384-1858
- 25,000 wills and other probate of Hampshire and Isle of Wight people proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury
Online pay per view
On microfiche/film at Hampshire Record Office
- Hampshire wills and other probate, 1398-1858
- Hampshire registered copy wills from 1858 to 1941
- Search catalogue for brief descriptions
Probate documents
Wills are legal documents relating to the dispersal of property following the death of the owner (the testator).
Letters of administration (admons) are granted to disperse a deceased person’s property if they either did not leave a will or left an invalid will.
Inventories are valuations of household goods, accompanying a will or administration. For Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, inventories survive for the 16th to 18th centuries. Sometimes, an inventory may be the only surviving probate document.
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