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Wills
A will is a document by means of which a person
disposes of property after his or her death. Before 1858 wills
were proved in ecclesiastical courts, usually in the appropriate
diocesan court. In 1858 a Principal Probate Registry was established,
together with district registries, and the ecclesiastical control
of wills was abolished. Wills for Halifax during most of the
ecclesiastical period are lodged with York Diocesan Archives
at the Borthwick Institute of Historical Research at York, though
copies occasionally survive amongst local family and estate papers.
Fortunately, many of the local wills are in print for the period
1389-1559.
Format and layout
After acknowledgement to the deity, the will
usually records the testator's name, township and parish of residence,
status or occupation. This may be followed by a theological preamble.
The main focus of the will,however, is on details of all the
real estate and personal estate which the testator wishes to
leave to family, servants, friends, charities, etc.
Value
Wills cast light on social, domestic and trade
conditions by highlighting individual bequests of furniture,
clothing, occupational tools, farming equipment, weapons, books
and other goods. Reference will also be found to the founding
of charities, the repair of highways and the building of bridges.
The theological preamble in wills during the period of the Reformation,
moreover, provides valuable clues to the theological leanings
of individual testators and entire communities.
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