Surrey & South London Will Abstracts - Volume 5A: Archdeaconry Court of Surrey Register "Pykman", 1538-1541

Rich testators did not normally have their wills proved in the Archdeaconry Court, but in the superior court of the bishop, or in the principal probate court, the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. Most testators in this volume therefore are of yeoman and lower social status, though inevitably there are no hard and fast rules, and quite substantial people sometimes seem to have had wills proved in the Archdeaconry Court and husbandmen and even labourers in the Prerogative Court. In any case, there are references to greater folk in passing. For example, in the earlier part of the register, not abstracted here, a servant to the duke of Suffolk has his will proved, while a husbandman (though it would seem quite a well-off one) asks no less a figure than one of the members of Parliament for Surrey, Sir Edmund Walsyngham, to be supervisor of his will. Similarly, another Dictionary of National Biography entrant, the courtier Sir Thomas Wyatt appears as a relative in one of the abstracted wills.

It has been the intention, when abstracting these wills to omit no detail which may provide evidential value whether for genealogist, local or social historian. Thus not only are all names and place-names included, but all legacies and objects. This, however, as will be readily seen from a comparison with the film of the register, means that much unnecessary matter can be omitted. There follows an analysis of the structure of a typical will of this period as exemplified by this register.

The wills in the register can be divided into two main classes. The majority of them are the familiar will which has been written by the testator, or more normally at this time by his parish priest or other scribe and signed by him in the presence of witnesses. Many wills in Pykman, however, are nuncupative or oral wills. Here witnesses recall words spoken by the testator while in his final illness. In some nuncupative wills the exact words of the testator are purported to be recorded, in others just the sense of his wishes is expressed.

Written wills of this period universally open with "In the name of God, Amen". Then will usually follow the date (often in the form of the day, month and regnal year) the name of the testator, his parish and sometimes his occupation, together with a statement that he was of sound mind and memory. This statement often succeeds another statement to the effect that he or she is sick and weak in body or some such phrase. Wills seem to have been made within a month or two of death in the great majority of cases, and it would appear to have been one of the duties of the parish priest on being called in to administer to the sick to suggest that their will be made. Statements of good health have been ignored in the abstracts, since they are clearly often common form only, since the will is proved (and therefore the testator is dead) just a few days or weeks after apparently being in robust and rude good health! Either immediately or shortly after, there is a long religious passage, bequeathing the soul of the testator to God and to the whole company of Heaven, and saying that they hope to be saved by the merits of Jesus Christ. References to the Blessed Virgin Mary are common at this time.

Usually, at this time, the testator will stipulate that he or she is to be buried in the churchyard of his parish church. Less commonly testators of higher social status will seek burial inside the church, sometimes in a very specific spot. Sometimes this may be the first and only indicator of his parish. Occasionally this clause may contain more useful information. For example, he may asked to be buried next to his wife or parents. In two cases abstracted here (SW/5_209, SW/5_389) the testator makes arrangements for a tombstone to be erected; in one case, unusually, in the churchyard, and in the other the exact inscription he wanted is given to us. Sometimes, however, the testator is far vaguer, merely stipulating that he be buried in christian manner 'as my executor thinks fit' and this sort of clause becomes more common the later the will in the sixteenth century, and is normal in the seventeenth century.

Next, and no doubt under clerical influence, the testator normally leaves a modest amount, perhaps 4d, to the 'mother church', i.e. the chief church of the diocese, in this case St Swithin Winchester, better-known as Winchester Cathedral. Then follows a legacy 'to the high altar for tithes negligently forgotten' again often 4d or some such small amount. Wealthier (or more pious) testators will follow this with various charitable legacies, and arrangements for their burial and memorial days.

Legacies to the church itself are not uncommon, sometimes specifically for a given chapel, sometimes for specific or non-specific repairs. Occasionally more than one church is mentioned here; this can be especially important in the all too rare occasions when a clue is given to the origins of a Londoner. Less commonly, money is left for the repair of roads, often specified ones. Priests are hired for the burial service, often with detailed instructions as to the number and frequency of masses, dirges etc. A month after the burial came the "month's mind" and a year after the "year's mind", again frequently with specific requests for their conduct. The poor are often given bread and beer or money at the burial and or the month's mind. Children and other heirs are occasionally left legacies especially for the performance of obits, usually for a fixed term of years, more rarely 'for ever'. Occasionally these can be evidential to the genealogist as when the souls of the departed are mentioned by name. Torches were used to light churches, and they are frequently bought, and donations are given to the various lights of the church. With the Henrician Reformation charitable bequests become rarer and chantries etc. gradually disappear. There is a revival with the reign of Queen Mary, but it is at a noticeably lower level of frequency and Catholic religiosity than hitherto, a sign probably that in Surrey, at least, the Marian counter-reformation was far from fully accepted.

Testators would then leave whatever goods they had. Lands may not appear in the will at all, if they descended by custom. If they do they may appear in a separate section. Also, the main heir may only be mentioned very briefly - leaving a son or daughter 1s is not usually to 'cut them off with a shilling'. They may have already received their portion, or any land may come automatically.

Testators vary across the spectrum in their verbosity, and while the wealthier the testator the longer the will on average, there are clearly people with very little who make much of it in their wills, and vice versa. Then as now, lawyers were paid by the word, and much quite unnecessarily tortuous, long-winded and repetitive language can no doubt be laid at their door. Widows are, not unexpectedly, often quite prolix, e.g. disposing of every item of clothing individually. Many men, on the other hand, quite simply leave everything to their wives, sometimes with the merest mention of children she is to bring up. However, there are exceptions, and bachelors, in particular, may distribute their goods quite widely and at length among relatives and friends.

Widows were customarily entitled to one-third of the estate as their dower; however, many husbands made specific provision to protect their goods in the event of their widow re-marrying. Most widows with children lost all rights to the previous husband's goods on remarriage. This was necessary to protect the heirs in days when, of course, all a married woman's goods were her husbands. This is also, of course, why married women (with very few exceptions) do not leave wills before the late nineteenth century.

Bequests to children are usually made not payable until they are of a given age. Sometimes this is left vague as "of age", but much more frequently it is specified in years. While "21 years or marriage whichever the earlier" is by far the most common, ages as early as 12 or as late as 30 are come across. Custody of children is usually but not invariably given to the widow, if there is one, and sometimes arrangements are made for their apprenticeship.

Not infrequently, more distant relatives may be mentioned, and these can, of course, be most important genealogically. Unfortunately, though it is far from unknown, beneficiaries are fairly seldom identified by place, which does not help positive identification of those with common names. Quite often bequests are made to the children of deceased children, or deceased brothers. Siblings (and the children of siblings) are, naturally enough, frequently the legatees of those without children; even testators with children often leave token amounts to nieces and nephews. Almost universally (universally enough for me to have omitted it from the abstracts), provision is made in those days of high mortality for bequests to children dying before adulthood to be divided among other, surviving children. Often too goods and especially lands are left with remainder (and sometimes successive remainders) to various heirs.

Servants and apprentices are often remembered by token bequests; occasionally a testator with no immediate family has given them something more substantial often for their "painstaking in my sickness". There is wide variance in the treatment of godchildren. Many godchildren were grandchildren; not unnaturally these receive more generous treatment than unrelated godchildren. Several testators give more to children sharing their christian name; it was a common practice to name a child after a godparent.

The goods of the testator fall into several categories, and abstractors of wills are never as surprised as other commentators on Shakespeare leaving his wife only his second best bed. Beds and bed linen are a major topic of early wills, to such an extent that Dr Emmison when abstracting Elizabethan Essex wills has simply omitted detail about bed linen. However, on the principle that everything may be of interest to somebody all such details are included in these abstracts. The best beds were of feather and feather bolsters and pillows are often mentioned. Lesser beds were of flock and occasionally even straw beds are bequeathed. Similarly, sheets 'of the best sort' are compared with others of inferior materials in their distribution. Blankets and other coverings are only on occasion given any description, usually then by colour. Mention is sometimes made of smaller beds such as truckle beds (usually for servants) and the hangings around beds. References to the accoutrements of beds (and occasionally other objects such as boats, carts etc.) which are not specific in a will have been rendered in the abstract "and its trappings".

Many testators go into enormous detail as to their other furniture. Sometimes furniture is designated as a standard or principal to the house, which meant it was not be sold but treated as part of the house furnishings to be passed on to the next heir. Sometimes, furniture is identified by its location. Rooms (almost universally called chambers) may be named, usually in fairly simple form, or just as "the chamber in which I lie".

Tudor houses seem to have been littered with brass pots and kettles, various items of pewter, and ironmongery such as cauldrons, andirons and cobirons are common. Similarly richer testators may have items of silver or silver-gilt and, understandably, these are often described in great detail as are the fairly small number of jewels. Less usual items in this category are such things as swords and bucklers. Surrey's long Thames border means many testators were watermen or fishermen, and boats and their tackle are not infrequently left.

Testators (especially those from the more urbanised part of Surrey) would leave the tools of their trade to their sons or to their apprentices; sometimes these are described in great detail, and I have not always been able to identify contemporary terms for specific tools. These have been rendered in inverted commas, as with other items which I am unable to interpret with confidence. Those which have been identified form part of the glossary.

Clothes, as has been mentioned before, may be listed in great detail. It is clear that clothes were not discarded with death or indeed at all until completely worn out, being passed down the social ladder. Many items now unfamiliar appear in the glossary, though I have not been able to identify a few. Women's clothes, not unexpectedly, figure larger in wills than men's. There are also freqent references to other napery such as tablecloths and napkins.

Another large number of bequests are of cattle and other domestic animals (or insects - hives of bees!) and of crops. The most frequent animals are sheep, closely followed by cattle and pigs. While horses are not uncommon, it is quite clear that at the social level of most Pykman testators, ownership of a horse was not the norm. Less commonly oxen, poultry and bees appear. It was quite normal to identify specific animals when horses and cattle are bequeathed, usually by means of age and/or colouring. Very occasionally (and there is no example in Pykman) domestic animals are identified by nickname. Crops of barley, rye and oats, and such products as malt are frequently bequested, sometimes in great amounts. Less commonly there are gifts of timber. Crops may be identified as "in the barn" or still to be reaped (or even in some cases sown). Occasionally values can be established, e.g. where a testator leaves a legatee "a cow or a mark".

Gifts of money are also quite common. Children may be left amounts from pence up to tens of pounds, as may more distant relatives, servants, friends and sometimes the clergy or as discussed above charitable or religious causes. Debts may also be forgiven, and lists of unrelated debtors and creditors occasionally appear.

Lands, as has been said may occasionally form a separate part of the will and in any case may not be mentioned when subject to customary tenure. They may be identified in great detail, or left very general. Freehold lands are normally named as such, as are leasehold (also known as indenture hold) land. Under manorial tenure, land was held by copy of the manor court roll, thus copyhold, from the Lord of the Manor. The succession to it was usually fixed, but it is still often, though by no means always, mentioned in the will.

In addition to the land, testators often mention their houses, both those in which they live and others which they own and rent out. Usually there are long phrases such as all lands, tenements, messuages, hereditaments and appurtenances thereto rendered in abstracts just lands and tenements or even lands, etc.

Naturally, occasionally more unusual items are bequeathed. Books are very rare, and then usually just a Bible. Some hangings may be tapestries, others paintings, again such references are rare in Pykman. Carts and other means of transport occur sometimes, and sometimes a specialist trade may leave connected implements, such as a weaver's looms.

After individual bequests are made, the testator typically leaves the residue of his goods to an executor or executors with which to pay all their debts and meet the costs of burial. This executor is usually the wife and/or eldest son of the testator where there is one. A valid will should have an executor appointed; occasionally (especially in nuncupative wills) this is not done, and an administrator has to be appointed by the probate court. Many testators also appoint an overseer or overseers (occasionally called supervisors). Their purpose was to act as an independent check on the actions of executors. They are normally rewarded, either with a small sum of cash - 3s 4d is a fairly common amount - or with another modest bequest for their 'painstaking'.

Finally the testators sign or make their mark, as do a number of witnesses. In many cases the registered will says after two or three witnesses 'and many more'. In the absence of the original wills for this period it is impossible to say whether this is merely empty form, as seems likely. One of the witnesses was normally the scribe, usually though not always the testator's parish priest. At this time priests and knights were of equal social status, and both were accorded the honorific 'Sir'. Occasionally it is difficult to be sure whether a man was a knight or priest, priests sometimes only have their christian names given in the form 'Sir Stephen'. Sometimes another reference in the will makes it clear that this is the priest and supplies the surname. The clerical 'Sir' has here been rendered 'clerk' after the name of the priest, mainly to facilitate the indexing of priests.

When the testator died, the will was brought to an official of the probate court. The officials of the court appear to have led a peripatetic life, and in several sections Pykman gives the town where the will was proved. At some periods in the Archdeaconry Court of Surrey these original wills were filed, in others they were copied into registers, registers surviving from 1484 and original wills from 1534, but neither series is complete and for some small periods neither survive. Normally, also, an inventory of the testator's goods would be prepared and sent in to the Court. While references in the wills makes it clear that this was the practice in this court, unfortunately they do not survive here.

After the will had been accepted for probate, the court official would add a note to that effect on the will itself, and/or in the will register. While by the time of Pykman only a handful of wills themselves are in Latin, this note of the act of probate is always in that language until 1733. The probate act usually names the official of the court (omitted in the abstracts unless unusual or informative) and, at least in later registers, the person, normally the executor, to whom probate has been granted. Where there is more than one executor, power may be reserved to one or more of them to act later. Occasionally the executor named has died, when the court will appoint an administrator (as when no executor is named in the will), or the executor is a minor, in which case normally the will is proved to an overseer or the parish priest. Probate acts should always be examined carefully, as they may give information not available in the original will. In Pykman a number of wills do not have a probate act at all, probably by oversight rather than because they were not proved.

Original wills were not infrequently also annotated with the date or approximate date of testator's death. Not until the eighteenth century was any indication of the monetary value of the testator's possessions noted.

Abstracting early wills does require some guesswork. One of the most difficult problems to be consistent about is where there is uncertainty of surname. It may be assumed that a wife shares her husband's surname, though a few foreigners do not seem to, presumably because by custom they retained their maiden name after marriage. Sons also have been assumed to share their father's surname even where this is not explicit, though on odd occasion a man may refer to his son when he means his stepson. Daughters, however, are more difficult. Quite frequently a legacy is left to "my daughter Joan" with no indication of surname or whether she has married or not. Similarly with the wills of widows, it may be unclear with both sons and daughters whether they were the children of the last marriage of the testator or whether of an earlier when, of course, they will have a different surname. Because of the computerised indexing program used in these abstracts, it is necessary to assign a surname to anyone who is to appear in the index, and while I have tried to do this intelligently, in some cases the person clearly does not share the surname of the testator and, since I have been unable to assign a surname will not appear in the index. This is also the case of unrelated people (usually servants) for whom no surname is given in the register.

© 1992, 1996, 2008 Cliff Webb