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The Blaker Society © in her own right (say, by marriage settlement and/or it having been her
BLAKER WILLS

On the other hand, if a married woman died who held the freehold

inheritance) then her husband could continue in her stead for the rest of
his life ‘by the courtesy of England.’
If the man dying was not a freeholder but a copyholder, his widow

would continue in the tenancy by right of freebench.
In Sussex the situation is muddied by the existence of manors
where the usual English system of inheritance did not apply: by a custom
called ‘Borough English’ the property descended first to the youngest son
&c. As the youngest son was very often an infant, periods of guardianship
become much more important in those areas.

Administrations

There was no compelling reason for an individual to leave a will,
particularly in the early period when the descent of his real estate would
take place by the rules of inheritance. But if he died intestate and there
was any difficulty involving the lay courts — suing or being sued for
debts &c. it became essential for his family to get documentation to prove
their rights in the matter. Occasionally depositions might be made that the
intestate had, during his lifetime, said that this and that parts of his
property should go to so and so: and this would be filed as a nuncupative
will among the main probate archives.
Otherwise the family would apply to the ecclesiastical probate
court for letters of administration. Sometimes there was a will, but it was
unsigned or unwitnessed or otherwise faulty, and so administration was
taken out ‘with will attached’. Then again, the executor or executrix of a

normal will might die before having distributed the estate, in which case
an administration would be awarded ‘de bonis non’, to complete the
process. Grants of administration are often listed in a separate register,
administration bonds often surviving and archived separately again.

Sussex

2
The county of Sussex was more or less co-terminous with the
3
ancient diocese of Chichester , which was divided into two
archdeaconries, Chichester and Lewes. There were therefore three main
probate courts — Chichester Archdeaconry, Lewes Archdeaconry and

2 the ancient kingdom of the South Saxons, similar in extent to the pre-Roman tribe of the Regnenses:
Chichester was Noviomagus Regnensium
3 founded in 1075, well before the earliest surviving wills, by the removal of the see from Selsey
2