Discover your ancestor among almost 82,000 cases tried at the Court of Chancery in England during the reign of King Charles I, between 1625 and 1649. Of particular value to family historians, Chancery records often reveal personal, business and family relationships in fascinating detail. The index itself identifies the names of the plaintiff and defendant and gives the reference for the full documents, held in The National Archives in London.
Each record is a transcript of information from the original case records. The information given is less than what is contained in the original but you can find out the following about your ancestor:
Name of plaintiff
Name of defendant
Brief case details
The National Archives reference number
This unique resource, created by the late Peter Coldham, makes available exclusively on Findmypast an index to all 81,163 Chancery Cases launched during the reign of Charles I (1625-49). The records provide an extraordinary insight into Britain’s family and business links with the nation’s colonial empire. More than any other single English records, Chancery documents often reveal personal, business, and family relationships more fully than other sources. Chancery records are a particularly important source of information for descendants of early migrants to North America.
Proceedings in Chancery were instituted mainly, though not exclusively, by those with money and property. The aggrieved party (the Plaintiff) would have his lawyer draw up a Bill of Complaint setting out in stiff, formal language, and always at great length, the substance of his complaint. This document always begins with the plaintiff's name, title or occupation, and place of residence, names the offending parties (the Defendants), and seeks the Court's authority to require the Defendants to provide written Answers to a series of specific questions. So the next document which would appear would be the Answer(s), and the wheels of law would begin to grind. The Plaintiff might submit objections to the Answers, called a Replication, which would be followed by further Answers. The Defendants might enter a Demurrer to the Bill of Complaint, saying that the case was defective in law and required no Answer.
Bills of Complaint and Answers are often not filed together under the same reference, which explains, at least partly, why many of the cases have multiple references.
Among the records are some fascinating cases:
William Pennoyer of London who, by his will proved in 1670, left a bequest to Cambridge College in New England (Harvard). The original records include details of his ancestry & business dealings. Andrewes v Pennoyer A13/69, Glover v Pennoyer G18/11, Pennoyer v. Gough P24/24.
Thomas Mathewes of Virginia, planter, son of Edward Mathewes of Bethnal Green, Stepney, Middlesex, grazier. M24/26 etc.
Richard Morris, apprenticed as a sailor who went with other servants on the Marmaduke to be sold in Virginia for tobacco: he was kept by George Pewsey in America for eight years. S16/5: Sollus v. Pewsey, 1642.
John Vassall who was born in Normandy, France, rose to fame as an Elizabethan navigator and sired a family of great influence in New England, Virginia and the West Indies. There are many suits in which Samuel Vassall of the Virginia Company was plaintiff or defendant.
If you wish to view the source documents at The National Archives, Kew, they are held in Class C2, Subclass Chas1. The TNA references in the index give Piece/Folio (eg. H77/40), since the Class and Subclass is always the same (C2/Chas1). The full TNA reference would be, for example, C2/Chas1/H77/40.