Hi Was there a bishop will court in sussex if not how where will for the two archenary dealt with james

Yes, every Diocese had its own Episcopal Courts where wills were proved, and letters of administration were granted, pre-1858. The Diocese of Chichester covers the whole of the geographical county of Sussex, but is split into two Archdeaconries for administrative purposes. You will find a map showing the boundary between the two in Phillimore's Atlas* and you will see that it is the same as the pre-1974 local government boundary between West and East Sussex County Councils; however as a VERY rough guide, you can use the valley of the River Adur as a dividing line. Wills proved in the Archdeaconry of Lewes are held by the East Sussex Record Office in Lewes; and wills proved in the Archdeaconry of Chichester are held by the West Sussex Record Office in Chichester. However, both record offices have exchanged their probate records on microfilm, so a visit to either record office should suffice for most purposes. In addition, there are some parishes in Sussex that are covered by 'Peculiar Courts'. These are: Dean's Peculiar of the City of Chichester in West Sussex comprising of the parishes of St Andrew, St Bartholomew, St Martin, St Olave, St Pancras, St Peter the Great, St Peter the Less, the Close, New Fishbourne and Rumboldswhyke; Archbishop's Peculiar of the Exempt Deaneries of Pagham & Tarring in West Sussex comprising the parishes of South Bersted, Chichester All Saints, Durrington, Heene, East Lavant, Pagham, Patching, Slindon, Tangmere and West Tarring, together with Plaistow chapelry in Kirdford and a small area of Horsham called the Bishopric; Archbishop's Peculiar of the Exempt Deanery of South Malling in East Sussex comprising Buxted, The Cliffe or St Thomas Lewes, Edburton, Framfield, Glynde, Isfield, Lindfield, Mayfield, Ringmer, South Malling, Stanmer, Uckfield, Wadhurst; Royal Peculiar of Battle in East Sussex comprising just the parish of Battle. None of the above are currently available online, although these records have been filmed by the LDS and there are some online indexes - see the link to the LDS Wiki. See also the SFHG web site. However, do bear in mind that some Sussex wills were proved, and administrations were granted in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC). This Court was used by the wealthy, those who owned assets in more than one Diocese and the occasionally by the military serving overseas, although some of the latter used the court of the Bishop of London. PCC wills are available online on the TNA web site, the administrations are not. For further information: West Sussex: https://www.westsussex.gov.uk/leisure/explore_west_sussex/record_office_and_ archives/family_history/wills_and_other_probate.aspx East Sussex: http://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/34C19776-B696-489B-B9B2-F107D789F7 B0/0/Howtofindawill.pdf PCC: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/wills-and-probate.htm London: http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/visiting-the-city/archives-and-c ity-history/london-metropolitan-archives/Documents/visitor-information/6%20W ills%20for%20London.pdf FamilySearch Wiki: https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Sussex_Probate_Records NB the above are very large URL's, so it will be best to copy and paste them into your web browser. * "The Phillimore Atlas & Index of Parish Registers" 3rd Edition by Cecil R. Humphery-Smith, published 2003 by Phillimore, ISBN 1860772390. Best wishes, Marion Woolgar Bognor Regis, West Sussex SFHG Member No: 3323