How to go about getting Wills?

[EmPers]

OK, I've got the skeleton of my tree, now I want to put leaves on it, and for starters, that means Wills. Now I've looked about and read various things on Wills but I'm still at a loss, and I'm probably missing something very obvious.

I've seen all these things about Wills being proved in the perogative court of canterbury and that 1858 is an important date and all that, but it doesn't really make any sense to me.

What I really want to know is: which people should I look for wills for? how do I go about doing that? and where will I find them? and what sort of finding aids are there?

I have a mixture of ancestors from various backgrounds except rich (although not all were "poor", there are tradesmen, military and the like), so just a general overview would be good, and some advice on which ones to start with to get to grips.

[Wendi]

This link might help
http://www.gmcro.co.uk/family_history/wills.htm
and
They do make it clear at the bottom that wills can be obtained from York Probate Registry - but you should have a reasonable idea of date of death before applying
Wendi

[casalguidi]

Hi Em

It will mostly depend on your dates and area(s) of interest.

Pre 1858 wills are usually to be found in the appropriate local county record office as well as the PCC wills online at the National Archives - the latter were often reserved for the more wealthy ie. those who had property in more than one diocese and seamen.

Best wishes

Casalguidi