Church Court Records
Hereford Record Office has an extensive archive of Church Court documents for the Diocese of Hereford. It is important to be aware that the Diocese of Hereford covered, and still largely covers, not only the whole of Herefordshire, but also a large part of south Shropshire, nearly 20 parishes in north-west Worcestershire, a sizeable part of north-west Gloucestershire, and a significant number of parishes in east Wales.
From the 1590s onwards, a considerable archive has survived at Hereford of case papers of Church Court cases, technically named 'Acts of Instance', alongside the Court Books recording the progress of each case. Over recent years, I have been cataloguing and listing each of these cases, and have now completed up to 1750 for the Hereford Diocese (except the area covered by the Deanery). The number of cases runs into thousands, and I have on computer details of all these cases, often with witness statements. Each witness normally gave his name, parish, age and occupation, and frequently place of birth. I can search for names and places. The cases involve disputed between individuals, or groups of people, about such diverse matters as Wills (often with many family details), Tithes; non-payment of Church Dues (Lewnes); Defamation; Sexual misconduct; Seats in Church; Divorce; Breach of Promise of Marriage; Misconduct of Clergy.
The other types of Church Court case are named 'Acts of Office'. There were far more cases under this heading, and involved the Judge (a deputy appointed by the Bishop) hearing cases brought to him by the Churchwardens, Clergy or other person of standing, about irregularities in any community or parish. Thousands of people appeared in the Courts for various misdemeanors, and the Court sought to 'correct' offenders. Matters concerning the Court and the Judge, acting by his 'mere office' as Judge were as follows:
Misbehaviour in Church or Churchyard; irregular, or 'clandestine', marriage; sexual intercourse before marriage; fornication; slander/defamation; usury; witchcraft; non-payment of Church dues (Lewnes); licensing of schoolmasters, midwives and surgeons; probate matters; state of Church buildings; Church equipment; attendance at Church; working on Sunday; playing games on Sunday.
The offences were normally stated in English, but until 1733, the actions of the Court were noted in Latin, often heavily abbreviated. This poses many challenges for the transcriber! I have now transcribed the complete Archdeaconry of Salop Acts of Office from 1661-1750, 1892 pages of text. I have also completed the transcription of the Acts for the Deanery of Stottesdon from 1500-1640, and the Deanery of Ludlow from 1603-1641.