The Borthwick Institute

Not sure this place is of any interest to anyone on Qype but it took me a while to find where records were held when I need them.
I will give this place 3 stars because when I was doing urgent research, as a student, and contacted them via mail they were not terribly helpful and seemed to think I student would not be capable of understanding things???
Maybe you have to be a cleric to get respect but a history student need to study church courts as they are important.
The Borthwick Institute was established by the Archbishop of York and York Civic Trust to make available the enormous ecclesiastical archives of the north of England, dating from the 13^th century. Because the Church regulated many areas of life until the mid 19^th century, these records reveal the social and legal history of England.
Useful to me was: Probate records
Wills, inventories and associated records at the Borthwick form the largest set of probate records outside London. They span the period from the late 14^th century until January 1858, when the business of granting probate was removed from the Church to a new civil probate court.
They have exhibitions too here.
If you want to do reseach expect snootiness and to be looked down on.