County assizes

Before 1805 and the introduction of the criminal registers, to locate a person you would need to consult the Crown Minute Books for the particular Assize circuit in which the trial would have been held. You also need to bear in mind that the person may have been tried at the Quarter Sessions, in which case you would need to check the calendars for the sessions at the relevant county record office.

London and Middlesex

Sessions for London and Middlesex were held before the Lord Mayor. Records for London before 1834 are held in the Corporation of London Record Office, and for Middlesex before 1834 in the London Metropolitan Archives. The records of the Central Criminal Court from 1834 are held here in The National Archives.

Wales, Bristol, Chester, Durham and Lancaster

The records of the Welsh Court of Great Sessions from 1543 to 1830 are held in the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth http://www.llgc.org.uk/. From 1830 the Welsh Assize records are held here at The National Archives.

Bristol

Assize records for Bristol before 1832 are held in Bristol Record Office www.bristol-city.gov.uk/recordoffice. After 1832 records are here at The National Archives.

Chester, Durham and Lancaster

These three areas were palatinates with their own jurisdictions, Chester until 1830 and Durham and Lancaster until 1876. All surviving records for these areas are held here in CHES 21 and CHES 24, DURH 15 - DURH 18, and PL 25 - PL 28 with later records in the ASSI series.