In the history of the

courts of England and Wales The courts of England and Wales, supported administratively by His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, are the civil and criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in England and Wales. The United Kingdom does not have a ...

, the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes was created by the

Matrimonial Causes Act 1857 The Matrimonial Causes Act 1857 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act reformed the law on divorce, moving litigation from the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts to the civil courts, establishing a model of marriage ...

, which transferred the jurisdiction of the

ecclesiastical courts An ecclesiastical court, also called court Christian or court spiritual, is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages, these courts had much wider powers in many areas of Europe than be ...

in matters matrimonial to the new court so created. The Judge Ordinary of the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes also presided over the

Court of Probate In the history of the courts of England and Wales, the Court of Probate was created by the Court of Probate Act 1857, which transferred the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts in testamentary matters to the new court so created. The Judg ...

, but the two courts remained separate entities. On 1 November 1875, under the

Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873 The Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873 (sometimes known as the Judicature Act 1873) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1873. It reorganised the English court system to establish the High Court and the Court of Appeal, and ...

and the

Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1875 In the history of the courts of England and Wales, the Judicature Acts were a series of Acts of Parliament, beginning in the 1870s, which aimed to fuse the hitherto split system of courts of England and Wales. The first two Acts were the Supre ...

, the Judge Ordinary of the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes was transferred, as its

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, to the

Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...

of the

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (Englan ...

Judges ordinary of the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes

* 6 January 1858: Sir Cresswell Cresswell * 26 August 1863: Sir James Plaisted Wilde (ennobled as Lord Penzance from 6 April 1869) * 14 November 1872:

Sir James Hannen James Hannen, Baron Hannen, PC, FRS (19 March 1821 – 29 March 1894) was an English barrister and judge. Biography Son of a London merchant, he was born at Peckham. He was educated at St Paul's School and at Heidelberg University, which wa ...

References

*Robert Albion Pritchard, W Tarn Pritchard and John George Witt. A Digest of the Law and Practice of the Court for Divorce & Matrimonial Causes, and Appeals from that Court. Third Edition. Shaw and Sons. London. 1874
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*George Browne. A Treatise on the Principles and Practice of the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes. 1864. Second Edition. 1868. Third Edition. 1876. Fourth Edition. 1880. Bibliographic details
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*Joseph Haydn and Horace Ockerby, ''The Book of Dignities'', W.H. Allen & Co., 1894 Courts and tribunals established in 1957 1875 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Former courts and tribunals in England and Wales 1857 establishments in the United Kingdom Family courts Courts and tribunals disestablished in 1875 {{UK-law-stub