— Also termed Arches Court of Canterbury; Court of Canterbury; Court of the Official Principal. Cf. CHANCERY COURT OF YORK.
“The Court of Arches is the provincial court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is held by a judge generally called the Dean of the Arches. Its jurisdiction was important while testamentary cases were dealt with in the Ecclesiastical Courts. The name is derived from the fact that the court was originally held in the Church of St. Mary-le-Bow (Ecclesia Beatae Mariae de Arcubus), the steeple of which is raised on stone pillars formed archwise like bent bows.” W.J.V. Windeyer, Lectures on Legal History 184 n.11 (2d ed. 1949).