Genealogy Chat

Hi I have today got a death certificate which says that he died of 'Probably heart disease' The cause of death was not certificated by a doctor etc. Does any one know why this would have happened he died in 1884, I would have thought by this time that all deaths would have been certificated. Any ideas? Thanks for your help Karen

Complete guess - but could the body have been too decomposed for them to know how he died? They wouldn't have had the technology that they have today.

Good heavens, I learn something every day! I was pretty sure medical certification was compulsory by 1875, but I am wrong! Even today...medical death certification is not required, according to the GMC in 1999. UPDATE - I am WRONG! Medical death certification IS required by law, but a doctor does not have to have ever seen the patient, in order to issue a death cert (medical). It may have been that the doctor refused to certify the death because he did not know/had not seen the patient and thought that he had to have done so, in order to issue a cert. However, the deceased still needed burial Medical certification of death was made compulsory (but when???) in order to close a loophole, where deaths were being fraudulently registered in order to claim insurance money. I thought this was in 1875. OC

My GGFx3 who died in 1861 was 'not certified' if thats any help narrowing down the dates.

Does the place of death give any clues?

This is how I believe the system works. As far as I know a form is produced by the certifying doctor which is required for a death certificate to be issued. A death certificate, as far as I'm aware, is only certified by a doctor if an inquest is held. A post mortem is held when the cause of death is not immediately obvious. An inquest is held in the cases of unidentified cause, accidents and suspicion of foul play. If someone has seen a doctor within 48 (I think) hours prior to dying and their complaint carries them off I don't think there is a need for a P.M. I'm basing this on my own family's certificates. My Paternal Grandmother committed suicide. There was an inquest and her death was registered by the coroner. My Father died of a massive heart attack. He had not seen a doctor and consequently there was a P.M. The cause of death was established and no inquest was required. We registered the death. My maternal Grandmother had a stroke which hospitalised her. She was suffering from bowel cancer and while in hospital she contracted pneumonia. There was no P.M. and my uncle registered her death.

The death certificate for my great-great-grandmother, Sophia Green, 2 April 1848, in Speen, Princes Risborough, stated: Cause of death: 'Died in child bed. Not certified.', her age was 41 years, wife of Jesse Green, labourer.

Hi Thanks for the information, as for the address it is the same address as his nephew who registered the death which was done 2 days after he died. It does state that his nephew was in attendance perhaps it was him who suggested he died of Heart disease. Its just all the other death certificates before and after this date have been certificated and it seems odd that this one has not been. II also read that from 1875 death were to be certificated and seems as this is nearly 10 years on wonder why it never happened. Thanks Karen

I stand corrected. Now I'm at home I've checked all my certificates and they are mostly certificated in the 'cause of death' column. It seems that if an inquest was held they are certified in the informant column. I do have one which is not certified from 1944 cause of death 'war operations' I guess protocol was dropped during that period.

I just wonder if he normally lived with the nephew or whether he had gone there for his last few weeks/months when he had been told he had a weak heart. Of course, taking the nephew's word for his uncles condiiton at death does seem a bit iffy though, doesnt it.