All modes search case entries (individual records), and fold spelling automatically (u/v, i/j/y). Pick a mode by how your words should relate:

exact phrase

The words must appear together, in the order you typed them. nichil dicit finds the phrase “nichil dicit” but not “nichil” and “dicit” apart. Best when you know the exact wording of a formula.

all words

Every word must appear somewhere in the same case entry, in any order and any distance apart. excommunicatus rex finds entries containing both words. Best for narrowing to entries that mention several things at once.

any word

At least one of the words must appear. roberia latrocinium furtum finds entries with any of those theft terms. Best for gathering synonyms or spelling variants of one idea.

words near each other

All the words must appear within about 10 words of one another in the same entry. noctanter domum finds them close together (a house entered by night), not merely somewhere in the same long entry. Best when the words must relate to each other.

fuzzy (stems + variants)

Like “all words”, but each word is shortened to its stem and common medieval spelling variants are added automatically, so you catch inflected endings and scribal/HTR spellings. spoliavit also matches spoliaverunt, spoliatus, etc. Best when you are unsure of the exact ending or spelling.

raw FTS5 syntax

You write the query yourself using SQLite FTS5 operators (AND OR NOT NEAR() "phrase" prefix*). noctanter AND (roberia* OR latrocin*). For power users; this is what the saved formulae use under the hood.

Add * to any word to match its continuations (excommunicat* → excommunicatus, excommunicacionem…). The saved searches dropdown runs expert queries for common topics without needing any of this.

Years: calendar years are extracted from the entries’ own regnal-year datings (“anno regni Regis nunc xxxv”); entries without one are dated approximately (shown as “c. 1352”) from their roll side. The year from/to boxes filter on these, so questions like “between 1300 and 1350” or “before 1300” work directly. Group results turns the hit list into a count table (by reign, decade, year, series or roll) with drill-down links — e.g. robbery with housebreaking, grouped by decade. Also mentions requires an extra word (a town, a person) to appear in the same entry, with spelling variants added automatically — combine it with the person trace to find e.g. every Roger in entries mentioning Nottingham. NB a place term also matches toponymic surnames (“Johannes de Notingham” living elsewhere).