[continued from part 1]


[Children of John GIFFARD and Honor ERLE]:

Maria GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 29 Oct 1576.

John GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 22 Apr 1578; bur. 1 Aug 1578.

Arthur GIFFARD, b. 1580 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 17 Jun 1580; d. 1616.

Alice GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon.

Elizabeth GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon.

William GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 15 Oct 1586.

Jane or Joan GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 1 Feb 1587/8.

Honor GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 31 Mar 1587/8.

Margaret GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon.

Thomas GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon.

John GIFFARD, b. ca. 1593 in Brightleigh, a. 1621.

Alice GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, m. Thomas ADDINGTON (chr. 27 Dec 1589 in Leigh, Devon, son of William ADDINGTON and Wilmot COFFIN, a. 1620).

Alice and Thomas had four children: Thomas (1611-1613); Alice who married Amyas CHAMPERNOWNE (1605-1661); Wilmot; and Elizabeth. On 1 Apr 1621, Thomas is named in his father-in-law John GIFFARD’s will in a request that he aid and assist the execution of the will.


Elizabeth GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, m. George BROUGHTON (b. in Warisbrightleigh, Devon, son of Hugh BROUGHTON and Margaret ESCOTT).

Elizabeth and George had five children: Honor (b. ca. 1610); George (b. ca. 1611); Arthur (b. ca. 1614); Hugh (b. ca. 1619); and Joane. On 28 June 1620, George BROUGHTON and his father Hugh BROUGHTON are named in an indenture made between them and John GIFFARD (1552-1622) regarding “the capitall mesuage, barton and demeasnes of Winkleigh Keynes for ninety nine yeares …” On 20 Aug 1631, George BROUGHTON is named in an indenture regarding land in Winkleigh, made by “John Giffard and George Broughton sen. to Arther Broughton, George’s son, of the last and of all meadowes and feildes thereto belonging - all okes and aishes excepted - for ninety nine yeares, if Arther and Johane Broughton his sister lyve so long”. On 2 Oct 1638, George BROUGHTON is named in a deed as follows: “Bargain and sale by George Broughton of Studley, gentleman, George his son and heir apparent, and John Giffard of Brightley, esq. to Thomas Lethbridge of Jacobstowe, gentleman, of the barton and mannor and the borough and hundred of Winckleigh Keynes”. (citation: “An Index to the Calendar of the Deeds Enrolled Within the County of Devon” compiled by John C. Tingey 1930, transcribed by Debbie Kennett (see Appendix 20)).


Jane or Joan GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 1 Feb 1587/8, m. after 1619 John GIFFARD (chr. 24 Jul 1588 in Devon, son of Achilles GIFFARD and Frances ACKWORTH, a. 1620); bur. 4 Nov 1631.

Jane married her first cousin. John is named in the will of Jane’s father (and John’s uncle) wherein he was bequeathed thirty pounds.


Honor GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 31 Mar 1587/8, m. 27 Jun 1607 at St Mary Major, Exeter, Devon John GARLAND (b. in Whitfield, Devon, son of John GARLAND and Agnes MOLFORD; d. before 1659); d. 1659 at Marwood, bur. 1659 at St Michael and All Angels churchyard, Marwood, Devon.

Honor and John had seven children: Alice (1612-1623); John (1613-1618); Theophilus (b.1614) who married Elizabeth TAMLYN; Francis (1615-1643) who married Elianor PYNE (d.1663); Roger (1617-1670) who married Obedience TAMLYN (1616-1679); John (1618-1623); and Anne (b.1619) who married Arthur CHICHESTER (1612-1687). On 8 Sep 1659, Honor made her nuncupative will in which “she did give and bequeath unto her grandsonne Mr John Garland all her Timber Stuffe within doors her greate Chestes and her greate pann” and gave “unto her Sonne in Lawe Mr Arthur Chichester’s Daughter Elizabeth” fifty pounds; she also left gifts of money to her servants Margaret STANBURY, Anne FOSSE, Elizabeth SCAMPE and Margaret FAIRCHILD and “unto her Servant John Fairchild thirty shillings a yeare to provide him cloathes during his life”; the residue of her possessions were bequeathed to her son Roger GARLAND. The will was witnessed by the marks of Margaret STANBURY and Anne FOSSE, and proved on 30 Jul 1660.


Margaret GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, m. Angel MADDOCKS (b. Exeter, Devon).

Angel MADDOCKS is named in four documents held at the National Archives, Kew: in 1601, in COURTNEY vs. MADDOCKS as a gentleman of Exeter and defendant about debt; in 1603, in COURTNEY vs. MADDOCKS as defendant in a dispute about money; in 1603-1625, in MADDOCKS vs. ROSCARROCK as plaintiff about payment of money.


John GIFFARD, b. ca. 1593 in Brightleigh, a. 1621.

On 1 April 1621, named as joint legatee with his two nephews Arthur GIFFARD (1605-1668) and George GIFFARD (1606-1650) in his father’s will to inherit “all my estate terme and interest which I have after the death of Maria Luxton and George Luxton of & in all that Capitall messuage Barton & Demesne & of and in all landes meadowes & pastures belonging to the same comonly talked or known by the name of Winkleigh”. John predeceased his father without issue.


Arthur GIFFARD, b. 1580 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 17 Jun 1580, m. Agnes or Anne LEIGH (b. ca. 1580 in Northam, Devon, daughter of Thomas LEIGH and Agnes BORROUGH; d. 1625); d. 1616, bur. at St Hieritha church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Arthur was the eldest son but predeceased his father. On 1 Apr 1621, named several times as “formed of Arthur Giffard deceased” when his children are named as legatees in the will of Arthur’s father John GIFFARD (1552-1622). In 1621, Agnes’s father Thomas LEIGH is also named in John GIFFARD’s will as “grandfather Leigh” with regard to bequests to Arthur and Agnes’s children, and her brother Sir William LEIGH is one of the witnesses to the will.

[Children of Arthur GIFFARD and Agnes LEIGH]:

Maria GIFFARD, b. ca. 1600 in Devon.

John GIFFARD, chr. 17 Oct 1602 in Northam, Devon; d. 1665 at Chittlehampton, bur. 21 Dec 1665 at St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Honor GIFFARD, chr. 9 Jun 1604 in Northam Devon.

Arthur GIFFARD, b. 1605 in Devon; d. 18 Mar 1668 at Bideford, Devon.

George GIFFARD, b. 1606 in Devon; d. ca. 1650 in London.

Lewis GIFFARD, b. 1608 in Devon; d. 1670 at Cheriton Fitzpaine, Devon.

Frances GIFFARD, b. 1610 in Devon.

Thomas GIFFARD, b. 1611 in Devon.

Elizabeth GIFFARD, b. ca. 1613 in Devon.

Maria GIFFARD, b. ca. 1600 in Devon, m. Hugh WYOT (b. ca. 1597, son of John WYOT and Frances CHICHESTER; d. 1624); a. 1625, d. before 1650.

On 1 Apr 1621, named in her grandfather John GIFFARD’s will as follows: “I give unto Maria Giffard my sonne Arthur Giffard’s daughter ffouer [4] hundred poundes of lawfull English money to be paid at her daie of marriage of att her age of one and twentie yeares which shall happen first”; she was also bequeathed a yearly payment of ten pounds to be paid in quarterly instalments until she either married or reached the age of 21. Hugh WYOT’s mother was daughter of Amyas CHICHESTER and Joan GIFFARD (d. 1596, daughter of Sir Roger GIFFARD and Margaret COBLEIGH). Hugh is named in two documents held at the National Archives, Kew: in 1615, as Hugh WYOT of Braunton gent, in a bill about a messuage called Northcote, Colemore and Bittadon Barton; in 1625, in WYOT vs. WYOT in a bill about the detention of household goods in which the plaintiff was Edward WYOT and the defendants were Hugh WYOT (deceased) and his wife Maria. Maria and Hugh had two daughters, Agnes and Joane. On 27 December 1650, Agnes and Joane are named in the will of Maria’s brother George GIFFARD as substitute legatees in case of the death of George’s children, with the proviso that “only the some [sic] of one hundred pounds to be taken out of it viz fifty pounds apiece to my brother Wyatt’s two daughters”.


Honor GIFFARD, chr. 9 Jun 1604 in Northam Devon, a. 1621.

On 1 Apr 1621, named in her grandfather John GIFFARD’s will as follows: “I give unto Honor Giffard my grandchilde my sonne Arthur Giffard’s daughter ffouer [4] hundred poundes of lawfull English money to be paid her att her daie of marriage or att her age of one and twentie yeares which shall happen first but upon this condition that she do acquite discharge or otherwise cause permition to be given to acquite and discharge my cosen William Leigh of Northam and his executors for the some of ffiftie poundes excess of a greater some heretofore given unto her by her grandfather Leigh”; she was also bequeathed a yearly payment of ten pounds to be paid in quarterly instalments until she either married or attained the age of 21.

[In the 17th century cousin (here spelt cosen) could be broadly used to describe many types of relative. William LEIGH was Honor Giffard‘s uncle and her mother‘s brother.]

On 27 December 1650, named in the will of her brother George GIFFARD as substitute legatee in case of the death of George’s children.


Arthur GIFFARD, b. 1605 in Devon, m. 2 Jan 1661 Mary HARRIS (daughter of Thomas HARRIS of Hayne and Joan HART; bur. 21 Jan 1671); d. 18 Mar 1668 at Bideford, bur. at the Parish Church of St Mary, Bideford, Devon.

On 28 June 1620, named in an indenture made between George BROUGHTON, Hugh BROUGHTON and John GIFFARD regarding “the capitall mesuage, barton and demeasnes of Winkleigh Keynes for ninety nine yeares, if Arthur Lewes or Thomas Giffard, grandchildren of the said John Giffard, live so long.” (citation: “An Index to the Calendar of the Deeds Enrolled Within the County of Devon” compiled by John C. Tingey 1930, transcribed by Debbie Kennett (see Appendix 20)). On 1 Apr 1621, named in his grandfather John GIFFARD’s will and bequeathed a joint interest in property and land in Winkleigh in Devon with his brother George; the will also acknowledges the receipt of a fifty pounds gift to Arthur from his other grandfather Thomas LEIGH. John WATKINS in “An Essay Towards a History of Bideford” (1792) records Arthur’s education as follows: “Being a younger son he was designed for the church, and after receiving a grammatical education, I believe at Barnstaple, he was sent to Oxford, and entered at Exeter College, of which Society he was at length elected Fellow, and continued as a resident member near twenty years”. In 1643, appointed rector of Bideford by his cousin Sir John GRENVILLE. Ca. 1648 (but probably earlier), forcefully ejected from his living by the Parliamentarians during the English Civil War (1642-1651): “The old Gentleman did not quietly give up his living; and therefore a party of horse were ordered to force him out of it by violence; which they did, and used him babarously, throwing dirt upon him, and some spitting at him, as he passed along the streets” (John Watkins 1792) (see Appendix 21). Arthur then preached and taught in the village of Westleigh, but “such was the uncharitable zeal of that lordly independent preacher William Bartlet … he [Giffard] might not be permitted so much as that … Whereupon this good man retired to the house of his brother-in-law, Philip Harris, Esq., recorder of Great Torrington (a younger son of the family of Hayn in this county, who had married his sister) where he lived privately and peaceably, expecting better times; which at length, after about twelve years ejection from his benefice, God was pleased to send again, upon restoration of King Charles the second, when Mr. Giffard returned unto his charge at Bytheford [Bideford], where he continued in peace and love with all good men unto the day of his death …” (“The Worthies of Devon” by John Prince 1701) (see Appendix 22). On 27 December 1650, named in the will of his brother George GIFFARD as substitute legatee in case of the death of George’s children. In 1668, buried in the chancel of Bideford parish church, without a sepulchral monument.


George GIFFARD, b. 1606 in Devon, m. Sarah; d. 16 Sep 1652 in London.

On 1 Apr 1621, named in his grandfather John GIFFARD’s will and bequeathed a joint interest in property and land in Winkleigh in Devon with his brother Arthur; the will also acknowledges the receipt of a fifty pounds gift to George from his other grandfather Thomas LEIGH. In 1644, George sought advice from his cousin Walter ERLE, on behalf of his brother John GIFFARD, a colonel in the Royalist cavalry, as to how John might make a successful surrender to Parliament, whereupon protection was sought from Sir Thomas FARIFAX of the Parliamentary forces. On 27 December 1650, George, a merchant of London, made his will, in which he bequeaths “unto my daughter Agnes the wrought bedd with all the furniture there unto belonging and the cabbinett which now is in the roome”, and in case of her death then subsequently in line of inheritance to other next of kin; he also bequeaths “to my said sonne George Giffard the Diamond Ring which I now weare” and in case of his death then subsequently in line of inheritance to other next of kin; he gives “unto my said wife ruby rings and chayns of pearls as I have given her befour or since marriage”; and “of the rest and residue of my estate … I give and bequeath the one moiety or halfe part thereof unto the said Sarah my wife and the other moiety or halfe part thereof to my said two children Agnes and George to be equally devided betweene them”. He appoints James LAMBERT, John HAMPTON, Thomas WILLIAMS and Edward WATTS as trustees and guardians of his children, “to take care of the tuition and education of my said children”. The will was witnessed by John BUTLER snr and John BUTLER jnr. George requested that he be “decently buried in the parish church of Alhallowes Stayning London if it may be without strife”.


Lewis GIFFARD, b. 1608 in Devon; d. 1670 at Cheriton Fitzpaine, Devon.

On 28 June 1620, named in an indenture made between George BROUGHTON, Hugh BROUGHTON and John GIFFARD regarding “the capitall mesuage, barton and demeasnes of Winkleigh Keynes for ninety nine yeares, if Arthur Lewes or Thomas Giffard, grandchildren of the said John Giffard, live so long.” (citation: “An Index to the Calendar of the Deeds Enrolled Within the County of Devon” compiled by John C. Tingey 1930, transcribed by Debbie Kennett (see Appendix 20)). On 1 Apr 1621, named in his grandfather John GIFFARD’s will and bequeathed a life interest in the revenue from a tenement called Lowham in High Bickington, Devon; the will also acknowledges the receipt of a fifty pounds gift to Lewis from his other grandfather Thomas LEIGH.


Frances GIFFARD, b. 1610 in Devon, m. 5 Jan 1635 at Chittlehampton, Devon Robert VIGERS.

On 1 Apr 1621, named in her grandfather John GIFFARD’s will, and bequeathed a gift of 400 pounds to be paid either at her marriage or on her attaining the age of 21, until which time she would receive a yearly allowance of ten pounds. On 27 December 1650, named in the will of her brother George GIFFARD as substitute legatee in case of the death of George’s children.


Thomas GIFFARD, b. 1611 in Devon.

On 28 June 1620, named in an indenture made between George BROUGHTON, Hugh BROUGHTON and John GIFFARD regarding “the capitall mesuage, barton and demeasnes of Winkleigh Keynes for ninety nine yeares, if Arthur Lewes or Thomas Giffard, grandchildren of the said John Giffard, live so long.” (citation: “An Index to the Calendar of the Deeds Enrolled Within the County of Devon” compiled by John C. Tingey 1930, transcribed by Debbie Kennett (see Appendix 20)). On 1 Apr 1621, named in his grandfather John GIFFARD’s will and bequeathed a life interest in the revenue from a tenement and lands in Chulmleigh, Devon. On 27 December 1650, named in the will of his brother George GIFFARD as substitute legatee in case of the death of George’s children.


Elizabeth GIFFARD, b. ca. 1613 in Devon, m. Philip HARRIS (son of Thomas HARRIS of Hayne and Joan HART).

On 1 Apr 1621, named in her grandfather John GIFFARD’s will, and bequeathed a gift of 400 pounds to be paid either at her marriage or on her attaining the age of 21, until which time she would receive a yearly allowance of ten pounds. Ca. 1648, following her brother Arthur being forcefully ejected from his living as rector of Bideford by the Parliamentarians during the English Civil War (1642-1651), Elizabeth and Philip gave him shelter: “Whereupon this good man [Arthur] retired to the house of his brother-in-law Philip Harris, Esq., recorder of Great Torrington” (“The Worthies of Devon” by John Prince 1701) (see Appendix 22). On 27 December 1650, named in the will of her brother George GIFFARD as substitute legatee in case of the death of George’s children.


Colonel John GIFFARD, chr. 17 Oct 1602 in Northam, Devon, m. ca. Aug 1621 Joan WYNDHAM (b. 1606 in Orchard Wyndham, Somerset, daughter of Sir John WYNDHAM and Joan PORTMAN; d. 24 Dec 1665 at Chittlehampton, bur. 29 Dec 1665 at St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon); d. 1665 at Chittlehampton, bur. 21 Dec 1665 at St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Eldest son of Arthur GIFFARD and Agnes LEIGH, and heir to his paternal grandfather’s estate. On 1 Apr 1621, named in his grandfather John GIFFARD’s will as principal beneficiary: “All the rest of my goodes leases & Chattells as well moveable and unmoveable not before given or bequeathed I only & wholly give & bequeath unto my grandchilde John Giffard … And touching the establishing of my Mannors landes Tenements & hereditaments I do give & bequeath all my Mannors landes tenements Rentes Reversions & hereditaments whatsoever in the Countie of Devon or elsewhere within the Realme of England where I have any estate of inheritance unto my said grandchilde John Giffard sonne of Arthur Giffard deceased and to his heires males of the bodie of the same John Giffard lawfully begotten“. In an essay of 1902, Hardinge Frank GIFFARD wrote the following: “John Giffard died … in 1622, when his grandson, another John Giffard, afterwards the famous Royalist and Cavalier of the Civil Wars, succeeded to the estates at the age of twenty, having been born and baptised at Northam in 1602, where his mother’s family, the Leighs - famous in the pages of ‘Westward Ho!’ - then resided at Burrough Court.” (Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions” 1902). After 1622, built Brightleigh Barton, above the porch of which is a stone heraldic escutcheon which shows the arms of GIFFARD impaling the arms of WYNDHAM, representing John‘s marriage to Joan WYNDHAM. Joan’s father, Sir John WYNDHAM (ca.1568-1645), was a Justice of the Peace and landowner of Orchard Wyndham in the parish of Watchet in Somerset, who played an important role in the establishment of defence in the West Country against the threat of Spanish invasion. There is a memorial to Joan’s parents, Sir John WYNDHAM and Joan PORTMAN/WYNDHAM in St Decumen’s church in Watchet, on the east wall of the north aisle chapel, consisting of a large slab of purbeck marble, inlaid with sculpted portraits and armorial shields in bronze; several other monuments to the WYNDHAMs exist in St Decumen’s, the earliest of which is an altar tomb commemorating another Sir John WYNDHAM (d. 1574) and his wife Elizabeth SYDENHAM (d.1571). In 1625, John erected a memorial monument in the north transept of the church of St Hieritha in Chittlehampton which depicts in effigy his grandfather John GIFFARD, his father Arthur and himself “of alabaster, of great cost and curiosity; where his similitude is lively represented, and the whole adorned with escutcheons of the family” (“The Worthies of Devon” by John Prince 1701); above are heraldic escutcheons showing the arms of GIFFARD impaling the arms of respective wives: COBLEIGH of Brightleigh; GRENVILLE of Stow; ERLE of Charborough; LEIGH of Burrough Court; and John GIFFARD’s own arms impaling those of WYNDHAM of Orchard Wyndham; two stone medallions showing faces sculpted in relief are positioned above the recumbent figure of John GIFFARD senior and represent on the left Sir Roger GIFFARD (1494-1547) and on the right Roger’s son John (1523-1585). The monument’s inscription includes the phrase: “Thus with his [John GIFFARD senior’s] family splendidly and successfully settled, with his sons and with the sons of his sons sufficiently provided for and with John his heir having been allied in marriage to the most select Joan from the illustrious stock of Wyndham of Somerset”. On 2 Oct 1638, named in a deed as follows: “Winkleigh &c. - Bargain and sale by George Broughton of Studley, gentleman, George his son and heir apparent, and John Giffard of Brightley, esq. to Thomas Lethbridge of Jacobstowe, gentleman, of the barton and mannor and the borough and hundred of Winckleigh Keynes with the members and all messuages, mylles, houses, barnes, dove houses, orchards, lands, pasturs, woods, moores, marishes, commons, waters, fishings, rents, reversions, services, court leetes, veiwes of franck pledge, wayfs, strayers, free warrens, goods of felons, of fugitives and outlawes, fee farmes, wards, escheats, releifes, fynes etc. in the feilds, parishes etc. of Winckleigh, alias Winckley Tracy, alias Winkleigh Keynes, Colrudge, Nymett Rowland, Brushford, Monkenzeale, alias Zeale Monachorum, Lapford and Bundleigh or elsewhere in Devon belonging to the mannor … Giffard will discharge the premises of all incumbrances suffered by him or his grandfather, or by his brother George Giffard, and the title shall be delivered at the barton house of Winckleigh.” (citation: “An Index to the Calendar of the Deeds Enrolled Within the County of Devon” compiled by John C. Tingey 1930, transcribed by Debbie Kennett (see Appendix 20)). Ca. 1642, appointed one of the Commissioners of Array for Devon under his near neighbour Henry BOURCHIER and was thus in part responsible for the unpopular task of raising Royalist troops in the county. On 13 Sep 1642, accompanied BOURCHIER and other commissioners to South Molton for a public reading of the commission, which was met with hostility and resulted in an ignoble retreat. On 5 Jul 1643, as a Colonel and Royalist during the English Civil War (1642-1651), commanded the Devon Pikemen at the Battle of Landsdowne, in which his cousin Sir Bevil GRENVILLE, who led the Cornish Pikemen, was mortally wounded in hand-to-hand combat. On 23/24 Sep 1642, the Royalist forces in the West, led by lieutenant general HOPTON, stopped and rested at the GIFFARD estate of Chittlehampton, with 400 men billeted in the parish. In 1644, following a setback to the Royalists, GIFFARD falsely claimed to have retired to live privately in his own house, whereas in fact 300 Royalist cavalry were at the time garrisoned in Brightleigh, watched closely by the Barnstaple Horse (a local troop of Parliamentarian cavalry); his brother George GIFFARD, a London merchant, sought advice from their cousin Walter ERLE as to how his brother might make a surrender to Parliament and was advised to take the earliest opportunity, and thus following the departure of the Royalist cavalry from Brightleigh John immediately sought protection from Sir Thomas FAIRFAX, commander in chief of the Parliamentary forces. John PRINCE in “The Worthies of Devon” (1701) describes John’s support of the Royalist cause thus: “When our late unhappy civil wars broke out, he adhered zealously and constantly, according to his duty, to the cause and intrest [sic] of his gracious sovereign K. Char. 1st, was a collonel, and paid unto his Majesty what possible assistance he was able. For which reason, when treason and rebellion at length prevailed, he became a great sufferer, was decimated, sequestered, and imprisoned; John Giffard of Brightley, Esq., paid no less than eleven hundred thirty six pounds composition for his estate into Goldsmith’s hall.” (see Appendix 22). PRINCE (1701) also describes the character of John GIFFARD as follows: “He was a gentleman of a very grave and comely aspect, of an obliging carriage, of a sober life, and a pious conversation. Such was his deportment towards men, in all his actions, as if he were conscious the eye of God was upon him; and such his behaviour towards God, in the instances of devotion and religion, as if he thought he was a spectacle to angels and men.” (see Appendix 22). GIFFARD had been given a ring by King Charles I which contains a concealed portrait of the king; an article in the Gentleman’s Magazine in 1823 gives the following description: “The ring, which is made of thin pure gold, and has four diamonds set on the top, does not at first sight appear particularly worthy of notice; on a closer inspection, however, an opening is perceptible in the raised part, and on lifting it up, a very beautiful miniature of the head of King Charles the First, enamelled on a turquoise, presents itself.” (citation: GM Vol 93, 1823 (see Appendix 23)). The ring was bequeathed down the generations, and in 1902 was in the possession of Hardinge Stanley GIFFARD (1823-1921) (citation: Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions”, Hardinge Frank Giffard 1902). In 1660, following the Restoration of the Monarchy, selected by King Charles II as one of the fourteen Devonshire Knights of the Royal Oak, an honour proposed for those who had actively supported the king during his exile in France, but abandoned in case it perpetuated dissension. Ca. 1660, John commissioned portraits (not extant?) of himself and his wife Joan to be painted by Sir Peter LELY. A family bible was given posthumously by King Charles II, “bound in morocco, with silver clasps, and very beautifully illustrated with numerous coloured engravings.” (citation: Hardinge Frank Giffard, 1902).

[Children of John GIFFARD and Joan WYNDHAM]:

Agnes GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon; bur. 18 Jun 1701 in Stratton, Cornwall.

Honor GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 20 Mar 1637; bur. 1638.

John GIFFARD, b. 1639 in Brightleigh, Devon; bur. 1712 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Grace GIFFARD, b. 1641 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 23 May 1641; d. 3 Nov 1667 at Sherborne, Dorset, bur. St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Bridget GIFFARD, b. ca. 1642 in Brightleigh, Devon.

Roger GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 14 Feb 1646 at Chittlehampton, Devon; bur. 25 Oct 1724 at St James Church, Parkham, Devon.

Catherine GIFFARD, b. 29 Jun 1647 in Brightleigh, Devon; d. 1676/7.

Margaret GIFFARD, b. 1 Feb 1648 in Brightleigh, Devon; d. 22 Oct 1739.

Mary GIFFARD, b. 27 Jun 1650 in Brightleigh, Devon.

Elizabeth GIFFARD, bur. 27 Oct 1655 at St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Henry GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, bur. 31 Mar 1658 at St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Agnes GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, m. 4 May 1657 Thomas BEARE (widower, b. 1631 in Huntsham, Devon, m1. Julian DAVIE; d. 1692 at Chittlehampton, Devon); bur. 18 Jun 1701 in Stratton, Cornwall.

In 1665, at the death of her father Colonel John GIFFARD, bequeathed the sum of £1000. Agnes and Thomas had three children: Richard of Morebath (1659-1724) who married Mary TRISTRAM (d. 1721); Mary (b.1660); and Johanna who married Humphry BURY of Colleton.


Grace GIFFARD, b. 1641 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 23 May 1641; d. 3 Nov 1667 at Sherborne, Dorset, bur. St Hieritha Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

In 1665, at the death of her father Colonel John GIFFARD, bequeathed the sum of £1000. Grace died unmarried at the age of 26 after being pricked by a fern. Her recumbent effigy, almost all that remains of a larger monument, in the church of St Hieritha in Chittlehampton shows her holding the symbol of her death and bears an inscription that is now only legible in part: “To the well deserved memory of Mis[tress] Grace Giffard who dyed at Sherborne the 3d Nov 1667 here buried … she made good her name of Grace”.


Bridget GIFFARD, b. ca, 1642 in Brightleigh, Devon, m. 19 Jan 1674 at Huntsham, Devon Edward BUTLER (b. 1637 in Exeter, Devon, chr. 3 Dec 1637, son of John BUTLER).

In 1665, at the death of her father Colonel John GIFFARD, bequeathed the sum of £1000. On 16 Nov 1674, the Harleian Society Allegations for Marriage Licences published the following: “Edward Butler, of City of Exeter, Merchant, Widr, abt 36, & Bridgett Giffard, of the same, Spr, abt 32; at Par. Ch. Of Huntsame, City of Exeter, co. Devon”.


Roger GIFFARD, b. in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 14 Feb 1646 at Chittlehampton, Devon, m1. Martha (d. 2 Oct 1685), m2. 4 Aug 1698 at Ilfracombe, Devon Dorothy STEVENS (bur. 22 Mar 1712 at St James Church, Parkham, Devon), m3. 1713 Agnes KINGFORD (daughter of Rev. William KINGFORD, a. 1733); bur. 25 Oct 1724 at St James Church, Parkham, Devon.

On 16 Dec 1663, matriculated at Wadham College, Oxford University aged 17; also in 1663, a student at Lincoln’s Inn. Roger had just one child who died in infancy, named Bridget (chr. 12 Feb 1684, bur. 25 Oct 1685), from his first marriage to Martha. On 6 Feb 1713, Roger made his will “being somewhat indisposed in Body but sound in mind”. To his wife Agnes he bequeathed “all the Corn and Grain I shall dye possessed of whether threshed or unthreshed on stubble or in Barns or in Granaries and all Corn and Grain of mine growing on my Ground at my decease and all the provisions of fflesh and victuals all Eatables and Drinkables that shall be found in my house”, and “all my Live and Dead Goods both within door and without”, also “all the Gold and Silver that shall be in her custody or possession at the time of my Death and also Ten pounds in money to be paid to her Immediately after my decease to put her into Mourning” and “all that Chattel or Lease Estate lying in Parkham Town which I had with her in marriage” as well as “all the Knot of Diamonds consisting of three parts which I presented her with in marriage”. In case of his having no heir, he made bequests to his niece Frances KENNEY (nee GIFFARD b. 1677), his great-nephews Roger GIFFARD (1702-1763), Henry GIFFARD (b. 1705) and John GIFFARD (d. 1746) and nephew Caesar GIFFARD (1682-1715); small bequests were also made to his neice-by-marriage Martha GIFFARD (nee HILL) and his servant John PECKARD, and “to every other servant of mine living in Covenant with me at my decease the sume of Ten Shillings to each”. The will’s executors were Richard YEO and William KINGFORD (rector of Parkham from 1703 to 1740); the witnesses were John REYNOLDS, Robert CORDING, William LUKE and Margaret KINGFORD; the will was proved on 9 Jun 1733 in London, several years after Roger’s death.


Margaret GIFFARD, b. 1 Feb 1648 in Brightleigh, Devon, m1. 27 Mar 1666 John KEIGWIN (b. 1644 in Mousehole, Cornwall, son of John KEIGWIN and Prudence PRAED of Trevethow; d. 1693), m2. in March 1700/1 Thomas or Robert YOUNG (chr. 28 Dec 1635, son of John YOUNG of Colebrooke and Anne); d. 22 Oct 1739.

In 1665, at the death of her father Colonel John GIFFARD, bequeathed the sum of £1000. Margaret had 15 children with her first husband John KEIGWIN: Margaret (b. 1670) who married Oliver PENDAR of Penzance; James (1672-1710); Richard (b. 1674); William (1675-1675);Thomas (1676-1677); Prudence (1677-1750/1) who married Constantine MOYLE (1670-1746); Joan (b. 1678) who married ? HITCHINGS; Elizabeth (b. 1680) who married ? BURTON; Roger (b. 1681) who married Martha STRUTTON; Anne (b. 1682) who married ? BREWER; Mary (b. 1684); William (died young); John (died young); Florence; and John (1689-1766), vicar of Landrake in Cornwall who m1. his cousin Isabella KEIGWIN and m2. Prudence BUSVARGUS (b.1691).


John GIFFARD, b. 1639 in Brightleigh, Devon, m1. in 1666 Susan BAMPFYLDE (daughter of Sir John BAMPFYLDE of Poltimore and Gertrude COPLESTONE; bur. 21 Nov 1670), m2. in 1674 Frances FANE (daughter of Rev. William FANE and Elizabeth POTT; m2. on 4 Nov 1716 at Chittlehampton, Devon, Stephen NEWELL); bur. 1712 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Eldest son and heir, John was educated at Oriel College, Oxford University. His first wife Susan BAMPFYLDE was the sister of Sir Coplestone BAMPFYLDE (1638-1691) MP for Tiverton, Justice of the Peace, High Sheriff of Devon and 2nd Baronet of Poltimore. Susan’s great-aunt Dorothy BAMPFYLDE (d. 1614, wife of John DODDERIDGE) is commemorated in the Chapel of Our Lady in Exeter Cathedral by a large and impressive effigy monument. John’s second wife Frances FANE’s grandfather was Sir Francis FANE (1580-1629), a landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1601 and 1624, then was raised to the peerage as 1st Earl of Westmorland; FANE married Mary MILDMAY (d. 1640), daughter and sole heiress of Sir Anthony MILDMAY of Apethorpe Hall in Northamptonshire, and later Countess of Westmorland; Mary had an interest in physic and was a significant author of spiritual guidance. There exist portraits of both grandparents: two of Sir Francis FANE by Cornelius JOHNSON and Frederico ZUCCARO, and two of Mary MILDMAY by unknown artists.

[Mary MILDMAY/FANE collated and transcribed her mother Grace SHERINGTON/MILDMAY’s medical works, and her “Spiritual Meditations” (which was dedicated to Mary). Mary herself wrote a “Book of Advices to the Children” for her sons, and various letters including a group of business letters sent to Emanuel College, Cambridge and a letter to Secretary of State Francis WINDEBANK advising against sending an army to Scotland in the first Bishop’s war of 1639.]

Frances’s uncle Sir Francis FANE (1611-ca.1681) was made Knight of the Bath at the coronation of King Charles I, and was later governor of Doncaster and then of Lincoln; he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1663 (and expelled in 1682). There exists a portrait of Sir Francis FANE the younger by Cornelius JOHNSON. Another uncle, Mildmay FANE (1602-1665), became 2nd Earl of Westmorland, was MP for Peterborough in 1620-2, 1626 and 1628-9 and MP for Kent in 1625; he was a Royalist during the English Civil War and imprisoned in the Tower of London; a writer of poetry and drama, he published 137 poems in a collection entitled “Otia Sacra” in 1648; he also wrote masques and stage plays. There exist portraits of Mildmay FANE, one in which he wears the sash of the Order of the Bath (of which an engraving was made by Peter WILLIAMSON), and also an etching by Wenceslaus HOLLAR.

[At the end of the 20th century a large body of verse by Mildmay FANE was identified, comprising some 500 poems composed between 1621 and 1665. His dramatic works included six “politicized entertainments” which were performed in the 1640s at his residence Apethorpe in Northamptonshire by his children and servants; FANE designed sets and stage effects and composed music for the productions. His total extant literary output includes over 900 poems and eight plays.]

Frances’s aunt Rachel FANE (1612-1680) became Countess of Bath when she married Sir Henry BOURCHIER (1587-1654) 5th Earl of Bath; six months after BOURCHIER’s death she remarried Lionell CRANFIELD (1625-1674) 3rd Earl of Middlesex and Gentleman of the Bedchamber to King Charles II; two portraits of Rachel were painted by Anthony van DYKE, and also a miniature by David des GRANGES, and there is a statue monument of her by Balthasar BURMAN in St Peter’s Church in Tawstock, Devon. (see Appendix 24). Frances’s father William FANE studied at Queen’s College, Cambridge University, was ordained at Peterborough in 1642, was a prebendary of Wells from 1661-79, and rector of Huntspill in Somerset. In 1704, John GIFFARD sold the estate of Tapeley in Westleigh to William CLEVLAND: Tapeley had passed to the Giffard estates on the marriage of Roger GIFFARD (1494-1547) to Margaret COBLEIGH (1502-1547).

[Commander William CLEVLAND (1664-1734) was a Scottish Royal Navy commander who in 1702 sailed into the port of Bideford and is said to have viewed from his ship the mansion of Tapeley which overlooks the estuary of the river Torridge. He was so impressed by the beauty of its position that in 1704 he purchased the estate from the GIFFARDs. He subsequently enlarged and remodeled the existing structure, which was again considerably altered in the 19th and early 20th centuries.]

John’s grave is marked by a floor plaque in St Hieritha’s church in Chittlehampton that bears the inscription: “Here Lyeth in hope of A Joyfull Resurrection ye Body Of John Giffard Esqr of Brightly in This parish who departed this Life in ye faith ye 2 day of …ember in ye year of our Lord God 1712 aged 74 years”.

[Children of John GIFFARD and Susan BAMPFYLDE]:

John GIFFARD, b. 1668 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 29 Jan 1668; bur. 14 May 1704 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Coplestone GIFFARD, b. 1670 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 28 Mar 1670; bur. 1690 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

[Children of John GIFFARD and Frances FANE]:

Henry GIFFARD, b. 1675 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 16 Sep 1675; bur. 1710 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Frances GIFFARD, b. 1677 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 13 Dec 1677.

Caesar GIFFARD, b. 1682 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 24 Aug 1682; d. 1715 in River Torridge, bur. 6 May 1715 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Roger GIFFARD, b. 1682 in Brightleigh, Devon.

John GIFFARD, b. 1668 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 29 Jan 1668, m. 13 Apr 1692 Margaret CLOTWORTHY (daughter of John CLOTWORTHY of Rashleigh and Elizabeth RADFORD of Northam; bur. 2 Sep 1693 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon); bur. 14 May 1704 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

John and Margaret had one daughter, Margaret (1693-1743), who married John or Edward COURTENAY of Molland; on her death Margaret GIFFARD/COURTENAY was buried at Molland in Devon where a monument was erected in her memory. John predeceased his father, and his heirs did not inherit the Brightleigh estates due to John GIFFARD senior resettling the inheritance first on his son Henry, then Caesar.


Coplestone GIFFARD, b. 1670 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 28 Mar 1670 at Chittlehampton, Devon; bur. 1690 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Coplestone predeceased his father, dying unmarried at the age of 20.


Frances GIFFARD, b. 1677 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 13 Dec 1677, m. 12 Aug 1697 at Westleigh-by-Bideford Thomas KENNEY RN (b. in Bideford, Devon; d. 9 Aug 1704 at sea).

On 5 Aug 1704, Frances’s husband made his nuncupative will: “Thomas Kenney last Captaine of her Majesties Ship Ffalmouth having been engaged in the said Ship with the Ffrench ffleete at Sea near Brest and mortally wounded in the said ffight and taken prisoner and carried on board the Ffrench Commodore Monsieur St. Paul, Did on or about the ffifth day of August in the yeare of our Lord 1704 on board the said Ship then at Sea make and declare his last will and testament by word of mouth in these or the like words viz: I give all my goods and chattells to Ffrances Kenney my wife and make her my sole Exectutrix, which words or words to the same effect the said deceased spoke with intent that the same should stand and be for and as his last Will and Testament in the presence of Richard Kenney his brother George Nation his Clerke and severall other English men, whom the said deceased desired to take notice that that was his last will and soon after dyed of his said wounds”. The will was witnessed by Richard KENNEY and George NATION.

[Thomas KENNEY’s biography appears in “Biographia Navalis” Vol 3:
“KENNEY, Thomas - was appointed second lieutenant of the Hampshire, a fourth rate, in the year 1693. On the 9th August 1695, he was promoted to the command of the Swan, a small frigate, in which he continued during the war without having an opportunity of distinguishing himself. After the accession of queen Anne he was appointed to a fifth rate and sent to the West Indies, where he was, in the year 1703, advanced to the command of the Falmouth, of forty-eight guns. This ship was taken by two French ships of war, on the 4th August 1704, after a vigorous defence, in the course of which captain Kenney was killed. This circumstance has, however, been deemed of not sufficient consequence to be taken notice of by historians, who have been silent as to this engagement.”

His death is recorded in Isaac SCHONBERG’s “Naval Chronology; or An Historical Summary of Naval & Maritime Events from the time of the Romans, to the Treaty of Peace 1802” thus: “Aug. 9. Thomas Kenney, killed, captain of the Falmouth, which was taken in action, by two French ships of war, 1704.”]

On 6 Feb 1713, Frances was named in the will of her uncle Roger GIFFARD (1645-1733): “I give and bequeath to my Heire Ffrances Kenny (if I have no Heire of my own but if I have a Son or Daughter this Legacy is void) the sume of one hundred pounds to be paid her if she be living within Twelve months after my decease and if my said Heire dye before that time be expired I give and bequeath that hundred pounds to those children of my said Heire now in being that shall be living at my decease to be equally divided among them”. Frances and Thomas had a daughter Sarah who married Richard HEWISH in 1733; and a son Thomas who died in 1772.


Caesar GIFFARD, b. 1682 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 24 Aug 1682, m. Mary MELHUISH (b. in Exeter, m2. Rev ? WILLIAMS); d. 1715 in River Torridge, bur. 6 May 1715 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Caesar’s three elder brothers, John (1668-1704), Coplestone (1670-1690) and Henry (1675-1710), all predeceased him, and according to Hardinge Frank GIFFARD: “On the death of Henry Giffard in his father’s lifetime, Caesar Giffard the younger brother, being … in the Royal Navy, hurried home and fraudulently induced his old father, John Giffard the elder, to destroy the settlement he had made on Henry and his heirs male, and to resettle the Brightleigh estates on himself, Caesar Giffard, on his marriage with one Mary Melhuish …and Caesar entered into possession some time after the death of his father, John Giffard the elder, in 1712” (Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions” 1902). On 6 Feb 1713, named in the will of his uncle Roger GIFFARD (1645-1733) as a possible heir in the event of there being no nearer next of kin. Caesar and Mary had two daughters: Rachel (1712-1790) who married Rev Thomas COLLEY, vicar of Chittlehampton; and Mary (b. 1715). Hardinge Frank GIFFARD concludes: “Caesar Giffard, however, did not prosper, but was drowned in the Torridge in 1715 … Upon the death of Caesar his trustees held the Brightleigh estates in trust for his two daughters until the younger came of age, which event occurred in 1736, when an attempt was made to sell the property with a view to dividing the proceeds between the coparceners. This attempt, however, was actively opposed by the rightful heir, John Giffard (eldest son of Henry Giffard)” (Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions” 1902). It appears that a servant also drowned with Caesar: at St Hieritha’s Church in Chittlehampton there is an exterior wall plaque to the right of the main entrance which bears the inscription: “Here Lyeth ye Body of James Spurnay Servant of Cesar Giffard Esqr of Brightly Who Departed this Life With his Master May ye 4 1715”. Caesar’s grave within the church has a memorial floor stone inscribed thus: “here lyeth ye body of Caesar giffard Esqr of Brightley who was buried ye 6th day of May Anno Dom 1715”.


Henry GIFFARD RN, b. 1675 in Brightleigh, Devon, chr. 16 Sep 1675, m. Martha HILL (b. ca. 1678 at Shirley, Charles County, Virginia, USA, daughter of Edward HILL JP and Elizabeth WILLIAMS; d. 31 Aug 1752, bur. 14 Sep 1752 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon); bur. 1710 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

In 1692, fought with the Royal Navy in the Battle of La Hogue. In 1704, following the death of his eldest brother John (who died without male issue), his father resettled the Brightleigh estates on Henry, who was next eldest surviving son. On his death in 1710, his younger brother Ceasar persuaded their father to resettle the Brightleigh estates on himself, thus debarring Henry’s children from succession. Martha HILL’s father Edward (1637-1700), who succeeded his father as owner of Shirley Plantation in Virginia USA, was treasurer of Virginia, an admiralty judge and sheriff of Charles City County. Martha’s mother Elizabeth was daughter of Sir Edward WILLIAMS of Brecknockshire, Wales.

[Shirley is one of the oldest plantations in Virginia. Mentioned in documents as early as 1611, the land was inhabited by the English by 1613 and grew tobacco for export by 1619. Colonel Edward HILL purchased the plantation in 1653 and seven years later completed building a house on the estate. After the Colonel’s death in 1663, Martha’s father Edward HILL II expanded Shirley Plantation’s commercial enterprises by completing a tannery that his father had started, building a tavern that not only provided room and board for travellers but also served as a county gaol, and increased livestock production as well as increasing the production of grain and tobacco crops. The HILL family and Shirley suffered a major setback in the summer of 1676 when Nathaniel BACON and his followers stormed the plantation in their rebellion against the Jamestown governor and the Loyalists. BACON and his men plundered the house, destroyed livestock and crops, and beat and held captive Edward, his pregnant wife, and their children. BACON’s death from dysentery and the arrival of military reinforcements from England ended the rebellion. The plantation survived to flourish again, with enslaved labour an essential part of its system.]

The mansion house at Shirley Plantation (not the original building, which was demolished in the late 1860s) is said to be haunted by a portrait of Martha HILL/GIFFARD, known to the family as “Aunt Pratt” if the painting is moved from its usual bed chamber, which faces the family cemetery, there are supposedly rocking sounds throughout the house until the portrait is returned; published accounts of Martha/Aunt Pratt’s supernatural activities appear in books and articles such as “Virginia: The Old Dominion” by Cortelle and Frank Hutchins, “The Ghosts of Virginia” by L.B. Taylor Jnr., “Haunted Plantations of Virginia” by Beth Brown, and “Haunted Places” by Dennis William Hauck.

[“When she (Martha) married an Englishman and settled in England, all she left behind was a unsigned portrait of herself. By 1858, family descendants had noticed an unusual property of the painting. Whenever Aunt Pratt’s portrait was removed from its spot on the second floor, the frame would start shaking violently. They moved it to a bedroom on the third floor, stored it in the attic, and hung it on the first floor, but the portrait was never ‘happy’ unless it was back in the second-floor bedroom. In 1974, the Virginia Tourist Office put the touchy painting on display at the Rockefeller Center with other items related to psychic phenomena in the state. Martha Hill’s portrait created quite a sensation. Spectators saw it moving constantly. It swayed back and forth so violently that other exhibits were also vibrating. The phenomenon was documented on a NBC-TV national news broadcast. The painting caused such hysteria that it was removed from the display. That did not stop Martha Hill. Dozens of office workers near the storeroom in which the painting was locked heard incessant knocking sounds coming from the room.”
(from: “Haunted Places” by Dennis William Hauck)]

On 6 Feb 1713, Martha was named in the will of Henry’s uncle Roger GIFFARD (1645-1733): “I give and bequeath to Martha Giffard the sume of Ten pounds to be paid within three months after my Decease”. At St Hieritha’s Church in Chittlehampton, in the Giffard Chapel there is a floor plaque at the foot of the Giffard Monument which bears this inscription: “Here Lyeth Martha widow of Henry Giffard Esqr Daughter of Edward Hill Esqr Judge of the Admiralty and Treasurer of Virginia, Augst 31st 1752”.


[Children of Henry GIFFARD and Martha HILL]:

John GIFFARD, b. in Devon; d. in Ireland Nov 1746, bur. 1746 at St John the Evangelist, Westminster, London.

Roger GIFFARD, b. in Devon, chr. 21 Jan 1701; bur. 1763 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

Henry GIFFARD, b. in Devon, chr. 14 Jun 1705; d. at High Bickington, Devon.

John GIFFARD, b. in Devon, m1. Elizabeth NEWMAN (widow), m2. Dorcas MURPHY (daughter of Arthur MURPHY of Olartleigh, Wexford, Ireland and Elizabeth KNOX of Tagunnan, Wexford, Ireland, widow of Francis ROBINSON of Dublin; d.1754); d. in Ireland Nov 1746, bur. 1746 at St John the Evangelist, Westminster, London.

A coroner for Devon, and known as John GIFFARD of Wotton and Great Torrington. On the death of his father in 1710, and as eldest son, deprived of his inheritance of the Brightleigh estates and usurped by his uncle Caesar GIFFARD. In 1712, on the death of his grandfather John GIFFARD, inherited estates in Atherington and High Bickington and a residence at Wotton (which eventually passed by foreclosure to a solicitor called AWSE who had lent money to John on mortgage to assist him in prosecuting his claim on Brightleigh). On 6 Feb 1713, named in the will of his great-uncle Roger GIFFARD (1645-1733) as “son of my Nephew Henry Giffard” and listed as a possible heir in the event of there being no nearer next of kin; the will also names him as one of “Three Young Cousin Giffards” (ie nephews) to whom their great-uncle bequeathed “all my Goods Chattels Leases money and Mortgages not herein before bequeathed” and authorizes his executors to “expend such money or sumes of money in the Maintenance and Duration of the last three mentioned Giffards as shall be suitable to the Quality of such Gentlemen”. In 1736, when an attempt was begun to sell the Brightleigh estates on behalf of Caesar GIFFARD’s two daughters, John actively opposed the sale “and this opposition entailed considerable litigation, which continued for many years until the death of John Giffard, the rightful heir … who at the time of his decease was actually engaged in endeavouring to assert his rights in Westminster” (Hardinge Frank Giffard: Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions” 1902). On his marriage to Dorcas MURPHY, moved to Ireland. In 1746, “Upon the death of John Giffard … a somewhat half-hearted opposition (to the misappropriation of his inheritance) was continued by the family until a sale of the Brightleigh estates was effected in or about the year 1769” (Hardinge Frank Giffard: Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions” 1902). John and Dorcas had a son: John GIFFARD of Dromartin Castle and Sheriff of Dublin (1745-1819) who married Sarah MORTON (d. 1827, daughter of William MORTON of Ballynaclash and ? Lees); John’s and Sarah’s children included Ambrose Hardinge GIFFARD (1771-1827) who was chief justice of Ceylon 1819-27 and a barrister at the Inner Temple; and Stanley Lees GIFFARD (1788-1858) who was founding editor of the London Standard newspaper.


Roger GIFFARD, b. in Devon, chr. 21 Jan 1701, m. Elizabeth GIFFARD (daughter of John GIFFARD of Morebath); bur. 1763 at St Hieritha’s Church, Chittlehampton, Devon.

In 1712, by the will of his grandfather John GIFFARD, bequeathed sufficient funds to pay for his education. On 6 Feb 1713, named in the will of his great-uncle Roger GIFFARD (1645-1733) as “son of my Nephew Henry Giffard” and listed as a possible heir in the event of there being no nearer next of kin; the will also names him as one of “Three Young Cousin Giffards” (ie nephews) to whom their great-uncle bequeathed “all my Goods Chattels Leases money and Mortgages not herein before bequeathed” and authorizes his executors to “expend such money or sumes of money in the Maintenance and Duration of the last three mentioned Giffards as shall be suitable to the Quality of such Gentlemen”. By the same will of his great-uncle Roger GIFFARD (who died without issue), Roger inherited the estate of Halsbury, which he later sold; according to Frank Hanrdinge GIFFARD: “Roger Giffard, who married Elizabeth Giffard of Morebath, and by her had a large family, appears to have been a man of great extravagance, and to this fact probably, and the needs of numerous progeny, must be attributed the necessity for selling the ancient patrimony which had been in the Giffard family for about five centuries. The sale was effected in or about the year 1750” (Devonshire Association’s “Report and Transactions” 1902). Roger and Elizabeth (his cousin) had 12 children: Jane (1724-1743); John (1725-1725) whose gravestone is propped to one side of the large Giffard monument in St Hieritha‘s church at Chittlehampton; Roger (d. 1736); Henry (1728-1729); Achilles (b. 1730) who married Elizabeth MONYMON; Elizabeth (1731-1754); Martha (1732-1733); John (1734-1799); Margaret (b. 1735); Mary (b. 1736) who married John PALMER; Anne (1740-1754); and Jane (b. 1744).


Henry GIFFARD, b. in Devon, chr. 14 Jun 1705, m. 21 Jun 1727 at Chittlehampton, Devon, Mary FAIRCHILD (chr. 30 Dec 1705 at Barnstaple, Devon, daughter of Rev George FAIRCHILD of Atherington, Devon, and Mary WATSON); d. at High Bickington, Devon.

In 1712, by the will of his grandfather John GIFFARD, bequeathed sufficient funds to pay for his education. On 6 Feb 1713, named in the will of his great-uncle Roger GIFFARD (1645-1733) as “son of my Nephew Henry Giffard” and listed as a possible heir in the event of there being no nearer next of kin; the will also names him as one of “Three Young Cousin Giffards” (ie nephews) to whom their great-uncle bequeathed “all my Goods Chattels Leases money and Mortgages not herein before bequeathed” and authorizes his executors to “expend such money or sumes of money in the Maintenance and Duration of the last three mentioned Giffards as shall be suitable to the Quality of such Gentlemen”. In 1721, subscribed to “A Miscellaneous Collection of Poems, Songs and Epigrams by Several Hands” published by T.M. GENT. In 1722, subscribed to “A Collection of Select Aphorisms and Maxims”. In 1730, subscribed to “Freedom: a poem written in time of recess, from the claws of bailiffs; to which is annexed the author’s case” by Andrew BRICE. In 1733, subscribed to “The Works of Shakespeare: Collated with the oldest copies and corrected, with notes explanatory and critical” by Lewis THEOBALD. In 1735, subscribed to “The Works of J. Swift: The Author’s Miscellanies in Prose; His Poetical Writings; The Travels of Captain Lemuel Gulliver; His Papers relating to Ireland”. In 1737, subscribed to “The Musical Century, in One Hundred English Ballads” by Henry CAREY. In 1739, subscribed to “The History of the Life of Peter the First, a description of Russia, Siberia; also the birth and rise of the Empress, with the crimes and trial of Czarewitz, son to Peter I” by John MOTTLEY. In 1744, subscribed to “A Select Collection of Old Plays” published by Robert DODSLEY. In 1744, subscribed to “History of the Life and Reign of the Empress Catherine of Russia: containing a short history of the Russian Empire” by John MOTTLEY. In 1748, subscribed to “The Works of Michael Drayton”. In 1754, subscribed to “The Works of the Late Aaron Hill, esq., in four volumes: Consisting of Letters on Various Subjects, and of Original Poems, Moral and Facetious with an Essay on the Art of Acting”. In 1759, subscribed to “The Tragedies of Sophocles, from the Greek” by Thomas FRANCKLIN. Henry was a lawyer and coroner for Devon.

[Subscription publishing is method of publication which dates back to the 17th century and which remained popular into the 18th century. It made a publisher’s investment secure before a book was printed, and subscribers would be acknowledged and named in printed lists in the book itself. In some cases, those with sufficient cash at their disposal would subscribe just to see their own name in proximity with an illustrious or royal name.]

[Children of Henry GIFFARD and Mary FAIRCHILD]:

Martha GIFFARD, chr. 17 Dec 1738 at High Bickington, Devon.

Henry GIFFARD, b. in High Bickington, Devon, chr. 27 May 1739 at St Mary Major, Exeter, Devon.

Margaret GIFFARD, b. 1741 in High Bickington, Devon, chr. 27 Apr 1741.

Elizabeth GIFFARD, b. 1743 in High Bickington, Devon, chr. 8 Feb 1743.

Martha GIFFARD, chr. 25 Jan 1746 High Bickington, Devon.

Henry GIFFARD RN, b. in High Bickington, Devon, chr. 27 May 1739 at St Mary Major, Exeter, Devon, m. Mary; a. 1797.

On 28 Aug 1879, Henry is mentioned in an article in The North Devon Journal entitled “Our Archaeological Corner”: “Henry, Lieutenant R.N., living in 1797, distinguished himself in Egypt” also “died a Lieutenant in the Navy”.

[Child of Henry GIFFARD and Mary]:


Harry GIFFARD RN, b. ca. 1769 in High Bickington, Devon, m. 5 Jan 1803 at St Mary’s Church, Portsea, Hampshire, Mary Ann MARTIN (b. 1782 in Portsea, Hampshire, daughter of Thomas MARTIN of Portsea and Sarah WITTY; d. ca. 1830); d. 21 Aug 1817 at Buckland, Dover, bur. at St Andrew’s churchyard, Buckland, Dover, Kent.

On 5 Jan 1803, at their marriage, Harry was a lieutenant of HMS Hydra and Mary Ann was of Portsea; the witnesses were Edward STEARS and Joanna WRIGHT. On 27 Sep 1817, Mary Ann was of Buckland near Dover, when it was certified by the court of assistants for managing the charity for the relief of poor widows of the Royal Navy, that “Harry Giffard late a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, died on the Twenty first day of August 1817 while serving as such on Half Pay at Buckland near Dover in Kent and has left the Bearer Mary Ann Giffard a Widow; And that, according to the best information we can get from others, and do really believe ourselves, she is not possessed of a clear Annual Income of double the Value of Fifty Pounds, and has not any Pension on the Ordinary Estimate of the Navy, or by any Grant from Government; And therefore she appears to us to be intitled to Benefit of the said Charity”; the document was signed by Henry RICE and Charles PYBUS. On 29 Sep 1817, a further document of confirmation that Mary Ann “was legally married to the said Harry Giffard … And she further maketh Oath, that she has not since been married to any other Person whatsoever”; was witnessed by H.M. LATHAM (deputy mayor), Charles PYBUS (lieutenant), and John TILLY (master). On 8 Oct 1817, it was recorded by the Navy Office that Lieutenant Harry GIFFARD had paid the usual allowance of three pence per pound towards the payment of widows pensions. At St Andrew’s churchyard in Buckland, Dover, where Harry was buried, his headstone is inscribed as follows: “Sacred to the memory of Harry Giffard Esq., late Lieutenant in His Majesty’s Royal Navy, who departed this transitory abode the 21st of November 1817, aged 48 years. Left surviving Mary Ann his Wife and four Daughters. In Christ we rest our future hope”. On 21 Mar 1829, “Mary Ann Giffard widow the natural and lawful mother of the said minor” gave consent to the marriage of her daughter Eliza to Baijer Otto SERCOMBE. On 31 Aug 1857, at his daughter Caroline’s’s second marriage to William SMITH, Harry was recorded (posth.) as a captain in the Navy.

[Children of Harry GIFFARD and Mary Ann MARTIN]:

Emma GIFFARD, b. 21 Feb 1807 in Portsea, Hampshire; d. reg. Q3 1853 at Hackney R.D., bur. 4 Aug 1853 in Abney Park Cemetery, London.

Eliza GIFFARD, chr. 11 Jun 1809 at St. Margaret‘s-at-Cliffe, Dover; d. 21 Oct 1871 at North Adelaide, South Australia.

Caroline GIFFARD, b. 1814 in Dover, chr. 11 Dec 1814 at St. Mary The Virgin, Dover, Kent.

Mary Ann GIFFARD, b. ca. 1816 in Dover, Kent; d. 1869 at Harvey Villa, Folkestone, bur. 1 Jul 1869 at Christ Church, Folkestone, Kent.

Eliza GIFFARD, chr. 11 Jun 1809 at St. Margaret‘s-at-Cliffe, Dover, m. 21 Mar 1829 at St. George Parish, Camberwell, Surrey, Baijer Otto SERCOMBE (b. ca. 1802, son of Thomas Filmore SERCOMBE, an attorney at law at Exeter then London, and Elizabeth OTTO-BAIJER; d. reg. Q4 1847 at Newington R.D., bur. 21 Dec 1847 at St. Mary, Newington, Surrey); d. 21 Oct 1871 at North Adelaide, South Australia.

On 21 Mar 1829, at her marriage, Eliza was a minor and married with the consent of her mother Mary Ann GIFFARD; the witnesses were William SERCOMBE (her future brother-in-law) and Emma GIFFARD (her sister). On 17 Jun 1831, at the baptism of her daughter Mary Giffard SERCOMBE at Manchester Cathedral, living in Manchester, Lancashire. On 14 July 1839, at the baptism of her son Henry Lipincott Giffard SERCOMBE at St Mary Parish, Haggerston, Hackney, she and Baijer were of Tile Kiln Yard, London (Henry died within three months of his birth). On 21 Dec 1847, at the burial of her husband, of New Street, Kennington, London. In 1850, Eliza sailed on the Duke of Portland to South Australia, arriving on 2 Aug. On 20 May 1851, her daughter’s marriage to Charles John BARRY (1825-1896) was reported in the London Evening Standard: “On 12th October, 1850, by the Rev. J.W. Schoales at St. John’s Church, Adelaide, South Australia, Charles John Barry, of Glenelg, Esq., to Mary Giffard, only surviving daughter of the late Baijer Otto Sercombe, Esq., of the Bank of England.” Eliza’s daughter Mary Giffard SERCOMBE/BARRY died on 6 Mar 1882 in North Adelaide, South Australia, and was buried at North Rd Church of England Cemetery, Nailsworth, Prospect City, South Australia. Mary and Charles BARRY had nine children (ie Eliza GIFFARD’s grandchildren): Eliza Mary (b.1852); Charles Frederick (1853-1929); Arthur Edward (1855-1944); Emma Giffard (b.1856); Harry Rowsell (1858-1933); Eva (1860-1937); Marian (1862-1941); Walter (1864-1894); and William Horace (1866-1956) (citation: “Burke‘s Family Records”).

[For a full record of Eliza’s husband Baijer Otto SERCOMBE, go to the SERCOMBE Family Bloodline.]


Caroline GIFFARD, b. 1814 in Dover, chr. 11 Dec 1814 at St. Mary The Virgin, Dover, Kent, m1. 5 Sep 1831 at St. Mary Magdalen, Bermondsey, Surrey, Edward SERCOMBE (chr. 6 Jan 1797 at St. Paul, Exeter, Devon, son of Thomas Filmore SERCOMBE, an attorney at law at Exeter then London, and Elizabeth OTTO-BAIJER; d. 13 Jan 1837 at Lambeth, bur. 20 Jan 1837 at Pentonville, Middlesex) m2. 31 Aug 1851 at St Olave, Bermondsey, Surrey, William SMITH (b. 11 Apr 1814, chr. 4 May 1814 at St Mary, Marylebone, London, son of William SMITH, a brewer, and Sophia, a dressmaker).

On 5 Sep 1831, at their marriage, Caroline and Edward were both of Bermondsey; the witnesses were Francis SHERLOCK, Betsy MARTIN (Caroline‘s aunt), Emma SERCOMBE (sister, nee GIFFARD), and Mary GIFFARD (mother). In 1833, at her daughter Emma Mary SERCOMBE’s baptism, of Waterloo Place, Clerkenwell, Middlesex. On 15 Apr 1835, at the baptism of her son Edmund Baijer Giffard SERCOMBE, of St. George's Terrace, Camberwell, Surrey. On 24 Sep 1836, Caroline’s husband Edward SERCOMBE was admitted by his brother Baijer SERCOMBE and W. ANDREWS to Bethlem Hospital (aka Bedlam) in Lambeth where he was diagnosed as a lunatic, but it is more probable he suffered bacterial meningitis. On 13 Jan 1837, Edward was discharged from Bethlam Hospital “Sick & Weak & Died the same night of exhaustion after chronic inflammation of the membranes of the Brain producing effusion” (citation: Bethlem Hospital Archives. A fuller account of Edward’s illness and death can be found in the SERCOMBE family bloodline). In 1851, an annuitant, of 314 Albany Rd, Camberwell, Surrey, living with her son Edmund an agar dealer (out of employ), daughter Alice, and son Arthur SERCOMBE aged 7 (born ca. 1844, some seven years after the death of Caroline’s first husband Edward SERCOMBE. The 1851 census also shows that Caroline’s immediate neighbours were the SMITH family at 313 Albany Rd, comprising the widowed Sophia and her adult children Matilda and William, Caroline’s future second husband). On 13 Jul 1851, at the baptism of her daughter Louisa Caroline, of Albany Rd, Camberwell; William SMITH is named as father. 31 Aug 1851, at her marriage to William SMITH, a widow of Tooley Street; William was an attorney’s clerk and the witnesses were Edmund SERCOMBE (her son) and A.S. PALMER. On 26 Aug 1855, at the baptism of her son Stanley William SMITH, of Walworth. In 1861, of 105 Gloucester Terrace, Camberwell, living with her husband William, an attorney’s clerk, and children Louisa C and Stanley W. In 1871, of 2 Upper Wellington St, Camberwell, living with her husband William, a solicitor’s clerk, and children Caroline Louisa, and Stanley William. In 1881, of 15 Ossory Rd, Camberwell, living with her husband William, a solicitor’s clerk, and children Stanley W, a solicitor’s clerk, Louisa, and Edmund SERCOMBE, a clerk. Caroline had six children: Emma Mary SERCOMBE (1832-1845); Edmund Baijer Giffard SERCOMBE (b.1834) who married Emma Maria JACKSON (b.1841); Alice Lees Eliza SERCOMBE (1836-1911) who married Arthur Edward JACKSON (b. 1837); Arthur SERCOMBE (b. 1844); Louisa Caroline SMITH (1851-1936) who married Arthur BURGESS (b.1853); and Stanley William SMITH (b.1855).

[For a full record of Caroline’s first husband Edward SERCOMBE, go to the SERCOMBE Family Bloodline.]


Mary Ann GIFFARD, b. ca. 1816 in Dover, Kent, m. 5 Jun 1830 at St George Parish, Camberwell, Surrey, Stanley Lees GIFFARD (a widower, b. 4 Aug 1788 in Dublin, Ireland, son of John GIFFARD of Dromartin Castle and Sarah MORTON of Ballynaclash, Ireland, m1. Susanna Meares MORAN; d. 6 Nov 1858 in Folkestone, Kent, bur. at Cheriton Rd Cemetery, Folkestone, Kent); d. 1869 at Harvey Villa, Folkestone, bur. 1 Jul 1869 at Christ Church, Folkestone, Kent.

On 5 Jun 1830, on her marriage to her cousin Stanley, he was of St James Clerkenwell and a widower; the witnesses were B. SERCOMBE (Baijer Otto SERCOMBE, her brother-in-law) and Eliza SERCOMBE (nee GIFFARD, her sister and Baijer’s wife). Stanley Lees GIFFARD and Mary Ann were cousins of different generations, he being 28 years her senior. They are both directly descended from Henry GIFFARD (1675-1710) and Martha HILL (1678-1752), who are great-grandparents to Stanley and great-great-grandparents to Mary Ann. Stanley trained in the law and was called to the Bar in 1811, although his practice was not particularly successful; he began a journalistic career as political writer on the St James’s Chronicle, becoming its editor in 1819. In 1827, Charles BALDWIN launched the Standard newspaper and appointed Stanley as the first editor, a post in which he remained for 30 years; under his editorship the paper became recognized as London’s most reactionary voice. Stanley had six children by his first marriage to Susanna Meares MORAN: John Walter de Longueville (1817-1888) who married Emilie SCOTT (1828-1909); Sara Lees (1817-1890) who married Joseph Houston Browne (d.1860); Rev Francis Osborn (1818-1894) who married Anna Maria RYAN (1821-1893); Hardinge Stanley (1823-1921) who married 1st Carolina Louisa HUMPHREYS (1822-1873) and 2nd Wilhelmina WOODFALL (1850-1927); Stanley (b.1824); and Susanna Meares (1828-1877).

[Sir Hardinge Stanley GIFFARD was famous in his time as a lawyer and politician. He served three times as Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, had a large practice at the central criminal court and the Middlesex sessions, and was engaged in most of the celebrated trials of his time. He became Queen’s counsel in 1865 and a bencher of the Inner Temple. In 1875 he was appointed solicitor-general by DISRAELI. On his elevation to the peerage in 1885 he was created Baron Halsbury, and in 1898 was created Earl of Halsbury and Viscount Tiverton.]

On 8 Jul 1832, at the joint baptism of Mary Ann’s son Harry Stanley and step-daughter Susannah Mears, of 12 Penton St, her husband Stanley was a barrister at law. In 1851, of 39 Myddelton Square, Clerkenwell, London, living with her husband Stanley Lees, a barrister (not practicing), step-children Stanley S, a barrister, and Susannah M, her children Harry, Mary, Richard P and Katherine S, and servants Elizabeth MARTIN, cook, and Mary MARTIN, housemaid. On 11 Jun 1852, at the late joint baptisms of their children Mary Lees, Richard Plantagenet and Katherine Stanley, of Myddelton Square, Stanley was a barrister.

[“Myddelton Square is the largest square in Clerkenwell. Its amplitude and its plain stylistic cohesiveness provide a stately precinct for a substantial church … Stanley Lees Giffard, newspaper editor, [was] first occupant of No. 39, where he stayed until 1857.”
(from: British History Online, survey of London Vol. 47, Northern Clerkenwell to Pentonville) (see Appendix 25)

“At No. 39, in this square … for some years resided Stanley Lees Giffard, LLD, a barrister and journalist. He was born about the year 1790 [sic], and was educated a Trinity College, Dublin. On the completion of his studies he came to London for the purpose of pursuing his profession of the law. After some practice as a barrister he became, in 1819, the editor of the ‘St. James’s Chronicle’, and in 1827 of the old ‘Standard’, which was originated by him for the purpose of supplying the Protestant party of that time with a daily organ, which should occupy the hiatus left in the press by the defection of the ‘Courier’, when that journal adopted a new creed. Dr. Giffard was a ripe scholar, a diligent Hebraist, and an able Biblical critic. He was related by his first marriage to the widow of the Right Hon. John Wilson Croker, some years after whose decease Giffard married his cousin, by whom, as by his first wife, he had several children, who survived him. In 1857 he removed from Myddelton-square, and went to reside at Folkestone, Kent, where he died, on the 6th November, 1858, at the advanced age of seventy. Dr. Giffard wrote several articles on public questions in the ‘Quarterly Review’, and at one time was a leading contributor to the ‘Morning Herald’. For upwards of forty years of his life he was a great book collector, but especially of the works in illustration of the history of Ireland. Since the time of Swift we have had no political writer, who, in force of style and genuine Saxon simplicity of language, had equalled Dr. Giffard.”
(from: “The History of Clerkenwell - Chapter 15: the district of the parish church of St. Mark, Clerkenwell” by William J. PINKS 1881)]

A group portrait painting by an unknown artist, in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery London, entitled “Stanley Lees Giffard and his Family” depicts Stanley and Mary Ann with five children; Stanley’s son by his first marriage, Hardinge Stanley GIFFARD is identified as the child standing to the right of his father. On 13 Nov 1858, Stanley’s obituary was published in the Illustrated London News: “Death of Dr. Giffard. - The Morning Herald announces the death at Folkestone, in Kent, of Stanley Lees Giffard, Esq., LLD, of Trinity College, Dublin, and of the Middle Temple, barrister-at-law; but who was much better known as having exercised for more than a quarter of a century the office of editor of the Standard. Dr. Giffard is believed by his friends ‘to have rendered great support to Evangelical religion in the Church of England, the general advancement of Protestant truth, and the dissemination of Conservative opinions’. Dr. Giffard was born in Dublin on the 4th August 1788; and died at Folkestone, of cancer, on the 6th of the present month.” On 28 Dec 1858, probate was granted for Stanley’s estate, with effects valued under £2000: “Letters of Administration of the Personal estate and effects of Stanley Lees Giffard late of Folkestone in the County of Kent Esquire Barrister-at-Law and D.C.L. deceased who died 6 November 1858 at Folkestone aforesaid were granted at the Principal Registry to Mary Ann Giffard of Folkestone aforesaid Widow and Relict of the said Deceased she having first sworn”. In 1861, a widow and householder of Carlyle House, 64 Cheriton Terrace East Side, Folkestone, Kent, living with her children Mary Lees, also householder, Richard Plantagenet, of no profession, and servants Elizabeth B GOODMAN, cook, and Sarah Ann GOODMAN, housemaid. Mary Ann and Stanley had four children: Harry Stanley (1832-1912) who married Alice Jane ADAMS (1841-1899) (Harry was a barrister. He lived at 22 Kensington Park Gardens, London, and died at Hotel Metropole Brighton; at probate his estate was valued at £11,031); Mary Lees Fane (1834-1885) who married Rajendra Chandra Chandra (1833-1895) (Rajendra was born in Calcutta, India, was brigade surgeon and lieutenant-colonel in HM Indian army and a freemason. After Mary’s death he remarried and on his own death was of 24 Devonshire Terrace, Hyde Park, with an estate valued at £20,000); Richard Plantagenet (1836-1879) (Richard lived in Clive, New Zealand from ca. 1870 until his death); and Katharine Stanley (1839-1857).


Emma GIFFARD, b. 21 Feb 1807 in Portsea, Hampshire, m. 2 Jul 1831 at St. Mary Magdalen, Bermondsey, Surrey, William Goode SERCOMBE (b. ca. 1801 at Exeter, son of Thomas Filmore SERCOMBE, an attorney at law at Exeter then London, and Elizabeth OTTO-BAIJER; d. 24 Feb 1869, d. reg. Q1 1869 at Hackney R.D., bur. with Emma at Abney Park Cemetery); d. reg. Q3 1853 at Hackney R.D., bur. 4 Aug 1853 in Abney Park Cemetery, London.

At their marriage in 1831, Emma and William were both of Bermondsey; the witnesses were Betsy MARTIN (Emma’s aunt) and Caroline GIFFARD (Emma’s sister). At her sons' baptisms respectively in 1835 (William), 1836 (Walter), and 1838 (Henry), of Diddington Place, Pentonville, Middlesex; William was a clerk in the Bank of England. On 25 Nov 1840, at her daughter Mary Elizabeth’s baptism, of Diddington Place; William was a gentleman. In 1841, of Diddington Place, Islington, Middlesex, living with her husband William, a clerk, their children William, Henry, and Elizabeth, and Eliza MAYNARD, a servant. On 22 May 1842, at her son Stanley's baptism, of Diddington Place; William was a gentleman. On 18 August 1843, at her son Horatio's baptism, of 2 Diddington Place; William was a gentleman. In 1851, of 16 Shacklewell Street, West Hackney, living with her husband William, a clerk in the Bank of England, and their children William, Elizabeth, Horatio, and Emma. On 11 Apr 1852, at her daughter Mary Emma's baptism, of Shacklewell Lane, West Hackney; William was a clerk in the Bank of England. On Sep 1853, the Gentleman's Magazine reported Emma's death: "July 30 ... At Stamford-hill, aged 46, Emma, wife of Wm. Goode Sercombe, esq. of the Bank of England, and daughter of the late Captain H. S. Giffard, R.N.”

[For a full record of Emma’s husband William Goode SERCOMBE, and also their children listed below, go to the SERCOMBE Family Bloodline.]

[Children of Emma GIFFARD and William Goode SERCOMBE]:


William Harry Giffard SERCOMBE, b. 28 Apr 1834 at Islington, chr. 5 Apr 1835 at Pentonville, m. 27 Sep 1866 at St. Giles, Camberwell, Ellen Mary CARTWRIGHT (b. ca. 1840 at Lambeth, chr. 18 Apr 1841 at St. John The Evangelist, Lambeth, daughter of John CARTWRIGHT, a tailor, d. 18 May 1899 at Brighton, Sussex); d. 15 Feb 1875 at Sidmouth, Devon.


Walter Giffard SERCOMBE, b. 16 Jun 1836, chr. 20 Jul 1836 at Pentonville Church, Clerkenwell; d. 1839 at Islington R.D., bur. 8 Aug 1839 at Pentonville.


Elizabeth Mary Ann or Mary Elizabeth SERCOMBE, b. 2 Oct 1840 at Islington, chr. 25 Nov 1840 at Pentonville, m. 25 Sep 1862 at St. Giles, Camberwell, her first cousin Edward William SERCOMBE, a widower (b. 24 Dec 1825, chr. 22 Feb 1829, son of Isaac Henry SERCOMBE, a solicitor’s clerk, and Elizabeth Grace NOTTLE; d. 25 Oct 1885, d. reg. Q4 1885 at City of London); d. 31 Dec 1906 at 43 Cornwallis Gardens, Hastings.


Stanley Giffard SERCOMBE, b. 2 May 1842, chr. 22 May 1842 at Pentonville, Middlesex, d. reg. Q3 1842 at Islington R.D., bur. 28 Jul 1842 at Pentonville.


Horatio Walter Giffard SERCOMBE, b. ca. 1843 at Islington or Battle Bridge or Caledonian Road or Clerkenwell, chr. 18 Aug 1843 at All Saints, Battle Bridge, Caledonian Road, Islington, Middlesex, m. 27 Mar 1870 at St. Mary Magdalen, Bermondsey, Ellen Mary A. ONGLEY (b. ca. 1849 at Camberwell or Lambeth, daughter of Henry ONGLEY, a gentleman; d. 2 March1939 at Lewisham, Kent, bur. Hither Green Cemetery, Kent); d. 24 Nov 1915 in London, bur. 29 Nov 1915 at Hither Green Cemetery, Kent.


Mary Emma or Emma Mary SERCOMBE, b. ca. 1848 at Islington, chr. 11 Apr 1852 at West Hackney, Middlesex, m. 15 Sep 1878 at St. Stephen Coleman Street, London, William Henry CROWLEY (b. ca. 1844 in London, son of William CROWLEY, a builder; d. 21 Nov 1890); d. 26 Apr 1913.


Henry Auton Giffard SERCOMBE, b. 5 Apr 1838 at Islington, Middlesex, chr. 2 May 1838 at Pentonville, m. 6 Jan 1859 at St. Mary Magdalene, Bermondsey, Mary Hannah (or Ann) KING (b. 29 Nov 1837 in Newington, Surrey, daughter of Richard KING, an accountant, and Mary HESTER, a Quaker; m2. 29 Mar 1869 at St. George Parish, Camberwell, Stephen BREED, of Old Kent Road, Surrey, son of Edward BREED; d. 21 Nov 1874 at Peckham, Surrey); d. before 1869, probably by 1861.

[Only child of Henry Auton Giffard SERCOMBE and Mary Hannah KING]:

Mary Emma SERCOMBE, b. 30 Sep 1859 at 8 Alma Terrace, Mawbey Road, Peckham, b. reg. 24 Mar 1860 at Camberwell R.D., m. 14 Jun 1884 at All Saints, Newington, Surrey, George TREE (b. ca. 1857 at Southwark, son of George TREE, a basket maker, and Priscilla BAKER; d. 1942 at Foots Cray, Kent, d. reg. Dec 1942 at Bromley, Kent); d. 11 Nov 1922 at Locksbottom House, Farnborough, d. reg. 13 Nov 1922 at Bromley R.D.

[For a full record of Mary Emma SERCOMBE, go to the SERCOMBE and TREE family bloodlines.]