Charles Boutell (1 August 1812 – 31 July 1877) was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
archaeologist
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
,
antiquary
An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifacts, archaeological and historic sit ...
and clergyman, publishing books on
brasses, arms and armour and
heraldry, often illustrated by his own drawings.
Life
Boutell was born at
Pulham St Mary
Pulham Saint Mary is a rural village and civil parish in Norfolk, that lies next to the village of Pulham Market. It is situated approximately northeast of Diss and south of Norwich, covers an area of and a population of 892 at the 2011 censu ...
, Norfolk, the son of the Rev. Charles Boutell. He entered
St John's College, Cambridge, and graduated BA in 1834. In 1836 he took his MA at
Trinity College, Oxford. Having served briefly as curate of
Hemsby
Hemsby is a village, seaside resort and civil parish in the county of Norfolk, England. It is situated some north of the town of Great Yarmouth.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS Explorer Map OL40 - The Broads''. .
In the 2001 census Hemsby had a ...
, Norfolk, and then curate of
St Leonard's Church, Sandridge
St Leonard's Church is in Sandridge, a village in Hertfordshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church. The building is Grade II* listed: notable features include its chancel arch made from recycled Roman brick.
History
Some sort of s ...
, Hertfordshire (1837–46), during which period, in 1839, he was ordained priest. He was subsequently rector of
Downham Market
Downham Market, sometimes simply referred to as Downham, is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It lies on the edge of the Fens, on the River Great Ouse, approximately 11 miles south of King's Lynn, 39 miles west of Norwich and 3 ...
(1847–1850) and vicar of
Wiggenhall St Mary Magdalen
Wiggenhall St Mary Magdalen is a civil parish and village in the English county of Norfolk. It is south of the town of King's Lynn on the west bank of the River Great Ouse. It covers an area of and had a population of 729 in 304 households in t ...
, Norfolk (1847–55). After moving to London in 1855 he held various positions, including reader at
St Luke's,
Lower Norwood, Surrey (1860–67).
He was secretary of the St Albans Architectural Society, founded in 1845; and was one of the founders in 1855 of the
London and Middlesex Archaeological Society
The London and Middlesex Archaeological Society (LAMAS) is a society founded in 1855 for the study of the archaeology and local history of the City of London and the historic county of Middlesex. It also takes an interest in districts that were ...
. During the first forty years of the
Surrey Archaeological Society
Surrey Archaeological Society is a county archaeological society, founded in 1854 for "the investigation of subjects connected with the history and antiquities of the County of Surrey" in England.
Remit
The Society concerns itself with "the Cou ...
, Boutell appeared regularly as lecturer at the Society's annual excursions.
Among Boutell's several publications, ''A Manual of Heraldry, Historical and Popular'' (1863) was particularly successful. A second edition was called for in two months (published under the revised title, ''Heraldry, Historical and Popular''), and a third edition appeared in 1864. Boutell also published a shorter companion work, ''English Heraldry'' (1867), which appeared in a second edition in 1871, and in several later editions including those revised by S.T. Aveling in 1892 and by
A.C. Fox-Davies in 1907. The two works had become standard popular heraldic handbooks, and in 1931 a book entitled ''Boutell's Manual of Heraldry'' was published, edited by V. Wheeler-Holohan, which drew on both Boutell's originals. Later revisions, now simply entitled ''Boutell's Heraldry'', were edited by
C.W. Scott-Giles (1950, 1954, 1958, 1963 and 1966) and
J.P. Brooke-Little (1963, 1966, 1970, 1973, 1978 and 1983).
Financial difficulties
Boutell served as Honorary Secretary of the London and Middlesex Archaeological Society from 23 July to 27 November 1857, but was dismissed for what was termed "improper" bookkeeping, involving the amount of £56 15s received in subscription fees. According to
Charles Roach Smith
Charles Roach Smith (20 August 1807 – 2 August 1890), FSA, was an English antiquarian and amateur archaeologist who was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, and the London Numismatic Society. He was a founding member of ...
, he subsequently suffered from a "similar lapse" in relation to the Surrey Archaeological Society. In 1868 he was imprisoned for debt, and in December of that year was declared bankrupt.
[Lee 2004.]
Death
Boutell died of a ruptured heart on 31 July 1877, following two years of declining health. He was buried at Paddington Old Cemetery,
Kilburn.
Family
He married Mary
Chevallier
Chevallier is a French surname. The word originated during the Middle Ages when it denoted a knight. There are multiple variations of this name, including Chevalier. Notable people with the surname include:
*Alain Chevallier (c. 1948–2016), Fren ...
(1809–1885), daughter of John Chevallier and Caroline Hepburn.
Their children were:
*Caroline Ellen Alice Boutell (1843–1882), married Nathanael Fromanteel Cobbold (1839–1886), son of
John Cobbold (1797–1882)
John Chevallier Cobbold (24 August 1797 – 6 October 1882) was a British brewer, railway developer and Conservative Party politician.
Background
Cobbold was the son of John Wilkinson Cobbold and Harriet, daughter of Temple Chevallier (a pr ...
, of the
brewery family
*Charles John Boutell
*Mary Chevallier-Boutell
*Arthur Brandon Chevallier-Boutell (1849–1923)
*
Sir Francis Hepburn Chevallier-Boutell (1851–1937)
Works
*
Monumental Brasses and Slabs' (1847)
*''The monumental brasses of England'' – (George Bell, 1849)
Open Library
/ref>
*''Christian Monuments in England & Wales'' – (George Bell, 1854)
*''A Manual of British Archaeology'' – Printed by Savill & Edwards (Lovell Reeve, London, 1858)
''Heraldry, Historical and Popular'', 3rd Edition, London, 1864
*
' - Cassell, Petter, and Galpin, (London and New York, 1867)
*
Arms and Armour in Antiquity and the Middle Ages: also a Descriptive Notice of Modern Weapons
' Translated from the French of Paul Lacombe (1834–1919), (New York, C. Scribner & Co., 1871)
*''A Bible dictionary for the use of all readers and students of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments of the books of the Apocrypha'' – (E. Moxon, 1871)
*''The Arts and the Artistic Manufactures of Denmark''
''The Handbook to English Heraldry''
- edited by Arthur Charles Fox-Davies, wood engravings by Robert Brooke Utting (Reeves & Turner, 1914)
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boutell, Charles
1812 births
1877 deaths
19th-century British archaeologists
British heraldists
People from South Norfolk (district)