John Anstis (17 November 1708 – 5 December 1754) was an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London.

Biography

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

, and was the seventh child and eldest son of John Anstis and his wife, Elizabeth. He was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and privately by

Michael Maittaire Michel Maittaire (also Michael) (1668 – 7 September 1747) was a French-born classical scholar and bibliographer in England, and a tutor to Lord Philip Stanhope. He edited an edition of Quintus Curtius Rufus, later owned by Thomas Jefferson. His ...

. He graduated from

Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517, it is the 12t ...

, in 1725. In May of that year he was made

genealogist Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kins ...

of the newly created

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

. On 6 October 1727, he was appointed

Blanc Coursier Herald Blanc Coursier Herald was an officer of arms in England in the 18th and 19th centuries, associated with the Order of the Bath. The name of the office derives from the white horse in the arms of the Hanoverian monarchs. One of the main motivations ...

. This was a new office attached to that of the genealogist and first companion of the order; this creation was the work of his father, who had risen to the post of Garter Principal King of Arms. Later in 1727, Anstis was created joint Garter with his father and in 1733 he accompanied him to

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

to invest the Prince of Orange with the Order of the Garter. In 1736 he was made a fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...

and he became the sole Garter King of Arms on his father's death in 1744. In 1749, he became a barrister of the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

, although he never practised law. The younger Anstis died a bachelor on 5 December 1754 at his house in

Mortlake Mortlake is a suburban district of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes. Historically it was part of Surrey and until 1965 was in the Municipal Borough of Barnes. For many cen ...

, Surrey, and was buried at

Duloe, Cornwall Duloe ( kw, Dewlogh (Eng. 'Two Rivers')) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately four miles (6 km) south of Liskeard at . The village of Herodsfoot and the hamlets of Churchbridge, ...

Arms

External links

The College of Arms

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * John Anstis. ''The Register of the Most Noble Order of the Garter''. (London, 1724). * Edward Cruickshanks. ''Anstis, John''. Parliament Records (London, 1715–54). * Walter H Godfrey and

Sir Anthony Wagner Sir Anthony Richard Wagner (6 September 1908 – 5 May 1995) was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He served as Garter Principal King of Arms before retiring to the post of Clarenceux King of Arms. He was one of ...

, ''The College of Arms, Queen Victoria Street: being the sixteenth and final monograph of the London Survey Committee''. (London, 1963). *

Mark Noble Mark James Noble (born 8 May 1987) is an English former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder and is well remembered for his time at English club West Ham United, spending eighteen years with the club. Apart from two sh ...

, ''A History of the College of Arms''. (London, 1805). * Anthony Wagner and Albert Rowse. ''John Anstis: Garter King of Arms'' (London, 1992). * Nicolas, Nicholas H. ''History of the Orders of Knighthood of the British Empire, Vol III''. (London, 1842). * Gandell, H.L. (January 1970). "Blanc Coursier's Tabard". The Coat of Arms XI (81): 11. * Sir Anthony Wagner. ''A Catalogue of English Mediaeval Rolls of Arms''. Harleian Society (London, 1950). * Sir Anthony Wagner. ''Heralds of England: a History of the Office and College of Arms''. (London, 1967). {{DEFAULTSORT:Anstis, younger, John 1708 births 1754 deaths Antiquarians from London English genealogists Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Members of the Middle Temple English officers of arms Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Garter Principal Kings of Arms People educated at Westminster School, London

Biography

Arms

See also

External links

References