Thomas Westcote (c. 1567 – c. 1637) (''alias'' Westcott) of Raddon in the parish of

Shobrooke Shobrooke is a village, parish and former manor in Devon, England. The village is situated about 1 1/2 miles north-east of Crediton. It is located close to Shobrooke park. The river Shobrooke Lake flows through the village. It had a populatio ...

in Devon, was an English historian and topographer of

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

Biography

He was baptised at

in Devon on 17 June 1567. He was the third son of Philip Westcote (died 1601) of West Raddon in the parish of Shobrooke, by his wife Katharine Waltham, a daughter of George Waltham of Brenton in the parish of

Exminster Exminster is a village situated on the southern edge of the City of Exeter on the western side of the Exeter ship canal and River Exe in the county of Devon, England. It is around south of the centre of Exeter, and has a population of 3,084 (c ...

, Devon. In his youth he was a soldier, traveller, and courtier, but in middle age he retired to a country life, probably living at West Raddon with his eldest brother, Robert. In 1624 he held a lease of Thorn Park in the parish of

Holcombe Burnell Holcombe Burnell is a civil parish in Devon, England, the church of which is about 4 miles west of Exeter City centre. There is no village clustered around the church, rather the nearest village within the parish is Longdown. Only the manor ho ...

. Westcote interested himself in local antiquities, encouraged by his friendships with fellow Devonshire historians Sir

William Pole William Pole FRS FRSE MICE (22 April 181430 December 1900) was an English engineer, astronomer, musician and an authority on Whist. Life He was born in Birmingham on 22 April 1814, the son of Thomas Pole. Pole was apprenticed as an engineer t ...

(1561–1635) and

Tristram Risdon Tristram Risdon (c. 1580 – 1640) was an English antiquarian and topographer, and the author of ''Survey of the County of Devon''. He was able to devote most of his life to writing this work. After he completed it in about 1632 it circulated ar ...

(1580–1640). He aimed at a description of Devon, following the model of the ''Survey of Cornwall'' by Richard Carew (1555–1620) published in 1602. He was encouraged in his project by

Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath (baptised 1 March 1590Cokayne, ''The Complete Peerage'', new edition, Vol II, p. 18 – died 31 March 1636). Origins He was born in Somerset, the eldest son and heir of William Bourchier, 3rd Earl of Ba ...

, of Tawstock Court, and compiled two collections: ''A View of Devonshire'', in which, after a general discussion on the history of the county, he gave a topographical account of its condition in about 1630; and the ''Pedigrees of most of our Devonshire Families'', a compilation of genealogical information, deemed by later commentators as inaccurate and unreliable. The two works were published in Exeter in 1845, under the editorship of George Oliver and Pitman Jones. He married Mary Roberts (died 1666), eldest daughter and coheiress of Richard Roberts of

Combe Martin Combe Martin is a village, civil parish and former manor on the North Devon coast about east of Ilfracombe. It is a small seaside resort with a sheltered cove on the northwest edge of the Exmoor National Park. Due to the narrowness of the ...

, Devon. By her he had one son and heir, Philip Westcott (1614-1647/8),Vivian, p.779 and five daughters. Westcote was buried at Shobrooke, the date of his death being uncertain, as the register of burials between May 1639 and July 1644 is missing.

References

;Sources * Dictionary of National Biography, London, 1885–1900, biography of "Westcote, Thomas" {{DEFAULTSORT:Westcote, Thomas 1567 births 1637 deaths English antiquarians Topographers of Devon Historians of Devon