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Denys Rolle ( – 26 June 1797) was a British politician and landowner who was an independent member of parliament for
Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from ...
between 1761 and 1774. He inherited a large number of estates and by the time of his death he was the largest landowner in Devon. He was a philanthropist and generous benefactor to charities and religious societies. Rolle spent much of his life in
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
attempting to establish an "ideal society", a
utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
n colony of British settlers named Rollestown or Charlotta. The project was a failure and Rolle recorded his colonial adventure in great detail in a lengthy official complaint made in 1765 to the British government entitled ''The Humble Petition of Denys Rolle, Esq., Setting Forth the Hardships, Inconveniences, and Grievances Which Have Attended Him in His Attempts to Make a Settlement in East Florida, Humbly Praying Such Relief as in their Lordships Wisdom Shall Seem Meet''. His colonists having failed to live up to his ambitious expectations and having largely deserted him, he turned to
slave labour Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
and following the loss of Florida as a British possession in 1783 he moved his colony to a smaller site on
Exuma Exuma is a district of the Bahamas, district of The Bahamas, consisting of over 365 islands and Cay, cays. The largest of the islands is Great Exuma, which is 37 mi (60 km) in length and joined to another island, Little Exuma, by a small bridge ...
in the Bahama Islands.


Life and family

The Rolle family was one of the richest and most powerful in Devon and owned several dozen manors, their most ancient holding being
Stevenstone Stevenstone is a former Manorialism, manor within the parish of St Giles in the Wood, near Great Torrington, North Devon. It was the chief seat of the Rolle family, one of the most influential and wealthy of Devon families, from c. 1524 un ...
near Great Torrington in the north of the county, whilst Bicton (inherited from the Denys family, after whom he was named) in the south-east was the centre of another large block of territory.


Early life

Denys Rolle was the youngest of four sons of John Rolle (1679–1730), of Bicton and Stevenstone, by his wife Isabella Charlotte Walter, daughter of Sir William Walter, 2nd Baronet of Sarsden, Oxfordshire. His eldest brother was Henry Rolle, 1st Baron Rolle (died 1759) of Stevenstone, whose heir was his next younger brother
John Rolle Walter John Rolle Walter (c. 1714 – 30 November 1779) (born John Rolle) was Tory MP for Exeter in 1754–1776 and for Devon in 1776–1779. He held the honorary position of Town Recorder of Great Torrington in 1739–1779, due to his family's l ...
(c. 1714 – 1779), who was a
Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...
MP. Denys was baptised on 19 July 1725 in St Giles's Church,
St Giles in the Wood St Giles in the Wood is a village and civil parish in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The village lies about 2.5 miles east of the town of Great Torrington, and the parish, which had a population of 566 in 2001 compared with 623 in 1901, ...
, the parish church of Stevenstone. He
matriculated Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used now ...
at
New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...
on 19 January 1742, at the age of 16. He was named after his cousin Denys Rolle (1614–1638), of Stevenstone, who had inherited Bicton and other lands from his mother Ann Denys, a co-heiress of the ancient Devon family of Denys of Holcombe Burnell.


Marriage and children

On 22 May 1750 in East Down, Devon, Denys Rolle married Anne Chichester (1721–1781), a daughter (by his second wife) of Arthur Chichester (1670-1737/8) of
Hall, Bishop's Tawton Hall is a large estate within the parish and former manor of Bishop's Tawton, Devon. It was for several centuries the seat of a younger branch of the prominent and ancient North Devon family of Chichester of Raleigh, near Barnstaple. The m ...
, Devon, a junior line of the ancient and prominent Chichester family of
Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...
. By Anne he had the following children:Vivian, "Pedigree of Rolle", p.656 *
John Rolle, 1st Baron Rolle John Rolle, 1st Baron Rolle (1750 – 3 April 1842) was a British politician and peer who served as a Member of Parliament in general support of William Pitt the Younger and was later an active member of the House of Lords. His violent ...
(1751–1842), eldest son and heir, baptised at Chittlehampton *Denys Bruce Rolle (born 1758), presumed died young, baptised at Chittlehampton *Samuel Rolle (born 1759), presumed died young, baptised at Chittlehampton *Isabella Henrietta Charlotte Rolle (1754–1770), eldest daughter, died aged 16, baptised at Chittlehampton *Anne Rolle (1755–1842), 2nd daughter, baptised at East Tytherley, died 16 June 1842 aged 87. In her old age she was allowed by her brother Lord Rolle to live with her sister Lucilla at Hudscott *Lucilla Rolle (1757–1851), baptised at East Tytherley, died 24 July 1851 aged 94. In her old age she was allowed by her brother Lord Rolle to live with her sister Anne at Hudscott but after the latter's death and the death of Lord Rolle both in 1842 she was declared a lunatic in 1846. *Christiana Philippa Maria Rolle (1759–1831), died 3 February 1831, Aged 72. *Florence Rolle (born 1762)


Character

A modest man, considered eccentric, his favourite pastime was to perform the work of a common farm-labourer. He was puritanical in morals, opposing ale-houses, cockfighting and bear-baiting, and was humane and tender towards animals claiming a special kinship with wildlife. He has also been described by Theresa Ann White as stubborn, high-handed, irascible, litigious, and a megalomaniac, even stupid, and lacking diplomatic skills.


Parliamentary career

Rolle was elected MP for Barnstaple in 1761 but after 1764 most of his time was occupied by his colony in Florida rather than Barnstaple or national politics. He was re-elected in 1768. Although not attached to any party, Rolle voted with the Opposition when he was at Parliament but seems not to have spoken in the House. He lost his seat at the general election of 1774 being defeated by William Devaynes, a supporter of the government.


Property in England


Inheritances

As the fourth son Denys Rolle had been born with no expectation of inheriting the vast Rolle estates of his father. He had been provided for his residence with the Rolle manor of Beam near
Great Torrington Great Torrington (often abbreviated to Torrington, though the villages of Little Torrington and Black Torrington are situated in the same region) is a market town in Devon, England. Parts of it are sited on high ground with steep drops down to ...
. However he received a three-fold inheritance which, together with his own land purchases around
Otterton Otterton is a village and civil parish in East Devon, England. The parish lies on the English Channel and is surrounded clockwise from the south by the parishes of East Budleigh, Bicton, Colaton Raleigh, Newton Poppleford and Harpford and Sidmo ...
in South Devon, meant that on his death he was the largest land owner in the county of Devon, the second largest county in England, with a rent-roll of £40,000 ''per annum''. His eldest brother Henry Rolle, 1st Baron Rolle (died 1759) had inherited his paternal estates in 1730 but died childless in 1759. His younger brother
John Rolle Walter John Rolle Walter (c. 1714 – 30 November 1779) (born John Rolle) was Tory MP for Exeter in 1754–1776 and for Devon in 1776–1779. He held the honorary position of Town Recorder of Great Torrington in 1739–1779, due to his family's l ...
(c. 1714–1779) was his heir. In 1731, at the age of 17, John inherited the Oxfordshire lands of his childless uncle Sir Robert Walter, 4th Baronet (1680–1731), of Sarsden in Oxfordshire and had changed his name to Walter, as required by the bequest. The third brother, William Rolle (1720 – c.1747) of Beam, died childless some time after 1747 which left Denys Rolle as the heir to the Rolle and Walter lands. Denys also inherited the estate of Hudscott in the parish of Chittlehampton, Devon, from his distant childless cousin Samuel Rolle (1704–1747) son and heir of Samuel Rolle (1669–1735) of Hudscott, MP for
Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from ...
. This inheritance included a moiety of the manor of
Countisbury Countisbury is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Brendon and Countisbury, in the North Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is on Exmoor, roughly two miles east of Lynmouth along the A39. It has a church and ...
in North Devon. He also inherited the manors of East Tytherley in Somerset and Shapwick in Somerset, which had been acquired by his cousin Henry Rolle (1589–1656),
Chief Justice of the King's Bench The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales. Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English a ...
, descended from the most junior Rolle line. Thus at the age of about 21 Denys Rolle had inherited Hudscott, where he lived during most of his life and where several of his children were baptised. In 1779, at the age 54, following the death of his brother John Rolle Walter, he inherited the paternal Rolle estates of Stevenstone and Bicton.


Otterton and East Budleigh

In 1786 he purchased for the huge sum of £72,000 the manors of
Otterton Otterton is a village and civil parish in East Devon, England. The parish lies on the English Channel and is surrounded clockwise from the south by the parishes of East Budleigh, Bicton, Colaton Raleigh, Newton Poppleford and Harpford and Sidmo ...
and
East Budleigh East Budleigh is a small village in East Devon, England. The villages of Yettington, Colaton Raleigh, and Otterton lie to the west, north and east of East Budleigh, with the seaside town of Budleigh Salterton about two miles south. Until th ...
, situated adjacent to Bicton in south-east Devon from the heirs of the Duke family, descendants of
Richard Duke Richard Duke (13 June 1658 – 11 February 1711) was an English clergyman and poet, associated with the Tory writers of the Restoration era. Life He was born in London, son of Richard Duke, and was admitted to Westminster School in 1670. He ...
(died 1572) who in 1540 had purchased the former lands of Otterton Priory following the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The properties acquired included:
Capital messuage, barton farm and
demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land subinfeudation, sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. ...
lands of Otterton and the manors and lordships of Otterton, Little Otterton, Budleigh Poleslow (otherwise Higher Budleigh), Budleigh Syon (otherwise Lower Budleigh), Collaton Rawleigh (otherwise the Lower Manor), Dukes-Collaton, (otherwise Collaton Abbott otherwise The Higher Manor), Dotton (otherwise Docton) and Hays (otherwise Powershays otherwise Dukes Hayes); 4 water grist mills in Otterton and the
advowson Advowson () or patronage is the right in English law of a patron (avowee) to present to the diocesan bishop (or in some cases the ordinary if not the same person) a nominee for appointment to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a ...
s of the churches of Otterton, Budleigh and
Harpford Harpford is a small village in the civil parish of Newton Poppleford and Harpford, in the East Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It lies on the east side of the River Otter, Devon, River Otter, less than 1 mile north east of the l ...
with the free chapels of Withecombe, Fen Ottery, Rectory and
Sheaf Sheaf may refer to: * Sheaf (agriculture), a bundle of harvested cereal stems * Sheaf (mathematics) In mathematics, a sheaf (: sheaves) is a tool for systematically tracking data (such as sets, abelian groups, rings) attached to the open s ...
of Otterton and a
fee farm A fee is the price one pays as remuneration for rights or services. Fees usually allow for overhead, wages, costs, and markup. Traditionally, professionals in the United Kingdom (and previously the Republic of Ireland) receive a fee in contrad ...
rent of £13. 10s., payable out of the sheaf of
Sidmouth Sidmouth () is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, southeast of Exeter. With a population of 13,258 in 2021, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town has ...
, etc.


Land sales

Rolle sold his Somerset estate of Shapwick in 1786/7 to George Templer (1755–1819), of the
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, 4th son of James I Templer (1722–1782) of
Stover, Teigngrace Stover is a historic estate in the parish of Teigngrace, about halfway between the towns of Newton Abbot and Bovey Tracey in South Devon, England. It was bought by James Templer (1722–1782), James Templer (1722–1782) in 1765 and passed thr ...
.


North American plantations


Florida

In May 1764 Rolle obtained a grant from the crown of 20,000 acres of land for a
plantation Plantations are farms specializing in cash crops, usually mainly planting a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Plantations, centered on a plantation house, grow crops including cotton, cannabis, tob ...
in St Mark's in
East Florida East Florida () was a colony of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1763 to 1783 and a province of the Spanish Empire from 1783 to 1821. The British gained control over Spanish Florida in 1763 as part of the Treaty of Paris (1763), Tre ...
, an area recently ceded by Spain to Great Britain following the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
. One of the numerous conditions was that he should settle it with white Protestants. His vision was to establish an "ideal society", a
Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
n colony for poor, homeless or criminal English persons. He embarked for America on 10 June 1764 with 14 settlers and arrived at Charleston on 12 August 1764 and was in
St Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman province), Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced th ...
, capital of East Florida, by September 1764. He soon discovered that this land was unsuitable and instead, with the permission of the Governor of East Florida James Grant (1720–1806), settled on the east bank of the St Johns River, above today's East Palatka, which site he named Charlotta in honour of the Queen, later Charlotia, later Rollestown, thought to be on the site of today's San Mateo. Having quarrelled with Governor Grant and been refused further grants of land, he returned to England in October 1765. There he addressed his long and detailed "Humble Petition" to the
Board of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for Business and Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...
complaining of his treatment. He returned to Florida however in September 1766 with a further 50 settlers. He returned to England again in January 1768, and again complained to the Board of Trade. Rolle's settlers were in the opinion of observers deemed low quality, of poor morality, indisciplined and not capable of hard work. Soon due to Rolle's harsh management style and their own unsuitability his colonists rebelled and deserted to
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
or
South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
, whereupon Rolle gave up his Utopian ideals and used African slave labour. The plantation produced among other crops rice, corn and
turpentine Turpentine (which is also called spirit of turpentine, oil of turpentine, terebenthine, terebenthene, terebinthine and, colloquially, turps) is a fluid obtainable by the distillation of resin harvested from living trees, mainly pines. Principall ...
tar from pine trees for naval use. He acquired a further 20,000 acres from William Elliot and 20,000 from John Grayhurst, 10,000 from William Penrice and 3,000 from James Cusack, all on the eastern side of the St Johns River. He acquired a further 1,500 acres on the west side from Joseph Gray. Rollestown was visited in December 1765 by the naturalists John Bartram and his son
William Bartram William Bartram (April 20, 1739 – July 22, 1823) was an American naturalist, writer and explorer. Bartram was the author of an acclaimed book, now known by the shortened title Bartram's ''Travels'', which chronicled his explorations of the S ...
, and again in 1778, the latter who recorded his observations in a journal which survives. Rolle's activities were also recorded in the diary, correspondence and official reports of the Governor of Florida James Grant, who became increasingly infuriated by Rolle's constant demands, complaints and disputes


Bahamas

Following the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...
in 1783, Florida was ceded by the British government to Spain and Rolle was thus forced to abandon his colony. He suffered great financial loss and claimed substantial compensation from the British government, which offered him instead a colony on the British island of
Exuma Exuma is a district of the Bahamas, district of The Bahamas, consisting of over 365 islands and Cay, cays. The largest of the islands is Great Exuma, which is 37 mi (60 km) in length and joined to another island, Little Exuma, by a small bridge ...
in the Bahama Islands, about 500 miles to the south-east, to which he removed whatever livestock, equipment and slaves he was able to transport. When the slaves (about 400 at this time) of his son and heir, Lord John Rolle, were officially declared free on 1 August 1838, many of them adopted the surname of Rolle. The slaves then took over the Rolle lands on Exuma and ran them communally although there was no formal deed of conveyance to them. Today, there are still five Lord John Rolle Commonage Estates on Exuma including the village of Rolle Town. These have been passed down to the descendants of the former slaves and cannot be sold. Although the name Rolle died out in England on the death of Lord Rolle in 1842 (revived for a while in the person of his heir Mark Rolle), the surname Rolle is still a common name in the Bahamas. Rolles of Bahamian descent include the actress
Esther Rolle Esther Elizabeth Rolle (November 8, 1920 – November 17, 1998) was an American actress. She is best known for her role as Florida Evans, on the CBS television sitcom '' Maude,'' for two seasons (1972–1974), and its spin-off series '' Good ...
, born in Pompano Beach, Florida of Bahamian parents, Myron Rolle, professional (American) football player and Rhodes Scholar; and Magnum Rolle, a professional basketball player born in
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, Bahamas in 1986.


Philanthropy

He was a philanthropist and generous benefactor to charities and religious societies. Rolle established several charity schools on different parishes and allocated to each a plot of land for the employment of the children. In 1790 he rebuilt part of St Giles's Church, the parish church of Stevenstone, which is commemorated by a stone heraldic escutcheon above the north transept door inscribed "DR 1790".St Giles's Church, Information Leaflet, p.3


Death

Rolle died on 26 June 1797, aged 72, of
angina Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of parti ...
during one of his habitual long walks between his manors of Hudscott and Stevenstone, and was buried in St Giles's Church on 1 July 1797 The vicar and historian of Chittlehampton, Rev. J.H.B. Andrews, wrote: In St Giles Church, St Giles in the Wood, there is a mural monument to Rolle, erected by Anne, his second daughter.


References


Sources

* *


Further reading

* * * The Memorial of Denys Rolle, East Florida, 1780, T77/15/13, folios 210-3 * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rolle, Denys (1725-1797) 1720s births 1797 deaths Alumni of New College, Oxford Denys Florida pioneers Explorers of Florida Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Barnstaple British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 English slave owners British Florida