Sir Francis Drake, 3rd Baronet (1642–1718), of

Buckland Abbey Buckland Abbey is a Grade I listed 700-year-old house in Buckland Monachorum, near Yelverton, Devon, Yelverton, Devon, England, noted for its connection with Sir Richard Grenville the Younger and Sir Francis Drake. It is owned by the National ...

in the parish of

Buckland Monachorum Buckland Monachorum is a village and civil parish in the West Devon district of Devon, England, situated on the River Tavy, about 10 miles north of Plymouth. In 2006 the neighbourhood had an estimated 1,511 residents and 654 dwellings. The elect ...

and of

Meavy Meavy is a small village, civil parish and former manor in the English county of Devon. Meavy forms part of the district of West Devon. It lies a mile or so east of Yelverton. The River Meavy runs near the village. For administrative purposes ...

, both in Devon, England, was elected seven times as a Member of Parliament for

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...

in Devon, in 1673, 1679, 1681, 1689, 1690, 1696 and 1698.

Origins

He was baptised on 1 May 1642, at Buckland Monachorum, the eldest surviving son and heir of Thomas Drake (born 1620), a major in the cavalry of the Parliamentarian forces during the Civil War, the second son of Sir Francis Drake, 1st Baronet (1588-1637) (nephew of Admiral Sir

Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( 1540 – 28 January 1596) was an English Exploration, explorer and privateer best known for making the Francis Drake's circumnavigation, second circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition between 1577 and 1580 (bein ...

(1546-1596)) and younger brother of

Sir Francis Drake, 2nd Baronet Sir Francis Drake, 2nd Baronet (25 September 1617 – 6 January 1662) of Buckland Abbey, Devon was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons of England, House of Commons variously between 1646 and 1662. He was a Colonel of ...

(1617-1661). His mother was Susan Crimes, a daughter of William Crymes, of Buckland Crymes and a sister of Elisha Crymes MP.

Career

He succeeded to the

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

on the death of his uncle

on 6 June 1661.George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage, Volume 1'' 1900
/ref> He matriculated at

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and the fourth-oldest college of the university. The college was founde ...

on 3 June 1663, aged 16 and was awarded MA on 28 September 1663.'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500-1714: Disbrowe-Dyve', Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714 (1891), pp. 406-439. Date accessed: 23 June 2012
/ref> In 1673 he was elected a Member of Parliament for

in Devon, in a by-election to the

Cavalier Parliament The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. With the exception of the Long Parliament, it was the longest-lasting English Parliament, and longer than any Great British or UK Parliament to date, enduring ...

. He was re-elected for Tavistock in 1679, 1681, 1689, 1690, 1696 and 1698.History of Parliament Online - Drake, Sir Francis, 3rd Bt.
/ref> He purchased the manor of

in Devon, and resided at the

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

west of St Peter's Church, in which survives the "Drake Aisle" or manorial chapel. The external stonework is inscribed with the date "1705" and the "Drake star" from his coat of arms.

Marriages and children

Drake married three times, with children only from his third wife: *Firstly on 6 February 1665, at

Bere Ferrers Bere Ferrers, sometimes called ''Beerferris'', is a village and civil parish on the Bere peninsula in West Devon in the England, English county of Devon. It is located to the north of Plymouth, on the west bank of the River Tavy. It has Bere F ...

in Devon, to Dorothy Bampfylde (d.1679), a daughter of

Sir John Bampfylde, 1st Baronet Sir John Bampfylde, 1st Baronet (c. 1610 – April 1650) of Poltimore, Devon, Poltimore and North Molton and Tamerton Foliot, all in Devon, was an England, English lawyer and politician. He was one of Devonshire's Roundhead, Parliamentarian lead ...

Poltimore House Poltimore House is an 18th-century country house in Poltimore, Devon, England. The Manor of Poltimore was from the 13th to the 20th century the seat of the Bampfylde Baronets, Bampfylde family, which acquired the title Baron Poltimore in 1831. ...

in Devon, by his wife Gertrude Copleston, daughter of Amyas Copleston of Warleigh in the parish of

Tamerton Foliot Tamerton Foliot is a village and former civil parish situated in the north of Plymouth, in the Plymouth district, in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. It also lends its name to the ecclesiastical parish of the same name. Situated near t ...

, near Bere Ferrers. She died childless and was buried at Buckland on 30 January 1679. *Secondly, by licence dated 21 October 1680, he married Anne Boone (d.1685), daughter of Thomas Boone of Mount Boone, Devon, a Member of Parliament for Dartmouth in Devon. She died childless and was buried on 22 December 1685 at Buckland. *Thirdly, by licence dated 17 February 1690, he married Elizabeth Pollexfen (d.1717) (buried on 25 March 1717, at Meavy), a daughter and eventual co-heiress of Sir Henry Pollexfen, of Nutwell Court in Devon, Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, by whom he had seven sons and one daughter, including: ** Sir Francis Drake, 4th Baronet (1694-1740), of Buckland Abbey and Nutwell, eldest son and heir.

Death

He died at the age of about 75 at Meavy where he was buried on 15 January 1718.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drake, Francis 1642 births 1718 deaths Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Baronets in the Baronetage of England Members of the Parliament of England for Tavistock English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1681 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 English MPs 1695–1698 English MPs 1698–1700 Place of birth missing