Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 9th Baronet
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Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 9th Baronet (18 April 1752 – 17 May 1794) of
Killerton Killerton is an 18th-century house in Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon, England, which, with its hillside garden and estate, has been owned by the National Trust since 1944 and is open to the public. The National Trust displays the house as a comforta ...
in Devon and Holnicote in Somerset, was a prominent landowner and member of the
West Country The West Country is a loosely defined area within southwest England, usually taken to include the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Bristol, with some considering it to extend to all or parts of Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and ...
gentry. He was especially noted for his passion for staghunting, in which respect he took after his father. Like his father he was known locally in Devon and Somerset as "Sir Thomas his Honour".


Origins

He was the second son of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 7th Baronet (1722–1785) of
Killerton Killerton is an 18th-century house in Broadclyst, Exeter, Devon, England, which, with its hillside garden and estate, has been owned by the National Trust since 1944 and is open to the public. The National Trust displays the house as a comforta ...
in Devon and
Petherton Park Petherton Park (also known as North Petherton Park or Newton Park) was a Deer park around North Petherton within the English county of Somerset. The origins are unclear but the area was part of an earlier Royal Forest stretching from the River ...
in Somerset, by his wife Elizabeth Dyke (died 1753), daughter and heiress of Thomas Dyke of Tetton, Holnicote and Pixton in Somerset. The ancient Acland family, believed to be of
Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...
origin, originated at the estate of Acland in the parish of
Landkey Landkey is a village and civil parish in the North Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. The parish has a population of 2,302 according to the United Kingdom Census 2021, 2021 census. It is situated from the nearest town of Barnsta ...
in North Devon, where it is first recorded in 1155.


Succession

He succeeded his seven-year-old nephew Sir John Dyke Acland, 8th Baronet (1778–1785) as 9th Baronet on the latter's death in April 1785. According to tradition he had become estranged from his father and had quarrelled with his elder brother Col.
John Dyke Acland John Dyke Acland (21 February 1747 – 22 November 1778) of Tetton and Pixton in Somerset, was Tory Member of Parliament for Callington in Cornwall and fought in the American War of Independence.Chambers Biographical Dictionary, , page 6 ...
(1747–1778) and had consequently moved away from the family estates. It was during a chance visit to his old home that he learned of his succession to the baronetcy and the vast family estates.


Education

He attended
Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...
and
University College, Oxford University College, formally The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University commonly called University College in the University of Oxford and colloquially referred to as "Univ", is a Colleges of the University of Oxf ...
.


Career

He had a propensity to get into debt, and thus his father had avoided bequeathing him a large sum of capital he might squander. His elder brother had predeceased their father, and had left an infant son as heir to the baronetcy. His life was largely dedicated to staghunting and he followed his father into the Mastership of the
North Devon Staghounds North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...
. He virtually abandoned the family's main seat of Killerton in mid-Devon, and lived chiefly at Holnicote and Highercombe, near
Dulverton Dulverton is a town and civil parish in west Somerset, England, near the border with Devon. The town had a population of 1,408 at the 2011 Census. The parish includes the hamlets of Battleton and Ashwick which is located approximately north w ...
, situated at the north and south edges respectively of the ancient royal forest of Exmoor, renowned for its herds of
Red Deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...
. His hospitality to his fellow staghunters was legendary, as had been that of his father. During the period 1785 to his death in 1794 he killed 101 stags, the heads and antlers of many of which are still displayed in the stables at Holnicote. He was a stern employer of his hunt-staff, and on one occasion when his hounds had killed several sheep, possibly belonging to his farming tenants, he ordered his huntsman "to hang himself and the whole pack". On 4 August 1787, he was commissioned a captain in the
North Devon Militia The North Devon Militia, later the Devon Artillery Militia, was a part-time military unit in the maritime county of Devonshire in the West of England. The Militia had always been important in the county, which was vulnerable to invasion, and from ...
. He was promoted to major on 14 August 1790, and to lieutenant-colonel on 9 December 1793.


Marriage and children

On 4 July 1785 at Barnes in Surrey, he married Henrietta Anne Hoare, a daughter of Sir Richard Hoare, 1st Baronet of Barn Elms, a partner in the
City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
banking firm C. Hoare & Co, and Frances Anne Acland. She survived him and in 1795 remarried to Captain the Hon. Matthew Fortescue (1754–1842), Royal Navy, younger brother of
Hugh Fortescue, 1st Earl Fortescue Hugh Fortescue, 1st Earl Fortescue (12 March 1753 – 16 June 1841) was a British peer, created Earl Fortescue in 1789. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Beaumaris from 1784 to 1785. Origins He was the son of Matthew Fortescue, 2nd ...
of
Castle Hill, Filleigh Castle Hill in the parish of Filleigh in North Devon, is an early Neo-Palladian country house situated north-west of South Molton and south-east of Barnstaple. It was built in 1730 by Baron Clinton, Hugh Fortescue, 14th Baron Clinton (169 ...
, Devon. By his wife he had children including
Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet (29 March 1787 – 22 July 1871) was a British politician and baronet. Background Born in London, he was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 9th Baronet and his wife, Henrietta Anne Hoare, daughter ...
(1787–1871), eldest son and heir, and Hugh Dyke Acland (1791–1834).


Death and succession

He died on 17 May 1794, having fallen ill during a journey to London. He was buried in the family vault in
Broadclyst Broadclyst is a village and civil parish in the East Devon local government district. It lies approximately northeast of the city of Exeter, Devon, England, on the B3181. In 2011 its population was 1,467, reducing at the 2021 Census to 1,552. ...
Church, the parish church of Killerton House. His Latin epitaph was written in the burial register of Selworthy Church, the parish church of Holnicote, as follows:
''Hic finis fatorum Priami hic exitus illum''
''Sorte tulit! – Vale. Vale. Vale''.
''Nec Meridies nec Aurora unquam vident ejus ora''.
''Reliquit nobis cornu, canes, tandem quiescant ejus manes''.
("This was the fated end of
Priam In Greek mythology, Priam (; , ) was the legendary and last king of Troy during the Trojan War. He was the son of Laomedon. His many children included notable characters such as Hector, Paris, and Cassandra. Etymology Most scholars take the e ...
's empire and of his own life! Farewell. Farewell. Farewell. Neither Noon nor Dawn shall ever see his face again. He left us his horn and his hounds; may his spirit finally rest in peace".)
He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his eldest son
Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet (29 March 1787 – 22 July 1871) was a British politician and baronet. Background Born in London, he was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 9th Baronet and his wife, Henrietta Anne Hoare, daughter ...
(1787–1871), whose interests lay not in hunting but rather in politics and philanthropy, which set the trend for several generations of his descendants.Acland, 1981, p. 38


References


thePeerage.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acland, Thomas Dyke, 09th Baronet 1752 births 1794 deaths
205 Year 205 ( CCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Geta (or, less frequently, year 958 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 205 for this year h ...
Thomas Dyke 1752 People educated at Eton College Alumni of University College, Oxford Devon Militia officers English hunters