Sir Walter Blount, 1st Baronet (1594 – 27 August 1654) of Sodington in the parish of

Mamble Mamble is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills (district), Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. It is located on the A456 road, A456 between Bewdley and Tenbury Wells. Notable buildings include the 13th ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, was a Member of Parliament for

Droitwich Droitwich Spa (often abbreviated to Droitwich ) is an historic spa town in the Wychavon district in northern Worcestershire, England, on the River Salwarpe. It is located approximately south-west of Birmingham and north-east of Worcester. ...

in 1624 and supported the

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

cause in the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

Origins

Blount was the eldest son of Sir George Blount, Knight, of Sodington in Worcestershire by his wife Eleanor Norwood, a daughter of William Norwood of Leckhampton of Gloucestershire, and Elizabeth Lygon, daughter of William Lygon and Eleanor Dennis.George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage 1625 to 1649''
/ref>

Career

He matriculated at

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

on 12 October 1610 aged 16 and entered the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1611. He served as Sheriff of Worcestershire in 1620. In 1624 he was elected Member of Parliament for

.W R Williams ''Parliamentary History of the County of Worcester''
/ref> He was created a

baronet 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 5 October 1642. He was a

during the

and was taken prisoner by the Parliamentarian forces at Hereford in December 1645, and was imprisoned at Oxford and in the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

. His house at Sodington was burnt down by Parliamentarian soldiers and his estates were confiscated on 2 November 1652 and sold in 1655.

Marriage and children

Blount married Elizabeth Wylde (c. 1591–1656), a daughter of George Wylde of Droitwich, Serjeant-at-Law, by his wife Frances Huddleston, by whom he had 13 children, including: *Sir George Blount, 2nd Baronet (died 1667), eldest son and heir, who married Mary Kirkham, only daughter and heiress of Richard Kirkham of

Blagdon Blagdon is a village and civil parish in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset, within the unitary authority of North Somerset, in England. It is located in the Mendip Hills, a recognised Area of Outstanding Natural ...

in the parish of

Paignton Paignton ( ) is a seaside town on the coast of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the unitary authority, borough of Torbay which was created in 1968. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the Engli ...

in Devon, by his wife the heiress of Oldham near

Tilbury Tilbury is a port town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. The present town was established as separate settlement in the late 19th century, on land that was mainly part of Chadwell St Mary. It contains a Tilbury Fort, 16th century fort ...

in Essex. Blagdon remained a seat of the Blount family until it was sold to Montagu Edmund Parker (1737–1831) of

Whiteway House Whiteway House in the parish of Chudleigh in Devon is a Listed buildings, Grade II* listed Georgian house set in parkland. It was built in the 1770s by John Parker, 1st Baron Boringdon (1735–1788) of Saltram House, Plympton, and has early 19t ...

, near

Chudleigh Chudleigh () is an ancient wool town located within the Teignbridge District Council area of Devon, England; it is sited between Newton Abbot and Exeter. The electoral ward with the same name had a population of 5,919 at the 2021 United Kingdo ...

in Devon,

Sheriff of Devon The High Sheriff of Devon is the Kings's representative for the County of Devon, a territory known as his/her bailiwick. Selected from three nominated people, they hold the office for one year. They have judicial, ceremonial and administrative f ...

in 1789. A plasterwork heraldic escutcheon dated 1708 survives in the

great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages. It continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great cha ...

of Blagdon showing the initials "EB" for Edward Blount (d. 1726) (3rd son of 2nd Bt.) the Latin

motto A motto (derived from the Latin language, Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian language, Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a Sentence (linguistics), sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of a ...

''Lux Tua Via Mea'' ("Your light is my path") and the arms of Blount (''Barry nebuly of six or and sable'') impaling ''Gules, seven mascles vair 3,3,1'' (Guise). Edward Blount (d. 1726) married Anne Guise, a daughter of

Sir John Guise, 2nd Baronet Sir John Guise, 2nd Baronet (c.1654 – November 1695) of Elmore Court, Gloucestershire was an English landowner and Member of Parliament. Life He was born the only son of Sir Christopher Guise, 1st Baronet of the Elmore baronets of Gloucesters ...

. In 1727 his 2nd daughter Mary Blount (1701/2 – 1773) married

Edward Howard, 9th Duke of Norfolk Edward Howard, 9th Duke of Norfolk (5 June 1686 – 20 September 1777) was an English peer and politician who was Earl Marshal from 1732 to 1777. Origins He was the third of the five sons of Lord Thomas Howard (d.1689), of Worksop (younger br ...

.Debrett, John, Baronetage of England "Blount of Sodington"
/ref> *Eleanor Blount, who married firstly Robert Knightley, and secondly

Walter Aston, 3rd Lord Aston of Forfar Walter Aston, 3rd Lord Aston of Forfar (1633 – 20 November 1714) was the eldest son of Walter Aston, 2nd Lord Aston of Forfar, and his wife Lady Mary Weston, daughter of Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland. He is best remembered today as a fortu ...

Death and burial

Blount died aged 60 at

in the parish of

in Devon, the home of his daughter-in-law Mary Kirkham, and was buried at Paignton on 29 August 1654.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blount, Walter 1594 births 1654 deaths English MPs 1624–1625 Members of the Parliament of England for Droitwich High sheriffs of Worcestershire