
Canonteign (originally "Canons' Teign") is an historic
tything in the parish of
Christow, near
Chudleigh
Chudleigh () is an ancient wool town located within the Teignbridge District Council area of Devon, England between Newton Abbot and Exeter. The electoral ward with the same name had a population of 6,125 at the 2011 census.
Geography
Chu ...
, in South
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. Devon is ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and situated in the valley of the
River Teign
The River Teign is a river in the county of Devon, England. It is long and rises on Dartmoor, becomes an estuary just below Newton Abbot and reaches the English Channel at Teignmouth.
Toponymy
The river-name 'Teign' is first attested in an A ...
. The 'canon' in the name refers to the Augustinian
canons regular
Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by ...
, either of St Mary du Val in Normandy or of
Merton Priory
Merton Priory was an English Augustinian priory founded in 1114 by Gilbert Norman, Sheriff of Surrey under King Henry I (1100–1135). It was situated within the manor of Merton in the county of Surrey, in what is today the Colliers Wood ar ...
, which owned it for several centuries. It is best known today for the
Canonteign Falls waterfall. Canonteign today contains three significant houses: the original
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ire ...
16th-century manor house ("Canonteign Manor House"), the ancient
barton house (home farm) ("Canonteign Barton") situated nearby behind a granite wall, and a new mansion house built by the Pellew family in the early 19th century nearby ("Canonteign House"), to which that family moved their residence thereby abandoning the old manor house.
Nomenclature
Its name serves to distinguish it from several other ancient manors or estates situated in the valley of the
River Teign
The River Teign is a river in the county of Devon, England. It is long and rises on Dartmoor, becomes an estuary just below Newton Abbot and reaches the English Channel at Teignmouth.
Toponymy
The river-name 'Teign' is first attested in an A ...
such as Teigncombe,
Drewsteignton
Drewsteignton is a village, civil parish and former manor within the administrative area of West Devon, England, also lying within the Dartmoor National Park. It is located in the valley of the River Teign, west of Exeter and south east of O ...
(held by the Drewe family),
Teigngrace
Teigngrace is a civil parish centred on a hamlet that lies about two miles north of the town of Newton Abbot in Devon, England. According to the 2001 census, its population was 235, compared to 190 a century earlier. The western boundary of the p ...
(held by the Grace family),
Kingsteignton
Kingsteignton ( ), is a town and civil parish in South Devon, England. It lies at the head of the Teign Estuary to the west of Teignmouth in the Teignbridge district. It is bypassed by the A380 and is also on the A383, A381, B3193 and B319 ...
(a royal manor),
Bishopsteignton (held by the
Bishop of Exeter
The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell. ) and
Teignharvey.
Descent
Montbray
In the ''
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
'' of 1086 'Teigne' is listed as the 97th of the 99 manors or other landholdings held by
Geoffrey de Montbray
Geoffrey de Montbray (Montbrai, Mowbray) (died 1093), bishop of Coutances ( la, Constantiensis), also known as Geoffrey of Coutances, was a Norman nobleman, trusted adviser of William the Conqueror and a great secular prelate, warrior and admini ...
(died 1093),
Bishop of Coutances
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Coutances (–Avranches) ( Latin: ''Dioecesis Constantiensis (–Abrincensis)''; French: ''Diocèse de Coutances (–Avranches)'') is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in France. Its mother church is the Cat ...
, and was occupied by his tenant Geoffrey de Trelly, lord of the manor of
Trelly in
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
, today in the département of
Manche
Manche (, ) is a coastal French département in Normandy, on the English Channel, which is known as ''La Manche'', literally "the sleeve", in French. It had a population of 495,045 in 2019.[Feudal barony of Gloucester
The feudal barony of Gloucester or Honour of Gloucester was one of the largest of the mediaeval English feudal baronies in 1166, comprising 279 knight's fees, or manors. The constituent landholdings were spread over many counties. The location of ...]
.
[Thorn & Thorn, part 2 (notes), 3:97]
de la Pomeroy
It later came into the possession of the de la Pomeroy family,
feudal barons of Berry Pomeroy in Devon.
St Mary du Val, Bayeux
In about 1125 it was granted by Jocelyn de la Pomeray to the Canons
of the Augustinian Abbey of St Mary du Val, Bayeux, Normandy, as is evidenced by the following charter of the Augustinian Abbey of St Mary du Val, Bayeux, published in 1899 by
J. Horace Round in his ''Calendar of Documents Preserved in France: 918-1206''
(No.1455) Charter of Goslin de Pomeria, giving, with consent of Emma his wife, and Henry, Roger, Philip, Goslin, and Ralph his sons, by the hand of Richard (1107–1133) Bishop of Bayeux
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bayeux and Lisieux (Latin: ''Dioecesis Baiocensis et Lexoviensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Bayeux et Lisieux'') is a diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is coextensive with the Department of Calvados and is ...
, to the church of St. Mary du Val (''que dicitur “Valle”'') to the canons there serving God, according to the rule of St. Augustine, in cloistered community, with all that follows: 60 acres in the parish of St. Omer, etc. … and half his swine and those of his heirs, when killed (''occisionem porcorum'') in Normandy, and the tithe of his mares in Normandy and England and 40 shillings sterling (de Esterlins) from the rents (''gablo'') of Berry-Pomeroy (''Bercium'') every year on August 1, and the church and tithe of Berry, etc. and in England (sic) the tithe of his swine and of his mills of Berry etc. … and in England a manor called (Canon) Teign (''Tigneam''), and his chaplainry in England, namely, the tithe of wool, and cheese, and porkers, and lambs at Ottery (''Otrevum''), and all belonging to his chaplainry (''capellarie'') in England etc. … (Other gifts in Normandy by William son of Payn and Richard his son, a canon of the abbey, by Roger Capra, with consent of his wife Petronilla and son William, etc.) ''Testibus istis:'' ("with these witnesses:") ''Goslino de Pomeria cum filiis suis, Henrico, Rogerio, Philippo, Goslino; et Willelmo filio Pagani, cum filiis suis; et Hugone de Rosello, et Christino de Olleyo; Willelmo filio Ricardi; Waltero de Petra ficta; Willelmo de Rosello; Willelmo de Braio; Goslino de Braio; Roberto Buzone; Roberto de Curcell(is)''.
Merton Priory
In 1267,
Merton Priory
Merton Priory was an English Augustinian priory founded in 1114 by Gilbert Norman, Sheriff of Surrey under King Henry I (1100–1135). It was situated within the manor of Merton in the county of Surrey, in what is today the Colliers Wood ar ...
swapped various lands in Normandy for St Mary du Val's lands in Devon and Cornwall, including
Tregony,
Buckerell and Canonteign. In 1298-9, the priory was in litigation with Henry Pomeroy over this and other lands, but they settled their disputes and Merton retained its Devon lands.
Post-Dissolution
After the
Dissolution of the Monasteries Canonteign was granted by the crown to
John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford
John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford (c. 1485 – 14 March 1555) was an English royal minister in the Tudor era. He served variously as Lord High Admiral and Lord Privy Seal. Among the lands and property he was given by Henry VIII after the D ...
(c.1485-1554/5),
Lord Lieutenant of Devon
The Office of the Lord Lieutenant was created during the reign of Henry VIII (1509–1547), taking over the military duties of the Sheriffs and control of the military forces of the Crown. From 1569 there was provision for the appointment of Dep ...
, amongst the huge grants he received in Devon (most notably
Tavistock Abbey
Tavistock Abbey, also known as the Abbey of Saint Mary and Saint Rumon, is a ruined Benedictine abbey in Tavistock, Devon. Nothing remains of the abbey except the refectory, two gateways and a porch. The abbey church, dedicated to Our Lady and S ...
) and elsewhere from King Henry VIII.
Berry

Russell sold it to John Berry (''alias'' Bury), who having been engaged in the
Prayer Book Rebellion
The Prayer Book Rebellion or Western Rising was a popular revolt in Cornwall and Devon in 1549. In that year, the ''Book of Common Prayer (1549), Book of Common Prayer'', presenting the theology of the English Reformation, was introduced. The ...
of 1549, was taken prisoner, carried to London, and executed for treason. John Berry's role in the Rebellion is described as follows in a contemporary tract:
:"The chief captain of all, saving one, was the
Marquis of Exeter's man, and setteth forth the matter of the Cardinal so much, as indeed he maketh no other matter. His name is Berry, one of them which subscribed the Articles."
''The Western Rebellion'' (1913) states:
:"A thorough search through the detailed lists of the Marquis's servants does not disclose this name. According to his own account at the time of the first disturbance in Exeter, in June, 1549, he was servant, i.e. wore the livery of, Sir
Thomas Denys
Sir Thomas Denys ( – 18 February 1561) of Holcombe Burnell, near Exeter, Devon, was a prominent lawyer who served as Sheriff of Devon nine times between 1507/8 to 1553/4 and as MP for Devon. He acquired large estates in Devon at the Disso ...
,
f Holcombe Burnell">Holcombe_Burnell.html" ;"title="f Holcombe Burnell">f Holcombe Burnelland he lived at Silverton. He had estates at Hartland, Ugborough, Tavistock, Plympton, Widecombe-in-the-Moor, and elsewhere. He was the son of Lewis Bury or Berry by his wife Margaret, who afterwards married Thomas Darke. The latter had the guardianship of John for four years, and then gave it to John Ashe of Sowton, who married Bury to his daughter". A footnote adds: "He was probably of the Berrynarbor family and his wife's name may have been Cove; through her John inherited the estates of John Kyrton, in Blisland, where he usually lived. His second wife was Katherine, daughter of Lawrence Courtenay, of Ethy. He survived the Rebellion, dying the 28th April, 1569, leaving two sons, Robert and John, by his first wife".
The estate was then granted to William Gibbs, having presumably
escheat
Escheat is a common law doctrine that transfers the real property of a person who has died without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in "limbo" without recognized ownership. It originally applied to a ...
ed to the crown.
Gibbon
In the 17th century Canonteign was owned by the Gibbon family, and a monument survives in Christow Church to Elizabeth Gibbon (died 1660) and Thomas Gibbon (no date). An heiress of the Gibbon family is supposed to have brought it to the Davie family.
[Lysons]
Davie
Gilbert Davie (16th c.)
The first member of the Davie family to have lived at the estate of Canonteign appears to have been Gilbert Davie (fl.16th c.), the second son of Robert Davie (d. circa 1570), a wealthy cloth merchant from
Crediton
Crediton is a town and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon in England. It stands on the A377 Exeter to Barnstaple road at the junction with the A3072 road to Tiverton, about north west of Exeter and around from the M5 motorwa ...
,
[Vivian, 1895, p.269] Devon. At sometime between 1559 and 1578 Gilbert Davie (or possibly his father) acquired the manor of
Combe Lancey, near
Ruxford and
Creedy, which remained a possession of the Davies of Canonteign until the deaths in 1637 of Gilbert’s great-grand-daughter Anne Davie (the widow Parker, and wife of John Trelawny) and her heir and uncle John Davie of Christow, at which time it passed to a their cousin
Sir John Davie, 1st Baronet of Creedy.
Gilbert Davie married Mary Gere (''alias'' Geer), daughter of John Gere of
Hevitree near Exeter. By his wife he had 2 sons:
*Robert Davie (1564-pre-1617), eldest son and heir
*Emanuel Davie, 2nd son, living in 1617, whose daughter Anne Davie married Lewis Dowrich.
Robert Davie (1564-pre-1617)
Robert Davie (1564-pre-1617), eldest son and heir, baptised at Crediton in 1564. His seal survives on a lease granted by him of Combe Lancey dated 8 April 1614 (Devon Record Office Z1/10/202, Shelley Archive), which shows the Davie "Bardolph" arms supposedly granted in 1594 to his uncle John Davie of Exeter and Creedy.
He married Anne Northcote (1564–1637), a daughter of John Northcote (died 1587) of Crediton by his wife Elizabeth Dowrish (died 1587) of
Dowrish, near Crediton. Anne's brother was
John Northcote
John Northcote (1570-1632) of Uton and Hayne, Newton St Cyres, near Crediton, Devon, was a member of the Devonshire gentry, lord of the manor of Newton St Cyres, who is chiefly known to history for his artistically acclaimed effigy and monument i ...
(1570–1632), of Hayne,
Newton St Cyres, near
Crediton
Crediton is a town and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon in England. It stands on the A377 Exeter to Barnstaple road at the junction with the A3072 road to Tiverton, about north west of Exeter and around from the M5 motorwa ...
(whose splendid monument with standing effigy exists in Newton St Cyres Church) who married Susan Pollard, a daughter of Sir Hugh Pollard, lord of the
manor of King's Nympton
The Manor of King's Nympton was a manor largely co-terminous with the parish of King's Nympton in Devon, England.
Descent of the manor
At the time of the Domesday Book of 1086, the whole manor of ''Nimetone'', in the hundred of Witheridge, b ...
, and was the father of
Sir John Northcote, 1st Baronet
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only ...
(1599–1676), ancestor of the Northcote
Earls of Iddesleigh
Earl of Iddesleigh ( ), in the County of Devon, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1885 for the Conservative politician Sir Stafford Northcote, 8th Baronet, of Pynes in the parish of Upton Pyne near Exeter i ...
.
Gilbert Davie (1583–1627)
Gilbert Davie (1583–1627), eldest son and heir, who in 1616 married Gertrude Pollard, a daughter of Sir Hugh Pollard, lord of the
manor of King's Nympton
The Manor of King's Nympton was a manor largely co-terminous with the parish of King's Nympton in Devon, England.
Descent of the manor
At the time of the Domesday Book of 1086, the whole manor of ''Nimetone'', in the hundred of Witheridge, b ...
, and a sister of
Sir Lewis Pollard, 1st Baronet. He left a daughter and sole heiress Anne Davie (1617–1637), who married a member of the Trelawny family but died without issue, when her heir to Canonteign became her uncle John Davie of Christow.
John Davie of Christow
John Davie of Christow (uncle), second son of Robert Davie (1564-pre-1617).
Robert Davie (fl.1633)

Robert Davie (fl.1633), younger brother, third son of Robert Davie (1564-pre-1617).
He married a certain Rachell (fl.1633), and the couple emigrated to New England.
He had two sons:
*William Davie, eldest son and heir, of Canonteign, see below.
*Dr
Edmund Davie (1630–1692), 2nd son, a Doctor of Physick, who lived at the Chantry in Exeter, one of the
Worthies of Devon of
John Prince (1643–1723), of whom he was an acquaintance. Prince described him as "The great
Aesculapius of his time in these
western parts". According to Lysons
Magna Britannia
''Magna Britannia, being a concise topographical account of the several counties of Great Britain'' was a topographical and historical survey published by the antiquarians Daniel Lysons and his brother Samuel Lysons in several volumes between 1 ...
(1822) he was the last in the male line of the Davie family of Canonteign. His mural monument survives in the south aisle of the
Lady Chapel
A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British term for a chapel dedicated to "Our Lady", Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church. The chapels are also known as a Mary chapel or a Marian chapel ...
of
Exeter Cathedral
Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The present building was complete by about 14 ...
and displays his sculpted bust, inscribed in Latin as follows: ''In memoriam Edmundi Davy, Medicinae Doctoris, qui obiit vicessimo secundo die Jan(uarii) 1692'' ("In memory of Edmund Davy, Doctor of Medicine, who died on the twenty second day of January 1692"). Above are shown the arms of Davie ''Argent, a chevron sable between three mullets pierced gules'', but with mullets shown ''sable''.
William Davie

William Davie, eldest son and heir, a Counsellor at Law and a
Justice of the Peace for Devon, whose daughter and sole heiress was Martha Davie who married Sir George Cary (1654–1685) lord of the
manor of Clovelly, but who left no children. The ''de Via'' arms of Davie of Canonteign are shown on the mural monument in All Saints Church, Clovelly, to Dr. George Cary (1611–1680), lord of the
manor of Clovelly, representing his daughter-in-law Martha Davie.
Helyar

Due to the foreclosure of a mortgage, Canonteign passed to the Helyar family, which lived for some time there. The Helyar family of Canonteign traces its ancestry back to Rev.
William Helyar (1559–1645)
Doctor of Divinity
A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity.
In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...
,
Archdeacon of Barnstaple
The Archdeaconry of Barnstaple or Barum is one of the oldest archdeaconries in England. It is an administrative division of the Diocese of Exeter in the Church of England.
History
The Diocese of Exeter was divided into four archdeaconries in N ...
, Devon, and a chaplain to
Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
Eli ...
, who purchased the manor of Coker and obtained a grant of arms from the herald
William Camden
William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and the ''Ann ...
in 1607: ''Azure, a cross flory argent between four mullets pierced or''.
[Burke's, 1937] An earlier member of this family was Richard Helyar (died 1446),
Archdeacon of Cornwall
The Archdeacon of Cornwall is a senior cleric in the Church of England Diocese of Truro.
History and composition
The archdeaconry of Cornwall was created in the Diocese of Exeter in the late 11th century. The area and the archdeacon remained pa ...
in 1442 and
Archdeacon of Barnstaple
The Archdeaconry of Barnstaple or Barum is one of the oldest archdeaconries in England. It is an administrative division of the Diocese of Exeter in the Church of England.
History
The Diocese of Exeter was divided into four archdeaconries in N ...
in 1445, who was buried in the North Choir aisle of
Exeter Cathedral
Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The present building was complete by about 14 ...
.
William Helyar (1662–1742)
William Helyar (1662–1742) of
Coker Court
Coker Court is a substantial manor house in East Coker, Somerset, England. It was built in the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries and has been designated as a Grade I listed building. It was erected by the Courtney family who were lords of the ...
in
East Coker
East Coker is a village and civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. Its nearest town is Yeovil, to the north. The village has a population of 1,667. The parish includes the hamlets and areas of North Coker, Burton, ...
, Somerset, and of Canonteign, and owner of a plantation in Jamaica, was
Sheriff of Somerset
The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government A ...
in 1701 and
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...
for
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish, situated on the River Yeo (South Somerset), River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the England, English county of Somerset. Originally a Roman Britain, Roman town, and ...
, Somerset, 1688–90 and for
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lor ...
1714-22. He was the son and heir of Colonel William Helyar (1621/2-1697) of Coker,
Sheriff of Somerset
The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government A ...
in 1661, who as a Royalist during the Civil War had raised a troop of
horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million ...
for King Charles I and was a colonel in the king's army. In 1643 he had surrendered to
Fairfax
Fairfax may refer to:
Places United States
* Fairfax, California
* Fairfax Avenue, a major thoroughfare in Los Angeles, California
* Fairfax District, Los Angeles, California, centered on Fairfax Avenue
* Fairfax, Georgia
* Fairfax, Indiana
* Fa ...
and was in the
City of Exeter
Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol.
In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
at its surrender in 1646. His estates were
sequestered and he
compounded for £1,522. Col. Helyar married Rachel Wyndham (died 1678), a daughter and co-heiress of
Sir Hugh Wyndham, 1st Baronet (died 1663) of Pilsden Court, Dorset.
In 1690 William Helyar (1662–1742) married Joanna Hole (died 1714), a daughter and co-heiress of Robert Hole of Blackhall in the parish of
South Tawton
South Tawton is a village, parish and former manor on the north edge of Dartmoor, Devon, England. An electoral ward bearing the same name exists. At the 2011 census the population was 1,683.
Historic estates
Located in the parish of South Tawt ...
, Devon.
William Helyar (1720–1783)
William Helyar (1720–1783) (grandson), of
Coker Court
Coker Court is a substantial manor house in East Coker, Somerset, England. It was built in the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries and has been designated as a Grade I listed building. It was erected by the Courtney family who were lords of the ...
in
East Coker
East Coker is a village and civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. Its nearest town is Yeovil, to the north. The village has a population of 1,667. The parish includes the hamlets and areas of North Coker, Burton, ...
, Somerset, and of Canonteign and of Blackhall, Devon. He was
Sheriff of Somerset
The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government A ...
in 1764. He was the only son of William Helyar (1693–1723) (eldest son and heir apparent of William Helyar (1662–1742), whom he predeceased) by his wife Mary Goddard, daughter of John Goddard of Gillingham, Dorset. In 1743 he married Betty Weston (died 1786), a daughter and co-heiress of William Weston of Callew Weston in Dorset.
William Helyar (1745–1820)
William Helyar (1745–1820), eldest son and heir, of
Coker Court
Coker Court is a substantial manor house in East Coker, Somerset, England. It was built in the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries and has been designated as a Grade I listed building. It was erected by the Courtney family who were lords of the ...
and Sedghill, Wiltshire,
Justice of the Peace. In 1777 he married Elizabeth Hawker (died 1834), second daughter and co-heiress of William Hawker of Luppitt, Devon, by his wife Elizabeth Welman, daughter and heiress of Thomas Welman of Poundisford Lodge, Somerset, youngest son of Isaac Welman of Poundisford Park, Pitminster, near Taunton, Somerset. In 1812 he sold the manors of Canonteign and Christow to
Sir Edward Pellew, 1st Baronet, later
Viscount Exmouth "of Canonteign".
The Helyar family continued to reside at Poundisford Lodge until after 1937.
Pellew
*
Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth
Admiral Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB (19 April 1757 – 23 January 1833) was a British naval officer. He fought during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. His younger brother Is ...
(1757–1833). "Viscount Exmouth of Canonteign in the County of Devon", was the title granted in 1816 to the prominent naval officer
Edward Pellew, 1st Baron Exmouth, who had already been 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 ...
in 1796.
*
Pownoll Bastard Pellew, 2nd Viscount Exmouth (1786–1833), who in 1828, when "Captain Pellew" and five years before his father's death, built (to the design of C.R. Ayers of London) a new stucco-fronted neo-classical mansion a few hundred yards to the south-west of the old manor house, called "Canonteign House". The old manor house was then converted and subdivided into a farmhouse and suffered thereafter a "gentle decline".
[Pevsner, p.243]
*
Edward Pellew, 3rd Viscount Exmouth (1811–1876)
*
Edward Fleetwood John Pellew, 4th Viscount Exmouth
Edward Fleetwood John Pellew, 4th Viscount Exmouth DL JP (24 June 1861 – 31 October 1899), was a British peer who inherited the title of Viscount Exmouth from his uncle and held the title for 23 years. He was the great-grandson of Edward ...
(1861–1899)
*Edward Addington Hargreaves Pellew, 5th Viscount Exmouth (1890–1922)
*
Henry Edward Pellew, 6th Viscount Exmouth (1828–1923)
*Charles Ernest Pellew, 7th Viscount Exmouth (1863–1945)
*Edward Irving Pownoll Pellew, 8th Viscount Exmouth (1868–1951)
*Pownoll Irving Edward Pellew, 9th Viscount Exmouth (1908–1970). Between 1972-5 the old manor house, until then suffering from "gentle decline", underwent a "radical restoration"
by Lady Exmouth, his Spanish-born widow, née Maria Luisa, Marquesa de Olias, daughter of Luis de Urquijo, Marques de Amurrio.
*
Paul Edward Pellew, 10th Viscount Exmouth (born 1940), who married firstly a Spanish wife and lives in
Mallorca
Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean.
The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bale ...
, Spain. One of his sisters is Hon. Mary Pellew (born 1947),
High Sheriff of Devon
The High Sheriff of Devon is the Queen'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 ...
in 2010/11, the wife of Robin d'Erlanger of Hensleigh, near
Tiverton, Devon
Tiverton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Devon, England, and the commercial and administrative centre of the Mid Devon district. The population in 2019 was 20,587.
History Early history
The town's name is conjectured to derive from "Twy-fo ...
.
21st century
The old manor house was restored in the 1970s and in November 2015 the
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ire ...
16th century "Canonteign Manor House" with 10 acres of garden and parkland was sold to a Chinese investor Liqun Peng for £2 million by estate agents Savills, Exeter branch. In 2015, the manor had been listed as featuring four reception rooms, a
long gallery
In architecture, a long gallery is a long, narrow room, often with a high ceiling. In Britain, long galleries were popular in Elizabethan and Jacobean houses. They were normally placed on the highest reception floor of English country house ...
(serving as a gym), 7 bedroom suites, a 2nd floor office & staff flat and a sunken walled garden with swimming pool.
News reports in January 2020 indicated that the owner had attempted in 2019 to obtain consent from the Dartmoor National Park Authority to turn the property into a holiday let for up to 17 guests on a short term basis for no more than 90 days per year. Residents in the area objected to the plan. The application was denied and was modified by the property owner. The revised application was tentatively approved on 16 June 2020 on the basis that the property would not be used as a holiday let until the outdoor swimming pool was "decommissioned and fenced from the application site".
A
Country Life (magazine) article on 20 June 2020 indicated that the property was on the market through estate agents Fine & Country South Devon with a guide price of £3.5 million; the "heated swimming pool" was stated as one of the amenities. Other sources indicated that the manor had received "extensive and sympathetic renovation". It was listed as a 10-bedroom home over three floors, with a great hall, library, a huge gym and a self-contained flat.
‘One of the most magical properties in the South West’, with a rare blend of homeliness and grandeur
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References
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Further reading
Former manors in Devon