Smart Lethieullier (3 November 1701 – 27 August 1760) was an English

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

Early life and education

Lethieullier was born on 3 November 1701 at Aldersbrook Manor House, Little Ilford,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

. His family was of Spanish Netherlands

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

origin, and had come to London as refugees in 1605. His grandfather, Sir John Lethieullier (1632/3–1719), had succeeded in trade, and had risen to become

Sheriff of London Two Sheriffs of the City of London are elected annually by the members of the City livery companies. Today's Sheriffs have only ceremonial duties, but the historical officeholders held important judicial responsibilities. They have attended the ...

in 1674–5, and owner of the Aldersbrook estate (purchased 1693). Sir John's son, also named John (d. 1737), married Elizabeth Smart, and Smart was their second son. He was educated at

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

Trinity College, Oxford Trinity College (full name: The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope (Knight)) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in E ...

, from where he graduated MA in 1723.

Antiquarian interests

Lethieullier subsequently travelled in France, Italy, Germany, and throughout Britain, and developed a passion for the study and collection of antiquities and fossils. He was elected a fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

(1724), the Society of Antiquaries (1725), and a member of the

Spalding Gentlemen's Society The Spalding Gentlemen's Society is a learned society based in Spalding, Lincolnshire, Spalding, Lincolnshire, England, concerned with cultural, scientific and antiquarian subjects. It is Britain's oldest such provincial body, founded in 1710 by ...

(1733). He developed a wide network of antiquarian and scientific friends and contacts, including

Francesco Ficoroni Francesco (de') Ficoroni (1664 – 25 January 1747) was an Italian archaeologist, connoisseur and antiquarian in Rome closely involved with the antiquities trade. He was the author of numerous publications on ancient Roman sculpture and antiquiti ...

Bernard de Montfaucon Dom Bernard de Montfaucon, O.S.B. (; 13 January 1655 – 21 December 1741) was a French Benedictine monk of the Congregation of Saint Maur. He was an astute scholar who founded the discipline of palaeography, as well as being an editor of w ...

Richard Pococke Richard Pococke (19 November 1704 – 25 September 1765)''Notes and Queries'', p. 129. was an English clergyman and writer. He was the Bishop of Ossory (1756–65) and Meath (1765), both dioceses of the Church of Ireland. However, he is best kn ...

, Andrew Ducarel, Francis Wise,

Martin Folkes Martin Folkes (29 October 1690 – 28 June 1754) was an English antiquary, numismatist, mathematician and astronomer who served as the president of the Royal Society from 1741 to 1752. Life Folkes was born in Westminster on 29 October 1690, ...

, Samuel Gale,

Richard Mead Richard Mead, FRSFRCP (11 August 1673 – 16 February 1754) was an English physician. His work, ''A Short Discourse concerning Pestilential Contagion, and the Method to be used to prevent it'' (1720), was of historic importance in advancing t ...

and Peter Collinson. He wrote numerous letters and papers on antiquarian topics. None were published in his lifetime, but a number appeared posthumously in ''Archaeologia'' (journal of the Society of Antiquaries) and elsewhere. His subjects included Roman remains (including those in the grounds of

Wanstead House Wanstead House was a mansion built to replace the earlier Wanstead Hall. It was commissioned in 1715, completed in 1722 and demolished in 1825. Its gardens now form the municipal Wanstead Park in the London Borough of Redbridge. History Construc ...

and neighbouring Aldersbrook Manor), the Ambresbury Banks hillfort, the shrine of St Hugh in

Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, also called Lincoln Minster, and formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, is a Church of England cathedral in Lincoln, England, Lincoln, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Lincoln and is the Mo ...

, and techniques for the dating of

English church monuments A church monument is an architectural or sculptural memorial to a deceased person or persons, located within a Christian church. It can take various forms ranging from a simple commemorative plaque or mural tablet affixed to a wall, to a lar ...

. In 1732–33, when he was living in Paris, he wrote the first detailed account in English of the

Bayeux Tapestry The Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidery, embroidered cloth nearly long and tall that depicts the events leading up to the Norman Conquest, Norman Conquest of England in 1066, led by William the Conqueror, William, Duke of Normandy challenging H ...

: it was eventually published in 1767 as an appendix to Andrew Ducarel's ''Anglo-Norman Antiquities''. In 1737, on his father's death, Lethieullier inherited Aldersbrook and began to improve the grounds, including the building of a hermitage in which to house his collections.

Public service

Lethieullier served as

High Sheriff of Essex The High Sheriff of Essex was an ancient sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of th ...

in 1758.

Personal life

Lethieullier married Margaret Sloper in February 1726. She died in 1753: there were no children of the marriage. His estates were inherited by his niece Mary, daughter of his younger brother Charles.

Death and burial

Lethieullier died on 27 August 1760 at Aldersbrook, and was buried in St Mary's Church, Little Ilford.

References

Sources

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External links

Entry for Smart Lethieullier at the Royal Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lethieullier, Smart 1701 births 1760 deaths 18th-century English antiquarians Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford English people of French descent Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London High sheriffs of Essex Huguenots People educated at Eton College