Timothy (c. 1844 – 3 April 2004) was a
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...
spur-thighed tortoise, estimated to be about 160 years old at the time of her death. This made her the UK's oldest known animal resident.
In spite of her name, Timothy was female;
gender identification for tortoises was not properly known in the 19th century. Timothy was named after a tortoise owned by
Gilbert White.
Timothy was believed to have been born in the Mediterranean shores of
the Ottoman Empire (modern-day
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
) and was found aboard a
Portuguese privateer in 1854, aged around 10, by
Captain John Guy Courtenay-Everard of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
. The tortoise served as a
mascot on a series of navy vessels until 1892. She was the ship mascot of during the first bombardment of
Sevastopol in the
Crimean War
The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
(she was the last survivor of this war),
then moved to followed by .
After her naval service, she retired to live out her life on dry land, taken in by the
Earl of Devon at his home,
Powderham Castle. From 1935, she lived in the castle's rose garden and was owned by Camilla Gabrielle Courtenay (1913–2010), the daughter of the 16th Earl of Devon.
On her underside was etched "Where have I fallen? What have I done?", English translation of the Courtenay family motto ''ubi lapsus, quid feci''.
In 1926, Timothy's owners decided that he should mate, and then "he" was discovered to be actually female.
Despite this information, mating attempts were unsuccessful.
Timothy is buried at
Powderham Castle.
See also
*
Jonathan (tortoise)
Jonathan (hatched ) is a Seychelles giant tortoise (''Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa''), a subspecies of the Aldabra giant tortoise (''Aldabrachelys gigantea''). His age is estimated to be as of , making him the oldest known living land an ...
, the oldest known living reptile (aged )
*
Lin Wang, Indian elephant who died on 26 February 2003 (aged 85)
References
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External links
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{{Named turtles
1844 animal births
2004 animal deaths
Individual tortoises
Turtle mascots
Real-life animal mascots
English mascots
Individual animals in England
History of the Royal Navy
Military animals of World War I