The 16th century family of Jasper Horsey of Exeter.

Jasper Horsey was probably born around 1500 to Sir John Horsey of Clifton Maubank and Elizabeth Turgis of Turgis Melcombe. As the younger son, Jasper did not inherit his fathers estates and had to make his own fortune. Around 1524, he married Joanna Wilford, the daughter and heir of William Wilford.1 Jasper inherited the manor of “Oxton” near Kenton from Wilford, but subsequently sold it.2 He found employment in the household of Henry Courtenay, the Marquis of Exeter. According to Peter Webb's essay “John and Jasper Horsey: two Tudor Opportunists,” Jasper was comptroller of the Marquis' estates in Devon and Surrey by 1535. During the dynastic issue of Henry VIII, Jasper provided testimony against his employer and was rewarded with the manor of Bletchingly in Surrey, as well as continued service as comptroller of various estates in Devon and Surrey. By 1540, he was also appointed steward of Anne of Cleves. Mr. Webb points out that his close friendship with Ralph Sadler no doubt assisted his rise in fortune. Jasper died in 1546 leaving his widow a small estate near Kenton in the south of Devon, where she lived until her death in 1558.

Jasper and Joanna were prolific parents, having possibly as many as 16 children. According to the original Willis manuscript of the 1623 Visitation of Dorset3, they had eight boys and two girls: A) Johanna, 1) George, 2) Edward, 3) Jasper, B) Maria, 4) Thomas, 5) Francis, 6) John, 7) William, and 8) Christopher. However, Joanna's will listed four girls and seven boys. For reasons explained below, Edward and Francis did not appear in her will, but Philip and Gervase did. Her will, which was written in 1553, also reference her daughters Katherine, Anne, Gertrude and Margaret, but not Johanna or Maria. Her will also notes that all but Katherine, Anne and George were under 21 years of age, suggesting the rest were born after 1532.4

Based on the order of listings in the Visitation of Devonshire, Johanna appeared to be the eldest child, probably born around 1524. The Visitation lists Tho. Smith of Exeter as her husband, and Devon marriage records show the marriage of Thomas Smyth in 1548 at St. Petrock in Exeter. Her daughters Ann and Gertrude Smith are mentioned in her brother George's will.

Jasper's heir was Sir George Horsey. He was born around 1525, and he married advantageously to Mary Periam, heir of Thomas Periam of Diggswell. Upon his mother-in-law's death, George inherited the estate at Diggswell, Hertfordshire, and was known thereafter as Sir George Horsey of Diggswell. Mary died relatively young, and Sir George remarried to Anne Sadler in 1568, the daughter of his father's benefactor, Sir Ralph Sadler, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. Apparently through the office of his new father-in-law, Sir George was appoint receiver general of the Duchy of Lancaster.5 Ann passed away in 1578, and Sir George died in 1587.6 The Visitation of Hertfordshire records that Sir George and Anne had two boys and three girls.7

• The eldest and heir, Sir Ralph (or Raphe) Horsey married Edith Mohun, the daughter of Sir William Mohun and Elizabeth (Horsey) Mohun, who was the daughter of Jasper's nephew Sir John Horsey of Clifton Maybank. When Sir John's son died without heir in 1588, Sir Ralph inherited the estates at Clifton Maybank through the dual claims of his and his wife's lineage. Unfortunately, Sir Ralph's heir, George Horsey squandered their inheritance on risky business ventures and lost the family estates by the mid-1630s. Of note, one of Sir Ralph's sons was Howard Horsey, who appears to have been an early tax collector in Virginia.8

• Sir George's second son was Jesper Horsey of Willen, Hertfordshire. Jesper married Hellen Dockwray (or Dockwra), the daughter of Thomas Dockwray. Sir George left Jesper his estate at Horfeilde. Jesper also had two sons and three daughters: Jesper Horsey of Potter's Bar, Middlesex (d.1637); George Horsey; Jane; Gertrude; and Hellen.9

• Sir George's daughter Ellen married Thomas Dockway, the brother of Hellen Dockwray.

• Sir George's daughter Ann married Richard Whalley of Screveton, Nottinghamshire

• Sir George's daughter Mary married Roger Revell, the son of the Surveyor to Queen Elizabeth.10

Jasper's second son was the colorful Sir Edward Horsey, Captain of the Isle of Wight. Edward was probably born around 1526. In 1551, he and his younger brother Francis accompanied the Marquis of Northhampton to France11, and they appear to have removed themselves from the family in Devon by this time. Their mother's will, which was dated February 1553, mentions neither of them.12 When Queen Mary was crowned in July 1553, Edward and Francis joined the ranks of the opposition, and they were named among the conspirators in the Dudley plot. They returned to France in exile in 1556, with Henry Dudley, and Edward appears to have married a local woman.13 During this time, Edward became close friends with Sir Robert Dudley. Upon at ascension of Queen Elizabeth, Edward served England in a variety of capacities while living in France, but he did not receive a full pardon until 1565. A month later, he was made Captain of the Isle of Wight, where he served until his death from the plague in 1583. He had no heirs, and his estate passed to his brother George.14

Jasper's third son was Jasper Horsey, who was listed in Joanna's will among the children not yet 21 years old.15 As such, he was probably born around 1533. A Jasper Horsey is listed among the inhabitants of London in 155016, but it is not clear this is the same person. What is more likely is that he found service with Sir Richard Grenville, probably through his wife. Grenville married Mary St. Leger, the daughter of Sir John St. Leger of Devon, in 1565.17 Jasper married her sister Anne St. Leger.18 Records show that while Grenville was serving as the sheriff in County Cork, Ireland from 1568-70, Jasper and various members of the St. Leger family were with him. Jasper Horsey wrote a detailed description of the uprising of 1569 which endangered Grenville's wife.19 The Earl of Sussex wrote him a letter of reference in 1573, noting that Jasper had “served a long time very well in Ireland.”20 This Jasper appears to have settle in Exeter and was active there as a merchant from 1586-1597.21 Other unannotated genealogical research shows Jasper had four children: Walter (merchant of Exeter), Richard, Helen and Catherine.22 His daughters Helen and Catherine are mentioned in his brother George's will.23

Jasper's second daughter was listed as Maria in the Visitation of Dorset. It also says she married a man named Hunt of Exeter.24 Based on the order in which she is listed, she was probably Jasper's fifth child, and was likely born around 1534. There are no records of her marriage to Mr. Hunt. However, the marriage licenses of the Diocese of Exeter from the Bishop's Register shows a license on 7 October 1582 to “Edmund Wekes of Monchokehampton, Gent. and Mary Hunt of Butterly, widow.”

Jasper's fourth son Thomas was probably born around 1535. Boyd's marriage indexes for England list a Thomas Hurse married in London in 1560. Notes added to the Visitation of Dorset 1623 by Rev. F. Brown indicate that Thomas married Dorothy Carent and was buried at Sherborne on 26 September 1573.25 A lawsuit between Sir William Carent and Thomas Horsey 26 and a lawsuit between Leonard Carrant and Dorothy Horsey27, both in Henstridge during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, suggest a fight over inheritance.28 Sir William Carent or Carrant, who was described as from Tomber in the parish Henstridge, Somerset,29 lived in the 15th century and established his family in Henstridge. Thomas' will of 1573 identified him as “Thomas Horsey of Toomers, Somerset,” and left everything to his wife Dorothy. Clearly, Thomas Horsey married Dorothy Carent of Toomers.

Jasper's fifth son Francis was probably born around 1536, and would have been only about 15 years old when he accompanied his older brother Edward to France.30 He joined his brother in exile in 1556,31 and no record exists of him after that time. He most likely followed his brother's example and married a local French woman, but unlike his brother, he seems to have settled down and remained in France.

Jasper's sixth son John was born at Bletchingly on 27 March 154032. This John Horsey, who should not be confused with Sir John Horsey of Clifton Maybank, Somerset, nor John Horsey of Martin, Wiltshire. Although there are no definitive records of him, he could be identifiable with John Horse who married Rochard Whyte in Totnes, Devon in 1569.33

Jasper's seventh son William was born on 11 May 154134. This son has often been misidentified as the father of Sir Jerome Horsey, who was born around 1550. Sir Jerome's father was William Horsey of Taunton, who died in 1559. The will of Sir Jerome's father shows there were eight children in all, of which Robert was the eldest. According to his will, this William Horsey was married to Eleanor, the sister of John Peryam.35 William and Eleanor were married in 153836, which places the birth of Sir Jerome's father around 1517, too soon to be the son of Jasper and Joanna, who was described in Joanna's will of 1553 as not yet 21 years old.37 More likely, Jasper's son William settled in Tiverton, Devon. At the death of Edward Courtenay, Earl of Devon, in 1556, his estates including Tiverton were divided up and many small portions were sold off.38 William may have relocated there seeking the opportunity to obtain some small amount of land. In any case, Devon burial records show a William Horse buried at St. Peter's Church in Tiverton in 1566. These same records show a Margaret Harse buried there in 1577, who was probably William's wife. The next reference to the Horsey family of Tiverton was the marriage of Stephen Hossey to Marie Huggins in 1619. Their first son, recorded as Stephen Hersey in the Devon Baptisms, was baptized at Tiverton on 15 May 1620. His siblings (Christopher, Elizabeth, Thomas and William, all common Horsey family names) were born between 1627 and 1634.39 Devon burial records show a Mary Harse buried in Uffculme (near Tiverton) in 1637. The elder Stephen's burial was indexed as Steven Horfer, and it occurred at St. Peter's church in Tiverton on 13 December 1644. The elder Stephen appears to have remarried as his wife Amy Horssey was buried on 17 November 1644 also at St. Peter's Church. The significance of this branch of the family lies in the young Stephen Horsey born in 1620. He appears to have immigrated to America when the civil war reached Tiverton. In 1643, Stephen Horsey was brought to Virginia by Obedience Robins, and eventually settled in southern Maryland as one of the founders of Somerset County, Maryland. In 1670, he testified in court that he was about 50 years old, establishing his birthdate around 1620. No birth records in England other than Tiverton appear to match this name and date.

Jasper's eighth son Christopher was probably born around 1542. There are no definitive records of Christopher, and he is not mentioned in his mother's will of 1553. He could be identifiable with Christopherus Horsie who was buried in Wilton, near Taunton, Somerset, on 4 May 158140.

Now we come to the six children mentioned in Joanna's will but do not appear in the Visitation of Dorset in 1623: Katherine, Gertrude, Margaret, Philip, Gervase, and Ann. These are far more problematic to trace, and we cannot accurately place them in the order of the family provided in the Visitation, and therefore, we cannot guess their birth year. Joanna's will does describe Philip, Gervase, Gertrude and Marget as not yet 21 years of age though.

The names Philip, Gervase and Gertrude were all added to the original manuscript records by the Rev. Brown.41 Only Gertrude can be verified as she and her son Richard Harte are mentioned in the will of her brother Sir George.42 There is no trace of a Gervase Horsey in available records. There is a death record in the National Burial Index for England and Wales for a Philip Horsey in 1568 in Wilcot, Wiltshire. A Phillip Horsey is also listed as father of an Elizabeth Horsey who born in London on 2 November 1569.43 A grandson of Sir George Horsey was also named Philip, but he died in 1610 and is not identifiable with the Philip Horsey of Wilcot.

In her will, Joanna mentions a daughter named Margaret who is not yet 21 years of age. Margaret could have been misrecorded as Maria in the Visitation, where the order in the pedigree shows Maria is within the group of children under 21 years old. Alternately, it is possible that Joanna was referring to her granddaughter, Sir George's young daughter. Finally, Margaret could be a separate daughter not listed in the pedigree. The only possible marriage record for a separate daughter is for a Margaret Herche in Surrey in 1555. Jasper was comptroller in Surrey as well as Devon, and this date of marriage is two years after Joanna's will described Margaret as single. Joanna also mentions a daughter Katherine, but does not caveat her as being under 21 years old like the others. There are no identifiable records of her other than the reference in Joanna's will. Finally, Joanna mentions a daughter Ann without reference to age. There are no records of this era of an Ann Horsey. This is possibly a reference to Johanna.

1Miscellanea Genealogica Et Heraldica, Joseph Jackson Howard, p.44

2The Chorographical Description or Survey of the County of Devon, Tristram Risdon, p.121

3Miscellanea, pp. 43-45

4Miscellanea, pp. 46-47

5John and Jasper Horsey - Two Tudor Opportunists, Peter Webb

6Publications of the Harleian Society, vol. 20, Addenda to Visitation of Dorsetshire, 1623 p.6

7The Visitations of Hertfordshire with Hertfordshire Pedigrees from Harleian Mss, 6147 and 1546

8Petition of Howard Horsey in Regard to Quit Rents, Sept. 20, 1639 in “Virginia Magazine of History and Biography,” Volume 13, June 1906, p. 377.

9Visitation of Hertfordshire, Appendix I, p. 114.

10Visitation of Hertfordshire.

11Camden Miscellany, Vol. 10, A booke of the Travaile and Lief of Me, Thomas Hoby, edited by Edgar Powell, p.67.

12Miscellanea, pp.46-47

13The Marian Exiles: A Study in the Origins of Elizabethan Puritanism, Christina Halbwell Garrett, p.191.

14The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler.

15Miscellanea, pp.46-47.

16Boyd's Inhabitants of London & Family Units, 1200-1946

17Sir Richard Grenville of the Revenge, A.L. Rowse.

18Family Records, Ashworth Peter Burke, p. 330

19Sir Richard Grenville of the Revenge.

20The manuscripts of the Marquis of Ormonde, Preserved at The Castle, Kilkenny, Vol. 1, p.41.

21An Elizaethan Guild of the City of Exeter: An Account of the Proceedings of the Merchant Adventureres, During the Later Half of the 16th Century by William Cotton.

22http://www.geni.com/people/Jasper-Horsey/6000000002435353756

23Miscellanea, p. 48

24Miscellanea, p. 44.

25Miscellanea, pp.43-44

26Chan. Proc. Ser. II. Vol I, 83 – per Mowbray

27Col. Of Chan. Porc. I 190 – per Mowbray

28Somersetshire Parishes: A Handbook of Historical Reference to All Places in the County Vol. 1, Arthur Lee Humphreys, p. 362

29A History of the Noble House Stourton, of Stourton, in County of Wilts, Charles Botolph Joseph Stourton Mowbray, p. 156

30Camden Miscellany, p.67.

31The Marian Exiles, p.191

32England Births & Baptisms 1538-1975, as presented at findmypast.com

33Devon Marriages, in the South West Heritage Trust Archive, reference 1863A/PR/1/1

34England Births & Baptisms 1538-1975, as presented at findmypast.com

35Abstracts of Somerset Wills, Copied from the Manuscript Collections of the Late Rev. Frederick Brown, p.60

36Boyd's marriage indexes of England, 1538-1850

37Miscellanea, p.p. 46-47

38The History of Tiverton, in the county of Devon, William Harding, pp 105-110

39Look up for Devon genealogical records on RootsChat.com. http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=730871.0

40National Burial Index for England & Wales

41Miscellanea, p. 43

42Miscellanea, p. 48

43England Births & Baptisms 1538-1975, available through findmypast.com