John I Rolle (1522-1570)

Arms of Rolle: Or, on a fesse dancetté between three billets azure each charged with a lion rampant of the first three bezants

John I Rolle (1522-1570) of Stevenstone, in the parish of St Giles in the Wood, near Great Torrington, Devon, was the eldest son and heir of George Rolle (d.1552),^[1] MP, founder of the great Rolle family of Stevenstone, by his second wife Eleanor Dacres. Three monuments survive in memory of his immediate family in the churches of St Giles in the Wood and Chittlehampton.

Marriage & progeny

Left: Margaret Ford, detail from her monumental brass in Church of St Giles, St Giles in the Wood; Right: arms of Ford of Bagtor and Nutwell:^[2] Party per fesse or and sable, in chief a greyhound courant in base an owl within a bordure engrailed all counter-changed. These arms are visible on her husband's brass in St Giles' Church

He married Margaret Ford, daughter of John Ford (d.1538) of Ashburton,^[3] the son and heir of William Ford of Chagford.^[4] John Ford purchased the estate of Bagtor in the parish of Ilsington, which his male heirs successively made their seat.^[5] The Elizabethan mansion of the Fords survives today as the service wing of a later house appended in about 1700.^[6] Margaret's great nephew was John Ford (1586-c.1639) the dramatist, who was baptised at Ilsington, and her great-great-nephew was Sir Henry Ford (1617-1684), MP for Tiverton and Secretary of State for Ireland.^[7] He had by Margaret Ford the following progeny, 8^[8] sons and 2 daughters:

Sons

The 8 sons of John Rolle (1522-1570) by his wife Margaret Ford. Their names are inscribed left to right: Henrye R, Rychard R,^[9] Valentyne R, Alexander R, George R, Joachyme R, Robert R, John R. Monumental brass in St Giles in the Wood Church

Mural monument to Joachim Rolle (d.1638), Chittlehampton Church, Devon

• Sir Henry Rolle (1545^[10]-1625) of Stevenstone, eldest son and heir, who married twice:
  • Firstly to Elizabeth Watts, daughter and heiress of Roger Watts of Somerset, from which marriage were descended his heir to Stevenstone, namely his grandson Denys I Rolle (1614-1638), son of Sir Henry Rolle (d.1617) who predeceased his father.^[11]
  • Secondly, without issue, to Joan Fortescue, daughter of John Fortescue of Fallapit^[12] in the parish of East Allington^[13]
• Richard Rolle, 2nd son.^[14]
• Valentine Rolle (1545-1624),^[15] 3rd son, of Torrington, died without issue.
• Alexander Rolle, 4th son, who married Frances Lippingcott, daughter of John Lippingcott of Webbery,^[16] Alverdiscott^[17][18]
• George Rolle, 5th son, died without issue
• Joachim Rolle (d.1638), 6th son, whose mural monument survives in Chittlehampton Church, who married Mary Venner (1579-1651),^[19] a daughter of William^[20]Venner of Hudscott, Chittlehampton. Without progeny. A mural monument to Joachim survives in Chittlehampton Church inscribed as follows beneath the Rolle arms and crest: "Here lyeth the body of Joachim Rolle sonne unto John Rolle of Stevenstone, Esquier, deceased, who married Mary the daughter of William Venner of this parish, gent, deceased, and who departed this life the 30th day of January in the faith of Christ Anno D(omi)ni 1638. As thou art so was I; And as I am so shalt thou be".
• Robert Rolle (1559-1628), 7th son, died without issue.
• John Rolle (b.1563), 8th son, who in 1603 married Phillipa Halse (d.1655), daughter of Richard Halse of Kenedon. Their eldest son Henry Rolle (1605-1647) of Beam eventually succeeded to the vast Stevenstone estates of his cousin Denys Rolle (1614-1638)

Daughters

Monumental brass depicting the daughters of John Rolle (d.1570) of Stevenstone: "Margerye R" and "Honor R". St Giles in the Wood Church, Devon

• Margerie Rolle, married Richard Baker ^[21]
• Honor Rolle, who married in 1569 Thomas Pomeroy^[22] (1543-1615) of "Bingley",^[23] son and heir of Sir Thomas Pomeroy (1503-1566)^[24] who in 1547 had sold his ancient inheritance of Berry Pomeroy Castle, formerly caput of the great feudal barony of Berry Pomeroy, to Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset.^[25]

Monumental brasses

Brass of John Rolle

Small monumental brass of John Rolle (d.1570), St Giles in the Wood Church

His small monumental brass survives now affixed by modern screws into the floor of the south aisle of St Giles in the Wood parish Church, beneath the separate brass figure of his wife, but formerly affixed to his two and a half foot high chest tomb situated in the chancel of that church as recorded by Prince in his 1710 work "Worthies of Devon". It is inscribed in Latin thus: "Hic jacet Joh(ann)es Rolle, Ar(miger), quonda(m) domin(u)s de Stevinstone qui obiit 12.o (duodecimo) die Augusti Anno D(omi)ni 1570" ("Here lies John Rolle, Esquire, sometime lord of Stevenstone who died on the 12th day of August in the year of Our Lord 1570"). The arms show Rolle impaling Party per fesse argent (or azure) and sable, in chief a greyhound current in base an owl within a bordure engrailed all counter-changed" (Ford)^[26]

Brass of Margaret Ford

Monumental brass of Margaret Ford, wife of John Rolle (d.1570). St Giles in the Wood Church

The surviving monumental brass of Margaret Ford, wife of John Rolle (d.1570), is situated in the Church of St Giles in the Wood. It is inscribed thus: Hic Stevenstonii Rolli jacet inclita mater nil habuit vera quae pietate prius cu.. quib.. & vixit sex mascula pignor aliquit queis desideriv mortua triste tulit pars melior superos adiit cetusque pioru.. egidii templo hoc ossa sepulta cubant si quis plura velit vel noscere plura laborat vecimo hec prestat scripta tabella logo. To the left is a brass plaque depicting her 2 daughters (see above) and to the left a plaque showing her 8 sons (see above). Below is a brass to her husband (see above), showing the arms of Rolle impaling Ford, moved from elsewhere in the church.

Sources

• Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitation of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895, pedigree of Rolle, pp.652-653.
• Lauder, Rosemary, Devon Families, Tiverton, 2002, pp.67-68, Rolle Family.

References

1. ↑ Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitation of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895, p.652, pedigree of Rolle
2. ↑ Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitation of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895, pp.349-351, pedigree of Ford of Nutwell
3. ↑ Vivian, p.652
4. ↑ Vivian, p.349, pedigree of Ford
5. ↑ Risdon, Tristram (d.1640), Survey of Devon, 1810 edition, London, 1810, p.135
6. ↑ Pevsner, Nikolaus & Cherry, Bridget, The Buildings of England: Devon, London, 2004, p.507; Hoskins, W.G., A New Survey of England: Devon, London, 1959 (first published 1954), p.415
7. ↑ Hoskins, p.282; Vivian, p.350
8. ↑ 8 sons as shown and named on the monumental brass in St Giles's Church, of whom only 7 (excluding Richard) were listed by Vivian, p.653
9. ↑ Richard Rolle not listed in Vivian, Rolle pedigree
10. ↑ Vivian, p.653 "aged 25 years & more in 1570; aet(atis suo) 75 a(nn)o 1620 ("of his age 75 in the year 1620")
11. ↑ Vivian, p.653
12. ↑ Vivian, p.653
13. ↑ Pevsner, p.346
14. ↑ 8 sons as shown and named on the monumental brass in St Giles's Church, of whom only 7 (excluding Richard) were listed by Vivian, p.653
15. ↑ Vivian, p.653: "Liveinge 1620 aet 75"
16. ↑ Vivian, p.531, pedigree of Lippingcott of "Wibbery/Wybbery"
17. ↑ Webbery, Alverdiscott, alias "Wybbebeyre", Thorn, Caroline & Frank, (eds.) Domesday Book, (Morris, John, gen.ed.) Vol. 9, Devon, Parts 1 & 2, Phillimore Press, Chichester, 1985, part 2, 48,1
18. ↑ "In the 17th Century (Webbery, Alverdiscott) passed by marriage to the Lippincott (or Luppincott) family. A Lippincott was, we believe, on the Mayflower or certainly one of the other ships taking the first settlers to Virginia. Descendants of the Lippincotts from the USA are fairly frequent visitors to Webbery"
19. ↑ Vivian pp.653, 746
20. ↑ "William Venner" per Vivian, p.746, pedigree of Venner; "Humphry Venner" p.653, pedigree of Rolle
21. ↑ Vivian, p.652
22. ↑ Vivian, p.652
23. ↑ Beenleigh Manor, Harberton Ford, Harberton, Totnes, per [www.geocities.ws/pomerytwig/beenleigh.html]
24. ↑ Vivian, p.607, pedigree of Pomeroy
25. ↑ Vivian, p.607, pedigree of Pomeroy
26. ↑ Lysons. (1822) Magna Britannia, vol. 6: Devonshire, Families removed since 1620.] pp. CLXXIII-CCXXV gives the following description of the Ford family: Ford, of Chagford, &c. — Eight descents of this family are described in the visitation of 1620. Prince supposes them to have been descended from the Fords, of Fordmore, in Moreton Hampsted, settled there as early as the 12th century; the heiress of that family married Charles, of Tavistock. The Fords, of Chagford, settled there in consequence of a marriage with the heiress of Hill. John, the fourth in descent, who was of Ashburton, married the heiress of Holwell, by whom he had a daughter and heiress married to St. Clere. The son of a second marriage continued the family. John Ford, of Bagtor, married the heiress of Drake, of Spratshays, in Littleham, and was father of Sir Henry Ford, of Nutwell, who was chief secretary for Ireland, under Arthur Capel, Earl of Essex, and was buried at Woodbury, in 1684: he left a son Charles, supposed to have died in his minority, and three daughters, married to Drake, (ancestor of George Drake, Esq., of Ipplepen,) Holwill, and Egerton. John, second son of John Ford above mentioned, continued the line at Ashburton; Mr. John Ford, who died in 1677, is supposed to have been the last of the branch: there was another younger branch at Totnes. Arms: — Party per fesse, A. and S., in chief, a greyhound current; in base, an owl within a border engrailed, all counterchanged. Crest: — A demi-greyhound, charged with a bend, Argent, collar'd, Or, between 2 apple branches fructed of the second. (Lysons, Samuel & Daniel. (1822). Magna Britannia: volume 6: Devonshire, Families removed since 1620. pp. CLXXIII-CCXXV)