People in William’s life A-L

[These two pages are growing slowly: see Page History below.]

A-F

  • Annesley. See Sisters (Anne).
  • Beckford. William Thomas Beckford (1760-1844): William’s friend from 1779 and his lover from December 1781 to November 1784.
  • Bush. Anne Bush (1758-1839): housekeeper at Powderham, mentioned in William’s English will (section 10). For her own will, see Wills of other people.
  • Carte. Edward Carte (1767-1822): William’s agent in Ireland from 1811 to 1818, a cousin of the Thomas Locke who married William’s aunt Ann Clack.
  • Carteret. See Sisters (Harriet).
  • Chaud[e]let. Joseph Chaudlet: “Chaudlet was an important character in the old village of Bloomingdale [New York]. He was a man of many talents and resources. Born in Marseilles, he met in Paris with General Lafayette, who found that Joseph was an excellent cook, and gave him, on leaving France, letters of recommendation to Fulton and Major Colden, which procured him the position of chief cook to Lord Courtney, who kept an almost princely household at Claremont. Here Chaudlet showed such skill in treating Lord Courtney’s horses that he was promoted to the post of veterinary surgeon, and afterwards he built and managed the Bloomingdale smithy.” (Matilda Despard, Old New York, 1875, pages 138-139.)
  • Clack. See Uncles, aunts and cousins.
    • Edward Robert Clack (1786-1855): a cousin who accompanied William to New York, then returned to Devon and managed the Powderham estate until 1824.
    • Thomas Clack (1745-1805): an uncle who was appointed a trustee in the will of William’s father.
  • Corbyn. Henry Corbyn (1781-1851): William’s tenant in Devon and (from 1821) in France; he witnessed the first codicil to William’s English will.
  • Cosway. Richard Cosway: commissioned by William to produce portraits of the family at Powderham as well as paintings for parish church and the music room at Powderham-castle.
  • Cotes. See Uncles, aunts and cousins (aunt Lucy).
  • Dussek. Jan Ladislav Dussek: Czech composer and performer who spent much of his working life in London and Paris; he dedicated his ‘Favourite sonata’ to ‘Lord Courtenay’.
  • Ferrère-Laffitte: William’s bankers in France.
  • Fouchécour. Comte de Fouchécour: Jean Francois Louis Marie Marguerite de Salivet de Courtenay, Comte de Fouchécour et de Salivet Vicomte de Blomchamps et du Boire, a French aristocrat born in 1759 who migrated to England in 1792 and was naturalized with support from William’s family as ‘Jean de Courtenay’ by an 1812 act of the UK parliament (Journals of the House of Commons volume 67 pages 68, 307, & 54; Journals of the House of Lords volume 48 pages 824, 826 & 830). When his French translation of Samuel Johnson’s Rasselas was published in London in 1798, Fouchécour describes himself as ‘Heureux si mes efforts me méritent l’approbation de mes lecteurs, et si la nation loyale et hospitalière à la quelle je fais hommage de ma traduction l’accueille avec indulgence.‘ He taught French to support himself in England, and Brit Nicholson quotes an 1808 description of him by one of his pupils: ‘His manners were gentle but like his face, very plain and his figure small but well made.’ As a friend of William’s cousin and brother-in-law sir John Honywood, two of his letters appear in Lady Honywood’s Memorial (pages 16-17 and 29); he seems to have been held in The Fleet, a prison for debtors, in December 1811 (London Gazette, No. 16557 page 24).
  • Foy. See Sisters (Sophia).
  • Fryer. William Fryer (1789-1865): a labourer from Powderham, indicted at Exeter in 1811 for having consensual sex with William. In November 1810 he married Elizabeth Weeks at Exmouth and there were several children from this marriage before Elizabeth’s death in 1840. He received an annual pension from William which was continued after 1835 by the terms of William’s will. For the later part of his life William Fryer lived in London where he died in 1865 at Marylebone, aged 76.
  • Fulton. Robert Fulton made a long visit to Powderham Castle in 1791-92, painted a portrait of William which has disappeared, and was a friend to him when William arrived in New York.
  • Furlong.
    • Alfred Furlong (1792-1861): agent for the Irish estates 1821-46; son of William Furlong.
    • William Furlong (1753-1829): lawyer in Dublin with responsibility for William’s affairs in Ireland; father of Alfred Furlong.

Longways Dance null by Thomas Rowlandson 1756-1827

G-L

  • Gawler. See Sisters (Anne).
  • Genevray. See Sisters (Frances).
  • Giffard. See Sisters (Charlotte).
  • Henley. Samuel Henley: born at Abbotskerswell (Devon). William Beckford schemed unsuccessfully to have Henley appointed William’s private tutor in 1784.
  • Honywood. See Uncles, aunts and cousins (Elizabeth), Sisters (Frances), and Lady Honywood’s Memorial.
  • Hoskins. Alexander Hoskins (1766-1830) – AH: William’s agent in Ireland from 1818 to 1821; AH was the son of Ann & Alexander Hoskins of Great Broughton (Cumberland) and Hornby Hall (Lancs); his father died in 1800 and was buried on 5 July at Melling (Lancashire). AH married Margaret Smith (1772-1838; see Smith below) 21 June 1798 at Heysham (Lancashire); they had at least 8 children: rev. William Edward H, Margaret Royse of Nantenan (co. Limerick), Elizabeth H, James Alexander H, Henry Repton H, Thomas (killed in Ireland aged 19 in 1821), Maria (baptised 16 November 1807), Alexander (died as an infant 16 January 1807).  AH died 9 May 1830 and was buried at Saint-Servan (Bretagne, France). AH‘s younger brother George was a merchant at Liverpool; their sister Ann (died 1819 @57 & buried at Melling) married Timothy Parker (-1805) of Hornby Hall and they had 16 or more children. AH was articled 1781-1786 to Robert Fisher of London but this was interrupted by ill health and he served the residue from 1793-1795 with Edward Newsham of Liverpool.
  • Howe. William Howe (1786-1836): one of William’s servants in New York; he returned to England and became a gamekeeper at Powderham.
  • Ker. See Sisters (Anne).
  • La Forest. Charles Henry La Forest: a legatee in William’s English will (section 4 and codicil 4). Le comte de Laforest is listed at 15 rue Belle-Chasse and madame la comtesse Laforest at 8 place Vendôme in Almanach des 25000 addresses des principaux habitans de Paris par l’année 1832.
  • La Gage. Augustus Louis La Gage: a legatee in William’s English will (section 4).
  • Linter. John Linter (1779-1836): tutor in William’s French household to the young children of George Woods and their cousin George Smith.
  • Lisburne. See Sisters (Lucy).
  • Lock(e). See Uncles, aunts and cousins (Ann) and Sisters (Matilda).
    • Charles Lock: (1) cousin of Thomas Lock 1, rector of North Bovey in Devon until his death in 1801; (2) son of Thomas Lock 1, naval captain until his death in 1800. Charles Courtenay Locke (1803-1848): son of Matilda and John Locke.
    • Thomas Lock: (1) married to William’s aunt Ann, rector of Newcastle in County Limerick until his death in 1787; (2) son of Thomas 1, rector of Mahoonagh and Newcastle until his death in December 1846.
    • William Thomas Locke (1765-1817): son of Thomas 1; William’s agent in Ireland until 1811, appointed by William’s father in 1787.
  • Loughborough. See Uncles, aunts and cousins (Charlotte).

Longways Dance null by Thomas Rowlandson 1756-1827

Images from the top

Page history

  • 2019 August 28: first published online.
  • 2020 March 15: reviewed; new content added – Anne Robinson.
  • 2020 June 1: page split into two pages (A-L, M-Z).
  • 2020 June 19: entry for Fulton added with redirections for Annesley, Carteret, Clack, Cotes, Foy, Giffard, Ker, Lisburne, Lock(e), Loughborough.
  • 2021 March 27: entry for Hoskins corrected.
  • 2021 April 8: entry for Dussek added.
  • 2024 July 4: entry for Hoskins expanded.
  • 2025 March 19/20: entries for Beckford, Cosway, Furlong, Honywood, Howe and Linter added; entries for Fryer and Henley expanded.

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