Life

He was the second son of John Acland, of Acland in Landkey

Landkey

Landkey is a small village in the county of Devon in the south-west of England with a population of 2274. It is situated from the nearest town of Barnstaple.-Origin:...

, Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

, who married Mary, daughter and coheir of Hugh Redcliff of Stepney

Stepney

Stepney is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in London's East End that grew out of a medieval village around St Dunstan's church and the 15th century ribbon development of Mile End Road...

. From his mother he obtained landed property near London, and increased his fortune by marrying Elizabeth, the daughter of George Rolle, of Stevenston

Stevenston

Stevenston is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is one of the 'Three Towns' along with Ardrossan and Saltcoats.-History:The town is named after Stephan Loccard or Lockhart, whose father obtained a grant of land from Richard de Morville, Lord Cunninghame and Constable of Scotland, around 1170....

 in Devon, and the widow of Robert Mallet, of Woolleigh in the county. On her death he took another rich widow as his second wife, Margaret, a daughter of Sir Henry Portman of Somerset

Somerset

The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...

; she had been previously married to Sir Gabriel Hawley.

He was Member of Parliament first for Saltash

Saltash (UK Parliament constituency)

Saltash, sometimes called Essa, was a "rotten borough" in Cornwall which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in the English and later British Parliament from 1552 to 1832, when it was abolished by the Great Reform Act.-History:...

, in 1584. He was knighted by James I on 15 March 1604 in the Tower of London

Tower of London

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...

, and at a bye-election (27 January 1607), in the first parliament of the reign, became knight of the shire for Devon

Devon (UK Parliament constituency)

Devon was a parliamentary constituency covering the county of Devon in England. It was represented by two Knights of the Shire, in the House of Commons of England until 1707, then of the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and finally the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from...

.

Legacy

He died in 1613, and was buried in Broad Clyst church, where a monument has the figures of himself and his wives.

His charitable gifts were numerous. He settled on the mayor and town council of Exeter

Exeter

Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...

 the rectorial endowments of two parishes in the South Hams, so that the annual proceeds might be distributed among the poor in Exeter and in other parts of the county. When he acquired the estate of Columb-John, in Broad Clyst, about four miles from Exeter, he built in the mansion a chapel for the use of the tenantry, and endowed it with a rent-charge for the support of the minister. A new hall, with cellars underneath, was erected by Exeter College, Oxford

Exeter College, Oxford

Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...

, shortly before his death, at a cost of about £1,000 and of that Acland gave £800. Two scholarships were also founded by him at the college.