Life

Baptised at Shobrooke in Devon on 17 June 1567, he was the third son of Philip Westcote of West Raddon in the parish of Shobrooke, by his wife Katharine, daughter of George Waltham of Brenton in the parish of Exminster

Exminster

Exminster is a village situated on the southern edge of the City of Exeter on the western side of the Exeter ship canal and River Exe in the county of Devon, England. It is around south of the centre of Exeter, and has a population of 3,084 . Exminster is an ancient village associated with a Saxon...

, Devon. In his youth he was a soldier, traveller, and courtier, but in middle age he retired to a country life, probably living at West Raddon with his eldest brother, Robert. In 1624 he held a lease of Thorn Park in the neighbouring parish of Holcombe Burnell.

Westcote was buried at Shobrooke, but the date of his death is uncertain, as the register of burials between May 1639 and July 1644 is missing. He was married to Mary (d. 1666), eldest daughter and coheiress of Richard Roberts of Combe Martin

Combe Martin

Combe Martin is a village and civil parish on the North Devon coast about east of Ilfracombe. It is a small seaside resort with a sheltered cove on the edge of the Exmoor National Park...

, Devon. By her he had one son, Philip (d. 1641), and four surviving daughters.

Works

Westcote interested himself in local antiquities, encouraged by his friendships with the topographers Sir William Pole (1561–1635) and Tristram Risdon

Tristram Risdon

Tristram Risdon was an English antiquary and topographer, and the author of Survey of the County of Devon. He was able to devote most of his life to writing this work. After he completed it in about 1632 it circulated around interested people in several manuscript copies for almost 80 years before...

. He aimed at a description of Devon, similar to that for Cornwall by Richard Carew. He was encouraged in his project by Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath

Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath

Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath , was born 27 Aug 1575 in Somerset to William Bourchier, 3rd Earl of Bath and Elizabeth Russell. Edward was married twice first on 14 July 1623 to Dorothy St John, daughter of Oliver St John, 3rd Baron St John of Bletso and Dorothy Read. They had five children...

, and compiled two collections: ‘A View of Devonshire,’ in which, after a general dissertation on the history of the county, he gave a topographical account of its condition about 1630; and the ‘Pedigrees of most of our Devonshire Families,’ an inaccurate compilation of genealogical information. The two manuscripts were published at Exeter in 1845, under the editorship of George Oliver

George Oliver (historian)

George Oliver was an English Roman Catholic priest and historian of the Exeter area.-Life:He was born at Newington, Surrey, on 9 February 1781, and was educated, first at Sedgley Park School, Staffordshire, and afterwards at Stonyhurst College...

and Pitman Jones.