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William Downes Phillot came from a Somerset family but his association with Budleigh Salterton resulted from the marriage of his daughter Mary Elizabeth Phillott to Charles Strangeways Torriano at East Budleigh Church in October 1832.  The Torriano family lived in Budleigh Salterton for the latter half of the 19th century (1).  Mary’s father, who was a witness at her marriage, resided in Budleigh for a time and one of his sons, Frederick James Phillott, also retired to Budleigh after a military career.

William Downes Phillott was born on the 8th December 1778 and baptised privately in Bath Abbey.  He went to Charterhouse School and joined the Devonshire Regiment in 1795.  He was an ensign in 1796, and later became lieutenant but whether by promotion or purchase is not clear.  He resigned from the regiment in 1800. 

He had married Harriet Grace Phillips in Shepton Mallet on 26 June 1799 and their daughter Mary Elizabeth was born on 3rd December 1800 followed over the next ten years by a further two daughters and three sons.  Mary Elizabeth Phillott was, according to the census returns, born in either Exeter or Winscombe in Somerset.  The family definitely had associations with Winscombe and William applied for a game licence there in 1806.   In 1809 he received (or more likely paid for) a commission as Lieutenant Colonel in the West Mendip Regiment signed by The Lord Lieutenant of Somerset (2). 

William later seems to have moved about quite a bit as evidenced by a court appearance he made in Exeter on the 11th day of July 1829.  This was a court for the relief of insolvent debtors and he is described as Lieutenant-Colonel West Mendip Local Militia, formerly of Winterhead, in the Parish of Winscombe, then of Wrington, then of Winterhead, then of Chilcompton, all in Somersetshire, then of No. 18, Everett-Street, Russell-Square, London, and late of No. 2, Upper Seymour Place, Bryanstone Square, Middlesex (3).

His wife died, probably before his daughter Mary married, and he then remarried in 1838 in Heavitree to Charlotte Hutton who provided him with two further sons.  They initially lived at Ide but by the time of the 1851 census they were living in Budleigh Salterton and William was 72.  He appears to have died in 1859 in the Newton Abbot Registration District (4).  His wife later lived in Exeter and derived her income “from the Dutch trade” (5).

Frederick James Phillott was born in 1803 and attended the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich before entering the 23rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Welch Fusiliers) as a Second Lieutenant in April 1825 (6).  In December 1826 he became a 1st Lieutenant by purchase.  In 1841 he was with his Regiment at Carlisle Castle and apparently unmarried.  He was promoted to Captain in March 1843 and he was probably on half pay for a number of years. 

We next find him in 1850 in Canada with the Reserve Battalion of the Royal Welch on Lake Erie on board the paddle steamer Commerce sailing to Port Stanley to relieve the garrison.  There is a long account of the tragedy that occurred on the voyage (7) but, in short, the Commerce collided at night with the steamer Dispatch off Port Maitland and forty people were drowned. 

After finding that he could take no further action to save the ship Frederick managed to evacuate three officers, ninety-two men, twelve women and nine children onto the Despatch which had not been badly damaged.  Capt. Phillott and his officers remained on board till this evacuation was completed and he was the last to leave the sinking ship.  Assistant Surgeon Grantham, twenty-four men, women and children lost their lives on the Commerce and all arms, accoutrements and the officers mess property was lost.  

Regimental records state that Capt. Phillott wrote an excellent report on the disaster to higher authority.  "There can be little doubt that the loss of life would have been much greater but for the self possession, courage and activity of Captain Phillott" they wrote (8).  The Captain of the Dispatch was at fault and in fact absconded to the United States before the judicial enquiry.

Frederick became a Major by purchase in March 1853 and then exchanged with another Major who was on half pay in March 1854(6).  He then remained retired and unattached on half pay and during this time he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.  I suspect that he was living in Budleigh during much of his retirement as his sister and father were also residents.  He died in 1870 and is buried in East Budleigh Churchyard. He was in Simcoe House at the time of the 1861 census, living with his wife Mary Ann (nee Gamble) and 17 year old niece Cecilia Frederica Phillot (who never married). In the 1870 Morris’ Directory we find him at 4 Prospect Place (East Terrace). He died in 1870 and is buried in East Budleigh Churchyard. His widow was at 8 Prospect Place in 1873.

Two of William Downes Phillott’s other sons also had military careers.  The eldest, Captain William Joseph Phillott (born 1802), entered the East India Company Army in 1819 and joined the 34th Native Infantry, being promoted to Captain in 1830 (9).  He then appears to have fallen on hard times being transferred to the Invalid Establishment in December 1832, and was then jailed in 1838 in Calcutta for debt (10).  He died in India. 

His daughter Matilda Henrietta Hamilton Phillott (born 1835) was admitted to the care of the Bengal Military Orphans Society in 1843.  She was later recorded living with her aunt Mary Torriano and her husband in East Terrace in the 1851 census.  She was readmitted to the Orphanage but permitted to return to England from 1854 to 1859; a pension was paid on her behalf to “Colonel Phillott” (11).  I believe this to be the Frederick James Phillott mentioned above, her uncle, and that she probably lived at that time in Budleigh.  She married in East Budleigh in 1860. 

Willam Downes Phillott’s youngest son with his first wife, William Charles Phillott (born circa 1810), joined the Royal Navy and had risen to the rank of Commander by 1839.  He married Eliza Hooper that year in Littleham Church.  William served in the Mediterranean fleet and died at some time before the 1851 census where his wife was listed as a widow living with her seven year old daughter Cecilia.  She remarried in 1852 to James Piers St. Aubyn, a highly regarded architect. As recorded above, her daughter Cecilia was living at Simcoe House with her uncle Frederick in 1861. 

Compiled and Researched by Roger Lendon, © 2010

(1)Torriano Families page OVApedia

(2)The Royal Military Chronicle: Volume 4

(3)London Gazette June 1829

(4)http://freebmd.rootsweb.com/cgi/search.pl

(5)1871 Census

(6)London Gazette and/or Hart’s Army Lists

(7) “This sad and melancholy catastrophe:” Port Maitland, Ontario and the wreck of the troopship Commerce, 6 May 1850. Kyle McIntyre. The Northern Mariner Vol 8. 1998

(8)Information from Ms. Sandy Bagnall.

(9)Alphabetical list of the officers of the Bengal Army..  at www.archive.org

(10)London Gazette January 3rd 1838

(11)Families in British India  www.fibis.org

92 BS-B-00026  Biography any