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The 18th Earl of Devon, who died on August 18, had an interesting forebear. Alistair Lexden provided details about him in a letter published in The Daily Telegraph on August 31.
Sir,
The Earl of Devon (Obituary, August 22) did the right thing when he abandoned his opposition to the use of Powderham Castle for gay weddings. A powerful ancestral spirit was placated.
Having been seduced at the age of 10 by William Beckford, the 3rd Viscount Courtenay (1768-1835) later longed to settle down openly at Powderham with a male partner. When threatened with a trial by his peers, he hoped at first that they would not convict him since “most of them were like himself”. But in 1811 he fled into a long and unhappy exile.
Diligent research by a cousin who was a Lords Clerk led in 1831 to the earldom of Devon being revived after nearly three centuries in abeyance. The cousin inherited it.
Lord Lexden
London SW1