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Book I: 1815 -1881
Part 1
1815 - 1856 Inheritance and Renewal
In 1815 Godfrey Carey, my great-grandfather, unexpectedly inherited a title, manor and estate from his uncle. Upcott Manor and Estate had been grossly mismanaged, and the whole of the inheritance was undistinguished. Lord Godfrey, with physical force, much endeavour and Lady Georgina at his side, made Upcott Manor and Estate significant.
This man took back the land into his own hands. He brought to an end the practice of small mixed tenant farms and determined that The Estate would produce beef, wool and Red Devon cattle breeding stock.
Godfrey married his cousin, Georgina Carey, and together they became a force in West Devon and beyond. Lord Godfrey and Lady Georgina were singular people and this is the history of their life, the life of their family and, the lives of the families of Upcott estate, village and parish.
Part 2
1856 - 1881Succession and Survival
Peter Carey inherited the title in 1856. This Lord Upcott was an educated man. A county man. The first Lord of Upcott to extend the Careys' interests and concerns beyond The Estate. This man lived through a period known as the Agricultural Depression. Despite adverse economic conditions, Lord Peter secured the family's finances for a succeeding generation.
Peter Carey married Catherine Christina Harrington-Court, a noted horsewoman and rider to hounds. Peter introduced Catherine to his abiding love of Venice, and she shared his passion. They divided their time between Devon and Venice.
Book II: 1881 -1915
Continuity and Nonconformity
Henry Carey inherited the title in 1892. This Lord Upcott, my father, is a consolidator. A man who believes in continuity. A modest man without noticeable ambition. This man works conscientiously to preserve the family wealth and maintain the fabric of The Estate. Lord Henry married Elizabeth Courtenay, aged 18. A love match, which came as an enormous surprise to my father at the age of 37.
Book III: 1919
Aftermath of the Great War
I am Henry Upcott Carey, younger son to Lord Henry and Lady Elizabeth Upcott. The history of my family has been written. Now history has caught me up and I write on... The Great War has ended, and the aftermath is slowly making itself felt in our estate, village and parish.
Note:
The name Upcott is a familiar place name in Devon. Upcott derives from the Norman knight de Upcott. In the Domesday Book, the place names are written as Uppacot, which, over the centuries that followed, became Upcott.
