A Parakito for the Queen — Sir John Gilbert
In the spring of 1596 Sir John Gilbert presented Queen Elizabeth I with an exotic gift.
He was responding to a request from Sir Robert Cecil, Principal Secretary of State, conveyed by his brother Adrian. Queen Elizabeth apparently heard that Sir John had a 'parakito'. Parrots and parakeets were rare and desirable at this time, and the queen wanted one for herself.
The record does not tell us what species of parrot, parakeet or macaw, was involved. The photo shows a red-lored parrot, a frequent visitor to the author’s garden in Belize, central America.
Portrait of Elizabeth 1 c. 1597, at Trinity College, Cambridge - image sourced via Wikimedia commons.
It may come as a surprise that a Devon gentleman like Sir John would have such an unusual pet. The bird had probably arrived with one of the men who had accompanied Sir John’s half brother, Sir Walter Raleigh, on an expedition to Guiana the previous year. Among the group who joined Raleigh’s expedition was his nephew, also named John Gilbert. It is possible that this John Gilbert, the son of Sir John and Sir Walter’s brother Humphrey, was the one who brought the bird back to Englan
On 16 March, Sir John replied to Cecil from his house at Greenway in Devon, which is now the site of Agatha Christie’s holiday home on the banks of the River Dart.
Photo shows the River Dart at Greenway
In his letter Sir John expressed his surprise at the Queen’s request, claiming he has only just heard of it.
‘Has received his letter by Adrian Gilbert, which seems very strange to him, that her Majesty should like a parrot of his, and Cecil having heretofore written of it; and till now protests he never heard of it. Her Majesty is to have his life and all else whatsoever, and Cecil to command anything he likes of. The parrot shall be delivered to whom he appoints. Greenway, 16 March, 1595.’
He adds a PostScript
‘Beseeches Cecil not to take any occasion of offence undeservedly against him.’
Sir John was, it seems, conscious of some bad feeling with Cecil.
He wrote again to Sir Robert Cecil, with detailed instructions on how to care for the bird, which he calls a ‘parakito’. Apparently, when well fed, it liked to sit within a gentlewoman’s ruff!
‘I perceive by your last letters that you conceive that I should think some unkindness in you, and if you knew the cause you would satisfy me. I most humbly thank you for not only your kind offer in this but for all your favours; before the living Lord I protest it, I never had any thought that you used me unkindly. I have sent this bearer, my servant, of purpose unto you with the parakito, and have given him a great charge for the carrying of him. He will eat all kinds of meat and nothing will hurt him except it be very salt. If you put him on the table at meal time he will make choice of his meat. He must be kept very warm, and after he hath filled himself he will set in a gentlewoman’s ruff all the day. In the afternoon he will eat bread or oatmeal groats, drink water or claret wine; every night he is put in the cage and covered warm. My servant more at large will tell you of all his conditions and qualities. Surely, if he be well taught he will speak anything. Greenway, 27 April, 1596.
I have found no record of the queen’s reaction to the gift, nor of whether the bird ever learned to speak.
This incident is amongst the last references the historical record yields for Katherine Raleigh’s eldest son. At the time he sent the ‘parakito’ to the queen he was in poor health, with only a few more months to live.
Born at Compton Castle in Devon on 13 January 1536, John is the only one of Katherine’s eight, possibly nine, children whose birthdate we can establish with confidence. The Inquisition Post Mortem for his father, Otho (Otes or Otys) Gilbert, who died in 1547, confirms his age. An entry in the Fine Roll 3rd and 4th Philip and Mary (1556/57) tells us the exact date of his birth, confirming that he reached age 21 ‘on 13 January last’.
Prominent in local affairs. Sir John was less well-travelled than his brothers Humphrey and Walter were. In fact, nothing in the historical record suggests he travelled further from Devon than a visit to Bath in search of a cure for his failing health in his later years.
Like most of the family, he was a staunch protestant. In 1568 he acted as trustee for the estates of Henry Champernowne of Modbury, who led a company of English soldiers to aid the Huguenots during the French Wars of Religion.
Sir John received his knighthood in 1571 and became Sheriff of Devon in 1573. He was involved in Admiralty work with his uncle, Sir Arthur Champernowne of Dartington, had shipping interests of his own, and gave financial support to his brother Humphrey on voyages to Newfoundland in 1578 and 1583. Because of his influential position in the county, Sir John could easily organise local supplies for shipping. Following the failure of the second voyage and Sir Humphrey’s loss at sea, Sir John settled outstanding debts and sold the ships.
Increasingly involved in defence matters, he served as Deputy Lieutenant of the County from 1585.
In 1588 the Gilbert brothers, John and Adrian, and their cousins played crucial roles in readying the defences against the Spanish Armada. Sir John’s Gabriel, Adrian’s Elizabeth and Gawen Champernowne’s Phoenix were all outfitted to join Sir Francis Drake’s squadron.
As Deputy Lieutenant, Sir John mustered the men of Devon on Warborough Common as the Spanish fleet sailed past Torbay, pursued by Drake’s ships. In a letter to Sir Francis Walsingham George Carey of Cockington and John Gilbert detailed the capture of the Spanish vessel Rosario by Drake, which was then brought to Dartmouth. The ‘Spanish Barn’ at Torre Abbey became the holding place for Spanish prisoners taken from the ship.The story goes that Sir John put some of them to work in his gardens at Greenway.
Photo shows the Spanish Barn at Torre Abbey
Ill health eventually forced Sir John to retire from his position as Deputy Lieutenant On August 24 he wrote from Compton to Sir Edward Seymour.
‘I am now to acquaint you with my actions in these my great imperfectness and lameness of my legs. I have moved the Council to be discharged from the care of the trained and untrained bands which I have asked may be committed to you.’
He died on 8 September 1596.
This photo shows his magnificent tomb in Exeter Cathedral, where he lies alongside his wife Elizabeth Chudleigh. They had no children, so his nephew, the second Sir John, inherited. Elizabeth remarried after Sir John’s death. Her second husband, Henry Thynne, was the son of Sir John Thynne of Longleat and his wife Dorothy, whose second husband was another of Katherine’s sons, Carew Raleigh. They lived at Greenway. After Elizabeth’s death in 1623, Henry Thynne was later involved in litigation with Raleigh Gilbert, heir to the second Sir John Gilbert, concerning a dispute about Elizabeth’s inheritance.
Sir John Gilbert is a fascinating character with many stories to tell. We might infer that he was an argumentative and quick-tempered man, since he was involved in several quarrels, including a long-running dispute with George Carey of Cockington. He remained close to his brother, Sir Walter, throughout his life as evidenced through surviving letters.
Sir John Gilbert appears in the ‘Daughters of Devon’ series of novels.
A range of public records, including the Calendar of State Papers, Acts of the Privy Council, and Cecil Papers, contain references to Sir John’s career.
For more details about his life in sixteenth-century Devon, see:
Roberts, John. Sir John Gilbert. Trans. Devon. Assoc. 91, (1959) pp.92-106.
Note: Robert’s reference to a Gilbert Ship called The Squirrel of Dartmouth being sold to a man named Nicholas Ball and later carrying oil to Bristol needs further investigation. Sir Humphrey Gilbert died at sea in 1583 when the small vessel called The Squirrel went down off the Azores in a storm on his return voyage from Newfoundland. Presumably it was another vessel of the same name.
The almshouses in Newton Abbot mentioned by Roberts and also by Prince in his Worthies of Devon, as being founded by Sir John were first established as a Lazar (leprosy) hospital by his uncle, another John Gilbert, who made provision in his will when he died in 1539. Since leprosy cases were in decline, Sir John later translated the project into alms houses and reached an agreement with the Exeter City Coropration for the continued financial support of the occupants.
Rosemary Griggs
February 2025
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