16th century

The Carys lived in Clovelly for the next eleven generations. The most remarkable of them are:

William, grandson of Robert, who was captured and beheaded after the Battle of Tewkesbury. There is a head entombed in an unnamed stone coffin under the north aisle of the parish church, and perhaps it belongs to …

William’s son, Robert, who is commemorated by a torso in full armour in the sanctuary of Clovelly Church.

Robert’s grandson, George Cary, completed the quay as we see it today. It cost £2,000, a massive sum in the late 16th century, but this included ‘divers cellars and warehouses’.

George’s son, William, is the ‘Will Cary of Clovelly’ made famous in the novel ‘Westward Ho!’ by Charles Kingsley.

One of William’s sons, George, became Dean of Exeter; evidence of the family’s continuing connections with royalty is his entertainment of the royal family in his deanery.

Although George had seven children, his line died out: his male grandchildren did not marry, and his female grandchildren were childless.