Gosport is situated on the western side of the entrance to Portsmouth Harbour. The Blake family in Gosport could be descendant of the Wiltshire or the Hampshire Blake family or any other. The name Gosport came from the story of King Stephen being able to land there during a storm and he called it "God's Port" and so it became Gosport. We could see Gosport from our Ferry when we came back from the Isle of Wight on our tour of England. The cliffs are still substantial along the Hampshire coast and I was most impressed thinking that truly as elegant as the white cliffs of Dover until I saw the Dover Cliffs on our next trip to England. But still the cliffs along the Hampshire coast are quite spectacular.
As I complete the wills that I have thus far for Hampshire some of these families may or may not link together. I will do a summary post at the end as I look at all of them one after the other.
The Blake families in the Andover area were large in the 1500s and early 1600s. The younger sons may have moved towards the larger cities to the south of Hampshire but equally there was a gradual migration of Blake families down from the Calne Wiltshire area in this same time period moving into Salisbury and then down into the New Forest area and thence to Southampton and Christchurch and Portsmouth and area.
The helpful forenames of his close Blake family will probably help me zero in on this family eventually. His brother John with children John Junior, Henrietta and Bridget (wife was Bridget as well) and brother Thomas with children Elizabeth, Joanna and Martha. His wife's niece Mary Breder and nephew John Breder.
Transcriber: Elizabeth Kipp
Recorded: 10 May 2012
Source: The National Archives PROB 11/561, Image Reference 112/104 (images by me)
Name of testator: William Blake, Gentleman now Purser of His Majesty's Ship Boyne of Gosport, Hampshire
Place: Gosport, Hampshire, England
Type of Record: Will
Dated: 29 Dec 1714, probated 4 Dec 1717
Read: Electronic file
Condition: 18th century, round script, dark
[In margin] Tm. Gulielmi Blake
1 In the Name of God Amen
2 The Twenty ninth day of December in the first year
3 of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George by the grace of
4 God King of Great Britain France and Ireland defender
5 of the Faith etc And in the year of our Lord one Thousand
6 seven hundred and fourteen I William Blake of Gosport
7 in the County of South[amp]ton Gent now Purser of his Majestys
8 Ship Boyne being in good health of body and of sound
9 and disposing mind and memory and considering the
10 perils and dangers of the seas and other uncertainties of
11 this transitory life doe for preventing controversies after
12 my decease make publish and declare this my present last
13 Will and Testament in manner and form following That
14 is to say my Soul I recommend to Almighty God that gave
15 it hoping through the meriterious passion and death of my
16 blessed Saviour and Redeemer Jesus Christ to have full and
17 free pardon and remission of my sins and to inherit
18 everlasting Life and my Body I commit to the Earth or
19 Sea as it shall please God to order And as for and
20 concerning all such Temporal Estate it hath and shall
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21 please God to bestow on me I do give and dispose
22 thereof as followeth that is also to say First I will
23 that all lawful debts and funeral charges (if any) be paid
24 and discharged within convenient time after my decease
25 Item all that my Annuity or Stipend of fifty pounds per
26 Annum issuing and payable forth of his Majesties Exchequer
27 for all the residue and remainder of the Term of ninety
28 and nine years that shall be to come and unexpired at the
29 time of my decease I give devise and bequeath to my dearly
30 Beloved wife Jane To have and to hold to the said Jane Blake
31 and her Assignes for and during the term of her natural life
32 only and after her decease Then I give and bequeath the
33 said Annuity to John Blake Jun[io]r Henrietta Blake and Bridget
34 Blake the son and daughters of my welbeloved Brother John
35 Blake and to the Survivors and Survivor of them in even and
36 equal por[t]ions and if it shall hapen that the said John
37 Blake Jun[io]r Henrietta Blake and Bridget Blake do dye before
38 they or any or either of them be possessed of the said
39 Annuity then it is my Will and I do hereby ordain and decree
40 that the somme shall descend and come to my said brother
41 John Blake and in case of the death of the said John my
42 Brother before he's possessed of the Annuity aforesaid I do
43 hereby father ordain declare and decree that the same
44 shall descend and come to my Brother Thomas Blake and
45 his heirs Then I give and bequeath to my Brother John
46 Blake my diamond Rose Ring as also I give him and his
47 Wife Bridget and their Son John and their daughters Henrietta
48 and Bridget to each of them five pounds to buy Mourning
49 As also I give to my aforesaid Nephew John Blake Jun[io]r
50 my Silver Batch and Snuff Box Then I give to my Brother
51 Tho: Blake and to his wife and to his three daughters Blake
52 Elizabeth Joanna and Martha to each of them one Guinea
53 to buy a mourning Ringes Item I give to my Wife's Nephew
54 John Breder and to her Niece Mary Breder one guinea
55 to each of them to buy a Ring Item all and singular my
56 Tickets of and in any Publick or National Lottery or Lotterys
57 whatsoever whether domestick or Forreign all and every
58 the Interest advantages and produce whatsoever arising and
59 to arise by and from them and every or any of them I give
60 devise and bequeath to my said Wife Jane and to my Brother
61 John Blake to be divided in even and equal shares or
62 proportions betwixt them And in case of the decease of my said
63 Wife Jane then my said Brother John is to have all the said
64 Lottery Ticketts and benfit that shall arise from and on the
65 same And then all the Rest residue and remainder of
66 the summe and sums of money whatever due and to be due
67 and payable to me for and in respect of my Wages and
68 pay Allowance Bill of Bills Tobacco Sold and issues Prize money
69 and other claims and demands in any of his Majesties Ships
70 or Ship whatsoever and also all the rest and remainder of my
71 goods Chattells Implements of household stuff wearing apparel
72 both Linnen and woollen plate Matches Rings Jewells and Credits whatsoever
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73 wheresoever which shall be due owing and belonging or
74 of right to me appertaining of the time of my decease
75 I do give devise and bequeath the same one every part and parcell
76 thereof to my said Wife and to her heirs (note the diamond
77 Rose Ring which I have given to my Brother and the
78 Batch and Snuff Box which I have given to my Nephew
79 John they are so to have and not my Spouse or Wife) And
80 I do by these presents nominate constitute and appoint my
81 said Wife Jane Blake sole Executrix of this my said last
82 Will and Testament And also my said Brother John Blake
83 Trustee and Overseer of the same earnestly praying and
84 intreating his care and diligence in seeing and causing the
85 same to be duly and rightly executed according to the contents
86 purpose and true meaning thereof hereby also revoking and
87 making void all former and other Wills Testaments and Goods
88 of Gift By me at any time heretofore made either by word of
89 muth of in writing And I do ordain and ratify these presents
90 to stand and be for and as my only last Will and Testament
91 In Witness whereof to this my said Will contained in two
92 Sheets of paper I the said William Blake has set my
93 hand and seal the day and year first above written W[illia]m
94 Blake. Signed sealed and published in the presence of us
95 James Harkes Walter Kinkes Frances Sandgell
96 Mem[oran]d[um] the 26th day of March 1717 the Testator William
97 Blake did then recognize to have written the name W[illia]m
98 Blake against the seal hereunto affixed and did so now
99 publish and declare that these presents contained in two
100 sheets of paper to be his last Will and Testament in the
101 presence of us and sealed the same accordingly Mary
102 Fox W[illia]m Wise
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