RICHARD GIBSON (BRITISH, 1615-1690)

Sir Henry Blount (1602-1682) was the son of Thomas (later Sir Thomas) Blount (1556-1639) and Frances Pigot (c. 1564-1619). In 1647 he married Hester (c. 1620-1678), widow of Sir William Mainwaring of Chester, by whom he had four children. Best known for his extensive travels to the Middle East, he published an account of his travels in A Voyage into the Levant (1636). On his return, Blount became a gentleman pensioner to Charles I and was knighted in 1639. He remained loyal to the Royalist cause until the execution of Charles I in 1649, switching allegiance and serving Cromwell. Upon the Restoration in 1661, Blount supported the new king and became Sheriff of Hertfordshire. He spent the remainder of his life in Tittenhanger, the town of his birth, writing and collecting.