Rashleigh is a surname of a prominent family from Cornwall and Devon in south western Britain, which originated in the 14th century or before at the estate of Rashleigh in the parish of Wembworthy, Devon.[3] The principal branches were:
- Rashleigh of Rashleigh, Devon
- Rashleigh of Barnstaple, North Devon[4]
- Rashleigh of South Molton, North Devon[4]
- Rashleigh of Fowey, Cornwall
- Rashleigh of Menabilly, Tywardreath, near Fowey
- Rashleigh of Coombe, Fowey[5]
The Rashleighs of Fowey and Menabilly were powerful merchants in the time of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. Philip Rashleigh, younger son of a family from Barnstaple in Devon, had purchased the manor of Trenant close to Fowey from the king after the dissolution of the monasteries in 1545. He went into trade, became successful but died in 1551. His two sons Robert and John founded the fortunes of the Fowey Rashleighs and their pedigree has been well documented.
- ^ Pole, Sir William (died 1635), Collections Towards a Description of the County of Devon, Sir John-William de la Pole (ed.), London, 1791, p.499
- ^ Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain, vol.1
- ^ Devon Notes & Queries, Volume IV Part VI, Exeter, April 1907, pp.201-215, Rashleigh of Devon
- ^ a b Marshall, James C., Devon Notes & Queries, Volume IV Part VI, Exeter, April 1907, pp.201-215, Rashleigh of Devon
- ^ Dunkin, Edwin Hadlow Wise, The Monumental Brasses of Cornwall with Descriptive, Genealogical and Heraldic Notes, 1882, p.55, re monumental brass c. 1580 in Fowey Church with later additional inscription to Robert Rashleigh (died 1708) of Coombe