Thomas Smythe 1599?-1635
Thomas SMYTHE, 1st Viscount Strangford 1599?-1635
Biographical Note
Son of Sir John Smythe of Ostenhanger and Ashford, Kent, High Sheriff of Kent, from whom he inherited a considerable estate. Made a Knight of the Bath in 1625 and 1st Viscount Strangford (in the peerage of Ireland) in 1628.
Books
A number of books survive in various libraries with Smythe’s armorial on the covers, mostly early 17th-century imprints but also including a mid-14th century manuscript of Higden’s [[book title::Polychronicon (BL Add MS 15759). Subsequent ownership markings in his books suggest dispersal not later than the middle of the 18th century. Examples: BL C.67.d.5, CUL Z.2.8, University College, Oxford E.15.4.
Characteristic Markings
Smythe’s books are identified from his gilt-tooled armorial stamp on the covers; his books do not have other inscriptions or annotations that are demonstrably his.