Devonshire tourist information
Devonshire Bermuda
Devonshire Parish is on Main Island, on the North and South Shore Roads and Middle Road. It is the same size as the other eight parishes. It was named for Bermuda's Elizabethan patron, William Cavendish, First Earl of Devonshire (1552-1626).
He took his title from the southern English maritime county (Devon, not Devonshire). William Cavendish was the uncle of the Earl of Pembroke. He was born to an enormous fortune. He entered Parliament as the member for Newport in the year of the Armada and remained inconspicuous until the death of Queen Elizabeth 1 and accession of King James. He was given a barony by the King and in 1618 bought his Earldom for a further 10,000 pounds. He was a member of the Council of the Virginia Company of 1612 - which included Bermuda - and Bermuda Company of 1615. He was a gentlemen Adventurer who invested to colonize Bermuda and largest shareholder in the original Cavendish Tribe (Devonshire Parish) in 1619. He never visited Bermuda himself. He died almost unnoticed in 1626. In other Bermuda Parishes - not this one - there are areas with the prefix of Cavendish - also after the Earl. Early settlers referred to Devonshire Tribe as Brackish Pond. It was because of the large marsh in the center. Today, Brackish Pond is Devonshire Marsh. Parts of it are sightseeing attractions for naturalists.
The Bermuda Government appoints a Parish Council for each Parish and members of each are presumably available online to give further information about the crest to students and others, including the words around it and the meaning of the Latin or French motto.
Bermuda's Architectural Heritage: Devonshire. Trimingham, Andrew. 1995. Bermuda National Trust. The first in a series of illustrated (black and white, not color photos) parish by parish reviews of Bermuda's architecture. Out of print.
Devonshire aerial map
Please click on any icon on the Devonshire aerial tourist map, to find close by places, offering hotels and tourist information. You can zoom in and zoom out our touristical map as well as switch between satelite and map view of Devonshire.
Africa | Asia | Caribbean | Central America | Europe | Middle East | North America | Oceania | South America
