Bladen owners of Glastonbury Abbey
| GLASTONBURY ABBEY |
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| Burial site of the legendary King Arthur and Queen Guinevere |
With the dissolution of English monastaries under King Henry VIII, Glastonbury
Abbey was destroyed and left in ruins. The abbey estate and manor of Glastonbury, comprising a large portion of the
town, were given by Edward VI to the Duke of Somerset who, in 1733, sold it to Thomas Bladen Esq for
£12,500. This gentleman had two daughters whose husbands, General St John and Lord Essex, sold it for £40,500 and in 1806
James Rocke Esq became the purchaser at £75,000 who sold portions to different persons. Of the buildings of the abbey many
portions still remain, though all are more or less in ruins.
Source: Kelly's Post Office Directory of Somerset with
the City of Bristol, published 1861.
THOMAS BLADEN (1698-1780)
Grandson of Nathaniel Bladen; son of William Bladen. Educated in England,
Thomas purchased the Glastonbury Estate in 1733 after his marriage in 1731 to Barbara (daughter of Sir Theodore Janssen
- a founder member of the Bank of England). Barbara was sister-in-law of Charles Calvert, 5th Lord Baltimore. From
1742-47 he was Proprietory Governor of Maryland. On his return to England he represented several constituencies in parliament.
Had two daughters, Harriet who marries the Earl of Essex and Barbara who marries Col. St John Bolingbroke.
Source: National Encyclopedia of American Biography
