Amias Bampfield was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons

House of Commons of England

The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of Great Britain...

 in 1597.

Bampfield was the son of Richard Bampfield of Poltimore House

Poltimore House

Poltimore House is a sixteenth century listed Grade II* manor house just outside Exeter, Devon and originally the Bampfylde family seat. It was a finalist in the first series of BBC Television's Restoration series in 2003.-Visiting:...

 and his wife Elizabeth Sydenham, daughter of Sir John Sydenham. He matriculated at Exeter College, Oxford

Exeter College, Oxford

Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...

 on 3 December 1575, aged 15. He was a student of the Middle Temple

Middle Temple

The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...

 in 1576. He succeeded to Poltimore on the death of his father in 1594 and was J.P.

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 for Devon from 1596. In 1597, he was elected Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for Devon

Devon (UK Parliament constituency)

Devon was a parliamentary constituency covering the county of Devon in England. It was represented by two Knights of the Shire, in the House of Commons of England until 1707, then of the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and finally the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from...

. He was knighted at Windsor on 9 July 1603. He was High Sheriff of Devon

High Sheriff of Devon

The High Sheriff of Devon is the Queen's representative for the County of Devon, a territory known as his bailiwick. Selected from three nominated people, he holds his office over the duration of a year. He has judicial, ceremonial and administrative functions and executes High Court...

 from 1603 to 1604. In 1616 he was Deputy Lieutenant

Deputy Lieutenant

In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....

.

Bampfield died at the age of about 65 and wished to be buried in South Molton church.

Bampfield married Elizabeth Clifton, daughter of Sir John Clifton of Barrington, Somerset in 1576. They had six sons and two daughters. In 1602 Bampfield and Thomas Drake, brother and heir of Sir Francis Drake

Francis Drake

Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...

, made a double marriage settlement for his son John

John Bampfield

John Bampfield was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1629....

aged 14 and a daughter, aged 16, who were to marry Drake’s daughter and son with each parent settling £660 on the other’s daughter.