Stephen Martin Leake was a numismatist and long-serving officer of arms

Officer of arms

An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions:*to control and initiate armorial matters*to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state...

 at the College of Arms

College of Arms

The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. Though he eventually rose to the highest rank in the College, he was born as Stephen Martin and was the only son of Captain Stephen Martin, a naval officer, and his wife, Elizabeth. A relative left his considerable estate to Captain Martin on condition that he and his family adopt the additional name and arms of Leake. Shortly after the inheritance was completed in 1721, the family lost more than £20,000. The younger Leake was then holding a clerkship in the Navy Office, but the loss necessitated a search for a better position. His father attempted to buy a post in the Treasury but failed. Leake was admitted to 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...

 and made a younger brother of Trinity House

Trinity House

The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...

 in 1723. In 1724 he became a 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....

 for Tower Hamlets.

Early successes

In 1725, the Order of the Bath

Order of the Bath

The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...

 was "revived" in Britain. Garter Principal King of Arms

Garter Principal King of Arms

The Garter Principal King of Arms is the senior King of Arms, and the senior Officer of Arms of the College of Arms. He is therefore the most powerful herald within the jurisdiction of the College – primarily England, Wales and Northern Ireland – and so arguably the most powerful in the world...

, Sir John Anstis

John Anstis

John Anstis was an English officer of arms and antiquarian. He rose to the highest heraldic office in England and became Garter King of Arms in 1718 after years of plotting.-Early life:...

 arranged for Leake to be made an esquire

Esquire

Esquire is a term of West European origin . Depending on the country, the term has different meanings...

 to one of the knight

Knight

A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....

s. Anstis had met Leake while working with his family on the Royal Licence to change the family's name. The knight to whom Leake was attached was the Earl of Sussex

Earl of Sussex

Earl of Sussex is a title that has been created several times in the Peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. The early Earls of Arundel were often also called Earls of Sussex....

, deputy Earl Marshal

Earl Marshal

Earl Marshal is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England...

. In March of 1726 Leake was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London

Society of Antiquaries of London

The Society of Antiquaries of London is a learned society "charged by its Royal Charter of 1751 with 'the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of the antiquities and history of this and other countries'." It is based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London , and is...

. He also published his essay Nummi Britannici Historia in that year covering the history of English coinage. This work was reissued in several editions during Leake's life.

Heraldic career

Leake had made many powerful connections, but still lacked an appointment that would provide for his needs. Leake tried to use John Anstis to obtain a position at the College of Arms. Anstis used the opportunity of Leake's request to secure an appointment as Garter for his own son

John Anstis, younger

John Anstis was an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Anstis was born in St Clement Danes, Westminster, and was the seventh child and eldest son of John Anstis and his wife, Elizabeth. He was educated at Westminster School and privately by Michael Maittaire. He graduated from Corpus...

. After being embarrassed by Anstis, Leake assumed that he would be able to gain sympathy in other circles. In 1727 his connections gained him a spot as Lancaster Herald of Arms in Ordinary

Lancaster Herald

Lancaster Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an English officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. The title of Lancaster Herald first occurs in 1347 at Calais, and to begin with this officer was a servant to the noble house of Lancaster...

 at the College. He was promoted Norroy King of Arms

Norroy and Ulster King of Arms

Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is one of the senior Officers of Arms of the College of Arms, and the junior of the two provincial Kings of Arms. The current office is the combination of two former appointments...

 in December of 1729.

As a herald

Herald

A herald, or, more correctly, a herald of arms, is an officer of arms, ranking between pursuivant and king of arms. The title is often applied erroneously to all officers of arms....

 and king of arms

King of Arms

King of Arms is the senior rank of an officer of arms. In many heraldic traditions, only a king of arms has the authority to grant armorial bearings. In other traditions, the power has been delegated to other officers of similar rank.-Heraldic duties:...

, Leake directed his energy toward improving the fortunes of the College of Arms. In 1729 he applied to the attorney general

Attorney General

In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...

 for the prosecution of a painter–stainer who offered to research arms for customers. This suit was unsuccessful, but he also sought a new charter for the college that would have confirmed its monopoly on these activities. He also attempted to revive heraldic visitation

Heraldic visitation

Heraldic Visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms in England, Wales and Ireland in order to regulate and register the coats of arms of nobility and gentry and boroughs, and to record pedigrees...

s in 1731 and 1744. His Reasons for Granting Commissions to the Provincial Kings of Arms for Visiting their Provinces was printed in 1744. This, like most of his other projects failed. It was impeded both by Anstis as Garter and by the government. In 1732 Leake was also engaged in the attempted revival of the High Court of Chivalry

Court of Chivalry

Her Majesty's High Court of Chivalry of England and Wales is a civil court in England. It has had jurisdiction in cases of the misuse of heraldic arms since the fourteenth century....

. After five years nothing had been accomplished, so the court closed. It did sit again until 1954. Though he was not successful in most of these endeavors, he was able to raise the awareness and prestige of the College in England.

Leake was promoted to Clarenceux King of Arms

Clarenceux King of Arms

Clarenceux King of Arms is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial kings of arms and his jurisdiction is that part of England south of the River Trent. The office almost certainly existed in 1420, and there is a fair degree of...

 in 1741 and Garter Principal King of Arms in 1754. He immediately became deeply involved in the Order of the Garter

Order of the Garter

The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...

, for which the office is named. He worded with the Dean of Windsor

Dean of Windsor

The Dean of Windsor is the spiritual head of the Canons of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. The Dean chairs meetings of the Chapter of Canons as primus inter pares.-List of Deans of Windsor:* William Mugge, 1348* Walter Almaly, 1380...

 to bring the official registers up to date. He also compiled a collection of drawings of knights' stall plates from St George's Chapel, and travelled abroad to invest foreign princes with the Garter.

Though Leake was always a vocal critic of the patronage and purchase by which heralds were appointed, he did have his thirteen year old son, John Martin Leake, appointed Chester Herald of Arms in Ordinary

Chester Herald

Chester Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. The office of Chester Herald dates from the 14th century, and it is reputed that the holder was herald to Edward, Prince of Wales, the Black Prince. In the reign of King Richard II the officer was attached...

 in 1752.

Personal life

In 1735 Leake married Anne, daughter of Fletcher Powell, a brewer. They had six sons and three daughters, all of whom survived their father. Powell's estate in Hertfordshire later passed to Leake's descendants. Leake himself lived in Mile End

Mile End

Mile End is an area within the East End of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross...

, where he was active in vestry affairs and helped raise volunteer units during the Jacobite rising of 1745, and at Thorpe-le-Soken

Thorpe-le-Soken

Thorpe-le-Soken is a village in Essex, located west of Walton-on-the-Naze, Frinton-on-Sea and north of Clacton-on-Sea.-History:Thorpe-le-Soken's history can be traced back to Saxon times....

 in Essex

Essex

Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...

, where his father had acquired an estate in 1720. By 1770 he was suffering badly from gout

Gout

Gout is a medical condition usually characterized by recurrent attacks of acute inflammatory arthritis—a red, tender, hot, swollen joint. The metatarsal-phalangeal joint at the base of the big toe is the most commonly affected . However, it may also present as tophi, kidney stones, or urate...

 and rheumatism

Rheumatism

Rheumatism or rheumatic disorder is a non-specific term for medical problems affecting the joints and connective tissue. The study of, and therapeutic interventions in, such disorders is called rheumatology.-Terminology:...

and he died at Mile End on 24 March 1773. He was buried in Thorpe-le-Soken church.

External links

• The College of Arms
• Heraldica list of officers of Arms