Thomas Levett-Prinsep (born Thomas Levett; 1800/1–1849) was an English landowner in Derbyshire and Staffordshire. He took on the additional name of Prinsep on inheriting his uncle's holding of Croxall Hall.

Life

He was born at Wychnor Park in Wychnor, Staffordshire, the third son of Theophilus Levett, High Sheriff of Staffordshire. He was educated at Eton College, and matriculated at Trinity College, Oxford in 1828, aged 17. In 1835, Levett inherited Croxall Hall in Derbyshire.

Croxall Hall descent

Croxall Hall is located eight miles (13 km) southwest of Burton-on-Trent. The Curzon family held it for 15 consecutive generations. Mary Curzon, the heiress of the Curzon family and governess to the Royal Family, married Sir Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset. John Prinsep Esq., India merchant and progenitor of the Anglo-Indian family of the same name, purchased the property from George Sackville, 4th Duke of Dorset, and became lord of the manor. The Prinseps became well known for the cattle they bred at their Croxall estate, which at 1450 acre was said to be the biggest family farm in Derbyshire at the time. Croxall Hall is near to Catton Hall, once a property of the Anson family, who later intermarried with the Levetts of nearby Milford Hall, distant relations of Thomas Levett-Prinsep. Thomas Prinsep, High Sheriff of Derbyshire in 1802, died without an heir, and so left Croxall Hall to his nephew, the son of Theophilus Levett of Wychnor Hall, High Sheriff of Staffordshire, who had married in 1794 Frances Prinsep, daughter of John Prinsep of Croxall Hall, and sister of Thomas Prinsep. Prinsep left his property to his nephew Levett on condition that he adopt the name and coat of arms of Prinsep in addition to Levett.

Later life

Following his second marriage, Thomas Levett-Prinsep (as now he was) returned to Croxall Hall, which he had inherited from his father. He renovated the Hall, and built The Grange to manage his farmland. The couple moved to nearby Walton Hall, Walton-on-Trent. Levett-Prinsep was a Derbyshire JP, member of the Tamworth Board of Guardians, and cattle breeder in Derbyshire. He died suddenly while crossing Teignmouth Harbour.

Family and legacy

Levett married: His children, surname Levett-Prinsep, included: The Levett-Prinsep heirs sold Croxall Hall in 1920, and moved to the West Country, closer to family relations there. The family eventually inherited Widdicombe House in Kingsbridge, Devon.

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