Timothy the tortoise, thought to be Britain's oldest resident, has died aged about 160.
For more than a century he lived a life of comfort and privilege at Powderham Castle on the River Exe near Exeter in Devon as the favoured pet of the Earls of Devon.

There he would hibernate amid the purple wisteria in the rose garden, bearing a tag: "My name is Timothy. I am very old please do not pick me up."

After uncertain beginnings Timothy lived off a diet of lettuce and strawberry leaves and is rumoured once to have become drunk on azalea blossom, having to be dosed with castor oil.
But it was not always a life of roses. During the Second World War he moved from the wisteria bed and dug his own air raid shelter under the terrace steps.

"I think he felt the vibrations of bombs falling on Exeter," said Lady Gabrielle Courtenay, 91, who never married and may be considered Timothy's chronicler and custodian, and is aunt to the present 18th Earl of Devon.

Before coming to the Courtenay family in 1892 Timothy was a ship's mascot. A naval historian, Capt George Cardew RN (retired) has established that by then he was almost 40 and had seen active service with Capt John Guy Courtenay Evered (who in true Timothy style was 101 on his death in 1931). Both Capt Courtenay Evered and Timothy served in HMS Queen in 1854 during the first bombardment of Sebastopol. Later both moved to HMS Princess Charlotte and HMS Nankin, seeing active service in the East Indies and China in 1857-60.

When the Nankin docked at Portsmouth Timothy jumped ship, having heard the next destination was Antarctica. Thereafter, Timothy lived out his days as a West Country landlubber.

In 1926, it was deemed that Timothy should mate (dynastic considerations being as important to chelonians as to aristocrats). It was then discovered that Timothy was in fact Timothea.

"They did try with a tortoise called Toby," recalled Lady Gabrielle Courtenay, "but it was not a success." He will be buried at a family funeral in the grounds of Powderham Castle.

By Rory Knight Bruce

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Timothy the tortoise dies, aged 160