Sir Philip Gell, 3rd Baronet

[3][4] Gell was working as a trading agent in Smyrna in Turkey in 1674 when his elder brother died.

On his journey home to England, he was captured by privateers and marched across the desert to Tripoli.

The Gell family had been left in deep financial debt when the monarchy was restored in 1660 after the English Civil war, due to expenditure supporting the Parliamentary cause.

To overcome this, and continue enjoying the gentry lifestyle, the family borrowed heavily, sold off assets of land and lead mines, and controversially enclosed - took and fenced off - local common land to use as collateral for further loans, which caused ongoing conflict with their neighbours.

[9] The archive of documents from the Gell family of Hopton Hall, including Phillip's meticulous financial accounts and letters from his sister Temperance, is held by the Derbyshire Record Office.