One of Berkhamsted’s more colourful characters, Augustus Smith (1804–1872), is an important figure in the town and parish. He is the eldest son of Nottingham banker James Smith and Mary Isabella Pechell, who live at Ashylns Hall. Like his father, Augustus serves as a churchwarden 1834-47. In 1834, he also acquires the lease on the Isles of Scilly from the Duchy of Cornwall and sets himself up as the self-styled “Lord Proprietor of the Isles of Scilly”. His 35-year autocratic rule over the islands earns him the nickname “The Emperor”.
Smith is an influential figure in Cornish politics, and he serves as Member of Parliament for Truro 1857–1865. In 1866, he comes into conflict with Lord Brownlow of Ashridge, when the Earl tries to fence off common land near the town. Smith is remembered as the heroic leading figure in the “Battle of Berkhamsted Common” of 1866, when he fights for access rights of local people to the common. Upon his death, Augustus Smith is buried in Cornwall and the Scilly title passes to his nephew, Thomas Dorrien-Smith.
