Dartmouth

For centuries, this entrancing little town clinging to the sides of a precipitous hill was one of England’s principal ports. Millions of casks of French and Spanish winehave been offloaded onto its narrow quays. During the 1100s Crusaders on both the Second and Third Crusades mustered here, and from here they set sail. In its sheltered harbour, Elizabeth’s man o’war lay in wait to pick off the stragglers from the Spanish Armada. In 1620, the Mayflower put in here for a few days for repairs before hoisting sail on 20 August for Plymouth and then on to the New World where the pilgrims arrived three months later. The quay from which they embarked later became the major location for the BBC TV series, The Onedin Line, and was also seen in the feature film Sense and Sensibility starring Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant.

Geoffrey Chaucer visited the town in 1373 in his capacity as Inspector of Customs and is believed to have modelled the Schipman of Dertemouthe in his Canterbury Tales on the character of the then Mayor of Dartmouth, John Hawley. Hawley was an enterprising merchant and seafarer who was also responsible for building the first Dartmouth Castle (English Heritage). Dramatically sited, it guards the entrance to the Dart estuary and was one of the first castles specifically designed to make effective use of artillery. In case the castle should prove to be an inadequate deterrent, in times of danger a heavy chain was strung across the harbour to Kingswear Castle on the opposite bank. (Kingswear Castle is now owned by the Landmark Trust and available for holiday rentals.)

There’s a striking monumental brass to John Hawley and his two wives in the Church of St Saviour’s a part 14th-century building against whose wall ships used to tie up before the New Quay was constructed in the late 1500s. Nearby is the Custom House, a handsome building of 1739, which has some fine internal plasterwork ceilings.

Also worth seeking out is The Butterwalk, a delightful timber-framed arcade dating from 1640 in which the Dartmouth Museum occupies the ground floor. The museum has a fine collection of model ships, ships in bottles and a nostalgic selection of vintage photographs of the town. In one of the galleries King Charles II held court while stormbound in Dartmouth in 1671. Some of the unique features of this magnificent room are the original wood panelling and the superb plaster ceiling.

Two other buildings in Dartmouth should be mentioned. One is the Railway Station, possibly the only one in the world that has never seen a train. It was built by the Great Western Railway as the terminus of their line from Torbay and passengers were ferried across to Kingswear where the railway actually ended. The station is now a restaurant. The other building of note is the Britannia Royal Naval College (guided tours during the season). This sprawling red and white building, built between 1899 and 1905, dominates the northern part of the town as you leave by the A379 towards Kingsbridge.

Those interested in industrial heritage will want to visit the Engine House, next door to the tourist office off Duke Street. Here you can see one of local man Thomas Newcomen’s original engines at work.

Near the eastern boundary of the South Hams flows the enchanting River Dart, surely one of the loveliest of English rivers. Rising in the great blanket of the moor, the Dart flows for 46 miles and together with its tributaries drains the greater part of Dartmoor. Queen Victoria called the Dart the English Rhine, perhaps thinking of the twin castles of Dartmouth and Kingswear that guard its estuary. It was her predecessor, Alfred the Great, who developed Dartmouth as a strategic base and the town’s long connection with the senior service is reflected in the presence here of the Royal Naval College. The spectacular harbour is still busy with naval vessels, pleasure boats and ferries, and particularly colourful during the June Carnival and the Dartmouth Regatta in late August.

The most picturesque approach to the town is to drive to Kingswear and then take one of the two car ferries for the 10-minute trip across the river. Parking space in Dartmouth is severely restricted and it is strongly recommended that you make use of the Park & Ride facility located just outside the town on the A3122.