153-631: Lynmouth is a village in Devon , England, on the northern edge of Exmoor . The village straddles the confluence of the West Lyn and East Lyn rivers, in a gorge 700 feet (210 m) directly below the neighbouring town of Lynton , which was the only place to expand to once Lynmouth became as built-up as possible. The villages are connected by the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway , which works two cable-connected cars by gravity, using water tanks. The two villages are
306-632: A Local Transport Plan (LTP) which outlines their strategies, policies and implementation programme. The most recent LTP is that for the period 2006–11. In the South West region the following transport authorities have published their LTP online: Bournemouth U.A., Cornwall U.A., Devon , Dorset , Gloucestershire , Plymouth U.A., Somerset , Swindon U. A., Torbay U. A. and Wiltshire unitary authority . The transport authorities of Bath and North East Somerset U. A., Bristol U. A., North Somerset U. A. and South Gloucestershire U. A. publish
459-624: A civil parish governed by Lynton and Lynmouth Town Council. The parish boundaries extend southwards from the coast, and include hamlets such as Barbrook and small moorland settlements such as East Ilkerton, West Ilkerton and Shallowford . The South West Coast Path and Tarka Trail pass through, and the Two Moors Way runs from Ivybridge in South Devon to Lynmouth; the Samaritans Way South West runs from Bristol to Lynton, and
612-417: A few of whom appear to have been descended from pre-Conquest families. In 1140, during the civil war of King Stephen 's reign, the castles of Plympton and Exeter were held against the king by Baldwin de Redvers and this gave rise to the defensive castles at Corfe Castle , Powerstock , Wareham and Shaftesbury . The period saw the growth of towns such as Truro , Totnes , Okehampton and Plympton in
765-466: A further grant of crest and supporters was obtained. The crest is the head of a Dartmoor Pony rising from a "Naval Crown". This distinctive form of crown is formed from the sails and sterns of ships, and is associated with the Royal Navy . The supporters are a Devon bull and a sea lion. Devon County Council adopted a "ship silhouette" logo after the 1974 reorganisation, adapted from the ship emblem on
918-823: A higher proportion of people live in such areas than in any other English region. There are two major regional cities in terms of population, which are Bristol and Plymouth (although Bristol is larger by some consideration), and two major conurbations which are the South East Dorset Conurbation (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole) and the Bristol Metropolitan Conurbation (which includes the City of Bristol and areas of South Gloucestershire). Cities and Towns with specific tourist and cultural sites of interest include Bath, Bristol, Salisbury, Plymouth, Exeter, Cheltenham, Gloucester and Weston-super-Mare, as well as
1071-565: A large part in the religious life of Devon today, although the county has shared in the post-World War II decline in British religious feeling. The Diocese of Exeter remains the Anglican diocese including the whole of Devon. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Plymouth was established in the mid 19th century. There was no established coat of arms for the county until 1926: the arms of the City of Exeter were often used to represent Devon, for instance in
1224-757: A military road, or Herepath , to allow his army to cover Viking movements at sea. The Herepath has a characteristic form which is familiar on the Quantocks: a regulation 20 m wide track between avenues of trees growing from hedge laying embankments. A peace treaty with the Danes was signed at Wedmore and the Danish king Guthrum the Old was baptised at Aller . Burhs (fortified places) had been set up by 919, such as Lyng . The Alfred Jewel , an object about 2.5-inch (64 mm) long, made of filigree gold, cloisonné -enamelled and with
1377-558: A result of some reintroductions. Another recent reintroduction is the Eurasian beaver , primarily on the river Otter. Other rare species recorded in Devon include seahorses and the sea daffodil. The botany of the county is very diverse and includes some rare species not found elsewhere in the British Isles other than Cornwall. Devon is divided into two Watsonian vice-counties : north and south,
1530-499: A rock crystal covering, was found in 1693 at Petherton Park , North Petherton . This is believed to have been owned by King Alfred. Monasteries and minster churches were set up all over Somerset, with daughter churches of the minsters in manors. There was a royal palace at Cheddar , which was used at times in the 10th century to host the Witenagemot . In the late pre-Norman period, the east coast of modern-day England came under
1683-551: A scale model of the village, showing how it looked before the flood. A further photo and information display is found in St John the Baptist parish church. The town of Lynton and Lynmouth is twinned with Bénouville in France. In her poetical illustration Linmouth , to an engraving of a painting by Thomas Allom , Letitia Elizabeth Landon describes the beauties of rural nature but ends with
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#17328559138011836-512: A severe gale that had been blowing all day. She had been under tow, but the tow rope had broken. She was dragging her anchor and had lost her steering gear. The ship's destruction was probable. The alarm was raised for the Louisa , the Lynmouth lifeboat, to be launched to assist. However, launching was impossible because of the terrible weather. Jack Crocombe, the coxswain of the Louisa , proposed to take
1989-483: A single Joint Local Transport Plan as part of the West of England Partnership . There is evidence from flint artefacts in a quarry at Westbury-sub-Mendip that an ancestor of modern man, possibly Homo heidelbergensis , was present in the future Somerset from around 500,000 years ago. There is some evidence of human occupation of southern England before the last ice age , such as at Kents Cavern in Devon, but largely in
2142-610: A soft, sooty coal, which is known in Devon as culm , or from the contortions commonly found in the beds. This formation stretches from Bideford to Bude in Cornwall, and contributes to a gentler, greener, more rounded landscape. It is also found on the western, north and eastern borders of Dartmoor. The sedimentary rocks in more eastern parts of the county include Permian and Triassic sandstones (giving rise to east Devon's well known fertile red soils); Bunter pebble beds around Budleigh Salterton and Woodbury Common and Jurassic rocks in
2295-411: A storm of tropical intensity broke over South West England , depositing 229 millimetres (9.0 in) of rain within 24 hours on an already waterlogged Exmoor. It is thought that a cold front scooped up a thunderstorm , and the orographic effect worsened the storm. Debris-laden floodwaters cascaded down the northern escarpment of the moor, converging upon the village of Lynmouth. In particular, in
2448-533: A temporary Roman occupation. The massacre at Cadbury Castle seems to have been associated with the later Boudiccan Revolt of AD 60–61. The Roman invasion, and possibly the preceding period of involvement in the internal affairs of the south of England, was inspired in part by the lead mines of the Mendip Hills , which also offered the potential for the extraction of silver. Forts were set up at Bath and Ilchester . The lead and silver mines at Charterhouse in
2601-605: A yearly tribute or danegeld to Sweyn and later Canute, all three areas retained their autonomy from the Danes. Ultimately, the Danes lost control of Wessex in 1042 on the death of both of Canute's sons. Edward the Confessor retook Wessex for the Saxons. In 1016 Edmund Ironside was crowned king at Glastonbury. After the Norman Conquest the region was controlled by various Norman as well as Breton lords and later by local gentry,
2754-479: Is a county bird society dedicated to the study and conservation of wild birds. The RSPB has reserves in the county, and Natural England is responsible for over 200 Devon Sites of Special Scientific Interest and National Nature Reserves , such as Slapton Ley . The Devon Bat Group was founded in 1984 to help conserve bats. Wildlife found in this area extend to a plethora of different kinds of insects, butterflies and moths; an interesting butterfly to take look at
2907-462: Is a wide range of wildlife (see Dartmoor wildlife , for example). A popular challenge among birders is to find over 100 species in the county in a day. The county's wildlife is protected by several wildlife charities such as the Devon Wildlife Trust , which looks after 40 nature reserves. The Devon Bird Watching and Preservation Society (founded in 1928 and known since 2005 as "Devon Birds")
3060-507: Is about 1,000 millimetres (39 in) and up to 2,000 millimetres (79 in) on higher ground. Summer maxima averages range from 18 °C (64 °F) to 22 °C (72 °F) and winter minimum averages range from 1 °C (34 °F) to 4 °C (39 °F) across the south-west. It is the second windiest area of the United Kingdom, the majority of winds coming from the south-west and north-east. Government organisations predict
3213-569: Is at this day named by the Britans Duffneit, that is to say, Low valleys. [...] But the Country of this nation is at this day divided into two parts, knowen by later names of Cornwall and Denshire, [...] The term Devon is normally used for everyday purposes (e.g., "Devon County Council"), but Devonshire has continued to be used in the names of the " Devonshire and Dorset Regiment " (until 2007) and " The Devonshire Association ". One erroneous theory
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#17328559138013366-554: Is based on Lynmouth; Devil's Cleave is based on the East Lyn Valley and Watersmeet. The book brings together two stories, that of child evacuees during the Second World War and that of the 1952 flood disaster that devastated Lynmouth. Suzanne Goldring's novel The Girl Without a Name features a woman who disappears during the 1952 Lynmouth flood while on holiday with her married lover. Like The Secret of Crickley Hall , part of
3519-644: Is currently the only county in the region where there are electric trains, though the Great Western Main Line and the South Wales Main Line in Wiltshire, Somerset, Greater Bristol and Gloucestershire is being electrified . SWR operate services to and from London Waterloo and serves every county in the region except Gloucestershire and Cornwall. GWR serves all counties in the region and operate to various destinations, some of which run to South Wales and
3672-466: Is generally considered that Cornwall came fully under the dominion of the English Crown in the time of Athelstan 's rule, i.e. 924–939. In the absence of any specific documentation to record this event, supporters of Cornwall's English status presume that it then became part of England. However, in 944, within a mere five years of Athelstan's death, King Edmund issued a charter styling himself "King of
3825-621: Is home to the Eden Project , Aardman Animations , the Glastonbury Festival , the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta , trip hop music and Cornwall's surfing beaches. The region has also been home to some of Britain's most renowned writers, including Daphne du Maurier , Agatha Christie and Enid Blyton , all of whom set many of their works here, and the South West is also the location of Thomas Hardy's Wessex ,
3978-546: Is lined with tourist resorts, many of which grew rapidly with the arrival of the railways in the 19th century. Examples include Dawlish, Exmouth and Sidmouth on the south coast, and Ilfracombe and Lynmouth on the north. The Torbay conurbation of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham on the south coast is now administratively independent of the county. Rural market towns in the county include Barnstaple, Bideford, Honiton , Newton Abbot , Okehampton , Tavistock , Totnes and Tiverton . The boundary with Cornwall has not always been on
4131-564: Is relatively uncommon away from high land, although there are few exceptions. The county has mild summers with occasional warm spells and cool rainy periods. Winters are generally cool and the county often experiences some of the mildest winters in the world for its high latitude, with average daily maximum temperatures in January at 8 °C (46 °F). Rainfall varies significantly across the county, ranging from over 2,000 mm (79 in) on parts of Dartmoor, to around 750 mm (30 in) in
4284-656: Is that the shire suffix is due to a mistake in the making of the original letters patent for the Duke of Devonshire , resident in Derbyshire . There are references to both Defnas and Defenasċīre in Anglo-Saxon texts from before 1000 CE (the former is a name for the "people of Devon" and the latter would mean 'Shire of the Devonians'), which translates to modern English as Devonshire . The term Devonshire may have originated around
4437-450: Is the chequered skipper . Devon is a national hotspot for several species that are uncommon in Britain, including the cirl bunting ; greater horseshoe bat ; Bechstein's bat and Jersey tiger moth . It is also the only place in mainland Britain where the sand crocus ( Romulea columnae ) can be found – at Dawlish Warren, and is home to all six British native land reptile species, partly as
4590-608: Is the 218 m (715 ft) Little Hangman, which marks the western edge of coastal Exmoor. One of the features of the North Devon coast is that Bideford Bay and the Hartland Point peninsula are both west-facing, Atlantic facing coastlines; so that a combination of an off-shore (east) wind and an Atlantic swell produce excellent surfing conditions. The beaches of Bideford Bay ( Woolacombe , Saunton , Westward Ho! and Croyde ), along with parts of North Cornwall and South Wales, are
4743-405: Is the city of Exeter. The largest city in Devon, Plymouth, and the conurbation of Torbay (which includes the largest town in Devon and capital of Torbay, Torquay, as well as Paignton and Brixham) have been unitary authorities since 1998, separate from the remainder of Devon which is administered by Devon County Council for the purposes of local government. Devon County Council is controlled by
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4896-512: The Battle of Lose-coat Field . The organisation of the region remained based on the shires and Church estates, which were largely unchanged throughout the period. Some of the most important nobles in the South West included the Courtenays Earl of Devon, William Bonville, 1st Baron Bonville , and Humphrey Stafford, earl of Devon whose wider influence stretched from Cornwall to Wiltshire. After 1485,
5049-600: The Brittonic languages , Devon is known as Welsh : Dyfnaint , Breton : Devnent and Cornish : Dewnens , each meaning 'deep valleys'. (For an account of Celtic Dumnonia , see the separate article.) Among the most common Devon placenames is -combe which derives from Brittonic cwm meaning 'valley' usually prefixed by the name of the possessor. William Camden , in his 1607 edition of Britannia , described Devon as being one part of an older, wider country that once included Cornwall : THAT region which, according to
5202-650: The City of Bath . The northern part of Gloucestershire, near Chipping Campden , is as close to the Scottish border as it is to the tip of Cornwall. The region has by far the longest coastline of any English region. Following the abolition of the South West Regional Assembly in 2008 and Government Office in 2011, South West Councils provide local government coordination in the region. Bristol , South Gloucestershire , and Bath and North East Somerset are part of
5355-612: The Coleridge Way from Nether Stowey to Lynmouth. Lynmouth was described by Thomas Gainsborough , who honeymooned there with his bride Margaret Burr, as "the most delightful place for a landscape painter this country can boast". The Sillery Sands beach is just off the South West Coast Path and is used by naturists . Percy Bysshe Shelley , his wife Harriet and his sister-in-law Eliza stayed in Lynmouth between June and August 1812. Shelley worked on political pamphlets and on
5508-452: The College of Arms . The main part of the shield displays a red crowned lion on a silver field, the arms of Richard Plantagenet, Earl of Cornwall . The chief or upper portion of the shield depicts an ancient ship on wavers, for Devon's seafaring traditions. The Latin motto adopted was Auxilio Divino (by Divine aid), that of Sir Francis Drake . The 1926 grant was of arms alone. On 6 March 1962
5661-673: The Danelaw . Sweyn ruled Wessex, along with his other realms, from 1013 onwards, followed by his son Canute the Great . But Cornwall was not part of his realm of Wessex. A map by the American historian called "The Dominions of Canute" (pictured just above) shows that Cornwall, like Wales and Scotland, was part neither of Sweyn Forkbeard's nor of Canute's Danish empire. Neither Sweyn Forkbeard nor Canute conquered or controlled Scotland, Wales or Cornwall; but these areas were "client nations": subject to payment of
5814-565: The Devon border to the mouth of the River Axe . Historically, the main port on the river was at Bridgwater; the river being bridged at this point, with the first bridge being constructed in 1200. Quays were built in 1424; with another quay, the Langport slip , being built in 1488 upstream of the Town Bridge. In Bristol the port began to develop in the 11th century. By the 12th century Bristol
5967-666: The Devonian strata of north Devon and south west Devon (and extending into Cornwall); ii) the Culm Measures (north western Devon also extending into north Cornwall); and iii) the granite intrusion of Dartmoor in central Devon, part of the Cornubian batholith forming the 'spine' of the southwestern peninsula. There are blocks of Silurian and Ordovician rocks within Devonian strata on the south Devon coast but otherwise no pre-Devonian rocks on
6120-566: The Devonian geologic period, which includes the slates and sandstones of the north coast. Dartmoor and Exmoor have been designated national parks , and the county also contains, in whole or in part, five national landscapes . In the Iron Age , Roman and the Sub-Roman periods, the county was the home of the Dumnonii Celtic Britons . The Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain resulted in
6273-570: The Frome Hoard , one of the largest ever hoards of Roman coins discovered in Britain, was found by a metal detectorist. The hoard of 52,500 coins dated from the 3rd century AD and was found buried in a field near Frome , in a jar 14 inches (36 cm) below the surface. The coins were excavated by archaeologists from the Portable Antiquities Scheme . After the Romans left at the start of
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6426-479: The Glorious Revolution of 1688 took place at Brixham . Devon has produced tin , copper and other metals from ancient times. Devon's tin miners enjoyed a substantial degree of independence through Devon's Stannary Convocation , which dates back to the 12th century. The last recorded sitting was in 1748. Devon straddles a peninsula and so, uniquely among English counties, has two separate coastlines: on
6579-482: The Mendip Hills . The human bone fragments it contained, from about 21 different individuals, are thought to be roughly between 10,200 and 10,400 years old. During this time the tundra gave way to birch forests and grassland and evidence for human settlement appears at Salisbury Plain , Wiltshire and Hengistbury Head , Dorset. At the end of the last Ice Age the Bristol Channel was dry land, but subsequently
6732-866: The Order of Brothelyngham —a fake monastic order of 1348 — regularly rode through Exeter, kidnapping both religious men and laymen, and extorting money from them as ransom. Devon has also featured in most of the civil conflicts in England since the Norman conquest , including the Wars of the Roses , Perkin Warbeck 's rising in 1497, the Prayer Book Rebellion of 1549, and the English Civil War . The arrival of William of Orange to launch
6885-729: The Pagans Hill Roman Temple at Chew Stoke . In October 2001 the West Bagborough Hoard of 4th-century Roman silver was discovered in West Bagborough . The 681 coins included two denarii from the early 2nd century and 8 miliarensia and 671 siliquae all dating from AD 337 to 367. The majority were struck in the reigns of emperors Constantius II and Julian and derive from a range of mints including Arles and Lyons in France, Trier in Germany, and Rome. In April 2010,
7038-578: The Prayer Book Rebellion caused the deaths of thousands of people from Devon and Cornwall. During the English Reformation , churches in Devon officially became affiliated with the Church of England . From the late sixteenth century onwards, zealous Protestantism – or 'puritanism' – became increasingly well-entrenched in some parts of Devon, while other districts of the county remained much more conservative. These divisions would become starkly apparent during
7191-492: The Roman baths . Excavations carried out before the flooding of Chew Valley Lake also uncovered Roman remains, indicating agricultural and industrial activity from the second half of the 1st century until the 3rd century AD. The finds included a moderately large villa at Chew Park, where wooden writing tablets (the first in the UK) with ink writing were found. There is also evidence from
7344-548: The United Kingdom . It consists of the counties of Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly ), Dorset , Devon , Bristol , Gloucestershire , Somerset and Wiltshire . Cities and large towns in the region include Bath , Bristol , Bournemouth , Cheltenham , Exeter , Gloucester , Plymouth and Swindon . It is geographically the largest of the nine regions of England with a land area of 9,203 square miles (23,836 km ), but
7497-613: The Valley of the Rocks . Devon Devon ( / ˈ d ɛ v ə n / DEV -ən ; historically also known as Devonshire /- ʃ ɪər , - ʃ ər / -sheer , -shər ) is a ceremonial county in South West England . It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to
7650-405: The West Midlands through Gloucestershire, Bristol and Somerset to Exeter. The A38 serves as a western extension to Plymouth. There are three other smaller motorways in the region, all in the Bristol area . Passenger airports in the region include Bristol , Exeter , Newquay and Bournemouth . Within the region the local transport authorities carry out transport planning through the use of
7803-440: The West of England Combined Authority . The region is known for its rich folklore , including the legend of King Arthur and Glastonbury Tor , as well as its traditions and customs. Cornwall has its own language, Cornish , and some regard it as a Celtic nation . The South West is known for Cheddar cheese , which originated in the Somerset village of Cheddar ; Devon cream teas , crabs , Cornish pasties , and cider . It
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#17328559138017956-477: The rain shadow along the coast in southeastern Devon and around Exeter. Sunshine amounts also vary widely: the moors are generally cloudy, but the SE coast from Salcombe to Exmouth is one of the sunniest parts of the UK (a generally cloudy region). With westerly or south-westerly winds and high pressure the area around Torbay and Teignmouth will often be warm, with long sunny spells due to shelter by high ground ( Foehn wind ). The variety of habitats means that there
8109-409: The south east . The British mainland was connected to the continent during the ice age and humans may have repeatedly migrated into and out of the region as the climate fluctuated. There is evidence of human habitation in the caves at Cheddar Gorge 11,000–10,000 years BC, during a partial thaw in the ice age. The earliest scientifically dated cemetery in Great Britain was found at Aveline's Hole in
8262-436: The "Deep Valley Dwellers". The region to the west of Exeter was less Romanised than the rest of Roman Britain since it was considered a remote part of the province. After the formal Roman withdrawal from Britain in AD 410, one of the leading Dumnonii families attempted to create a dynasty and rule over Devon as the new Kings of Dumnonii. Celtic paganism and Roman practices were the first known religions in Devon, although in
8415-414: The 15 miles (24 km) of wild Exmoor paths, they had to descend the dangerous Porlock Hill , with horses and men pulling ropes to stall the descent. During this, they had to demolish part of a garden wall and fell a large tree to make a way. The lifeboat reached Porlock Weir at 6:30 am, and was launched. Although cold, wet, hungry and exhausted, the crew rowed for over an hour in heavy seas to reach
8568-400: The 31 bridges, and 38 cars were washed out to sea. In total, 34 people died and a further 420 were made homeless. Similar events had been recorded at Lynmouth in 1607 and 1796. After the 1952 disaster, the village was rebuilt, including diverting the river around the village. A conspiracy theory has circulated that the 1952 flood was caused by secret cloud seeding experiments conducted by
8721-413: The 5th century AD, the region split into several Brittonic kingdoms, including Dumnonia , centred around the old tribal territory of the Dumnonii . The upper Thames area soon came under Anglo-Saxon control but the remainder of the region was in British control until the 6th century. Bokerley Dyke , a large defensive ditch on Cranborne Chase dated to 367, delayed the Saxon conquest of Dorset, with
8874-405: The 8th century, when it changed from Dumnonia ( Latin ) to Defenasċīr . Kents Cavern in Torquay had produced human remains from 30 to 40,000 years ago. Dartmoor is thought to have been occupied by Mesolithic hunter-gatherer peoples from about 6000 BC. The Romans held the area under military occupation for around 350 years. Later, the area began to experience Saxon incursions from
9027-409: The 9th century. Viking raids took place for instance in 987 and 997 at Watchet and the Battle of Cynwit . King Alfred was driven to seek refuge from the Danes at Athelney before defeating them in 878 at the Battle of Ethandun , usually considered to be near Edington, Wiltshire , but possibly the village of Edington in Somerset. Alfred established a series of forts and lookout posts linked by
9180-491: The Bristol Channel and Celtic Sea in the north, and on the English Channel in the south. The South West Coast Path runs along the entire length of both, around 65% of which is named as Heritage Coast . Before the changes to English counties in 1974, Devon was the third largest county by area and the largest of the counties not divided into county-like divisions (only Yorkshire and Lincolnshire were larger and both were sub-divided into ridings or parts, respectively). Since 1974
9333-413: The Chancellor of King Henry I , converted the bishop's hall in Taunton into Taunton Castle . It passed to the king in 1233 and in 1245 repairs were ordered to its motte and towers. During the 11th-century Second Barons' War against Henry III , Bridgwater was held by the barons against the King. During the Middle Ages sheep farming for the wool trade came to dominate the economy of Exmoor . The wool
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#17328559138019486-402: The Confessor by Lyfing's successor Bishop Leofric , hitherto Bishop of Crediton, who became first Bishop of Exeter under Edward the Confessor, which was established as his cathedral city in 1050. At first, the abbey church of St Mary and St Peter, founded by Athelstan in 932 and rebuilt in 1019, served as the cathedral. Devon came under the political influence of several different nobles during
9639-851: The Conservatives, and the political representation of its 60 councillors are: 38 Conservatives , 10 Liberal Democrats , six Labour , three Independents , two Green and one South Devon Alliance. At the 2024 general election , Devon returned six Liberal Democrats, four Conservatives and three Labour MPs to the House of Commons . Historically Devon was divided into 32 hundreds : Axminster , Bampton , Black Torrington , Braunton , Cliston , Coleridge , Colyton , Crediton , East Budleigh , Ermington , Exminster , Fremington , Halberton , Hartland , Hayridge , Haytor , Hemyock , Lifton , North Tawton and Winkleigh , Ottery , Plympton , Roborough , Shebbear , Shirwell , South Molton , Stanborough , Tavistock , Teignbridge , Tiverton , West Budleigh , Witheridge , and Wonford . A devolution deal
9792-436: The Devon Flora by Ivimey-Cook appeared in 1984, and A New Flora of Devon , based on field work undertaken between 2005 and 2014, was published in 2016. Rising temperatures have led to Devon becoming the first place in modern Britain to cultivate olives commercially. In January 2024, plans were announced to plant over 100,000 trees in northern Devon to support Celtic rainforests , which are cherished yet at risk ecosystems in
9945-418: The Devon mainland. The metamorphic rocks of Eddystone are of presumed Precambrian age. The oldest rocks which can be dated are those of the Devonian period which are approximately 395–359 million years old. Sandstones and shales were deposited in North and South Devon beneath tropical seas. In shallower waters, limestone beds were laid down in the area now near Torquay and Plymouth. This geological period
10098-507: The Durotriges, "water dwellers", whose main settlement is represented by Maiden Castle . Ptolemy stated that Bath was in the territory of the Belgae , but this may be a mistake. The Celtic gods were worshipped at the temple of Sulis at Bath and possibly the temple on Brean Down . Iron Age sites on the Quantock Hills include major hill forts at Dowsborough and Ruborough , as well as smaller earthwork enclosures, such as Trendle Ring , Elworthy Barrows and Plainsfield Camp . At
10251-473: The Earl of Devon, Henry VII's chamberlain, Giles Daubeney, 1st Baron Daubeney and Robert Willoughby, 1st Baron Willoughby de Broke were also influential. In 1497, early in Henry VII 's reign, the royal pretender Perkin Warbeck , besieged Exeter. The Cornish Rebellion of 1497 led by An Gof and Thomas Flamank ended in a march to Blackheath in London where the Cornish forces were massacred. Great disturbances throughout both Cornwall and Devon followed
10404-410: The Elder built similarly at Barnstaple and Totnes . But sporadic Viking incursions continued until the Norman Conquest , including the disastrous defeat of the Devonians at the Battle of Pinhoe . In 876 King Alfred the Great trapped a Danish fleet at Arne and then drove it out; 120 ships were wrecked at Studland . Although King Alfred had lands in Cornwall, it continued to have a British king. It
10557-405: The English and ruler of this province of the Britons ". Thus we can see that then the "province" was a territorial possession, which has long claimed a special relationship to the English Crown. Corfe Castle in 978 saw the murder of King Edward the Martyr , whose body was taken first to Wareham and then to Shaftesbury . Somerset played an important part in stopping the spread of the Danes in
10710-414: The English Civil War of 1642–46, when the county split apart along religious and cultural lines. The Methodism of John Wesley proved to be very popular with the working classes in Devon in the 19th century. Methodist chapels became important social centres, with male voice choirs and other church-affiliated groups playing a central role in the social lives of working class Devonians. Methodism still plays
10863-441: The Geographers, is the first of all Britaine, and, growing straiter still and narrower, shooteth out farthest into the West, [...] was in antient time inhabited by those Britans whom Solinus called Dumnonii, Ptolomee Damnonii [...] For their habitation all over this Countrey is somewhat low and in valleys, which manner of dwelling is called in the British tongue Dan-munith, in which sense also the Province next adjoyning in like respect
11016-609: The Lynton/Lynmouth area in their lyrical material. Lynton is mentioned in "In Loving Memory" on their third album Daydream Anonymous , and Lynmouth is mentioned in "Saccharine Arcadia" on Phoenix: The Very Best of InMe . Lead singer Dave McPherson also has a song entitled "Sunny Lynton" on his EP Crescent Summer Sessions and refers to Watersmeet in "Waltzing in a Supermarket" on I Don't Do Requests . The village of Hollow Bay in The Secret of Crickley Hall by James Herbert
11169-659: The Major-Generals under Cromwell . (For further information, see Historical and alternative regions of England ). By the 1960s, the South West region (including Dorset, which for some previous purposes had been included in a Southern region), was widely recognised for government administration and statistics. The boundaries were carried forward into the 1990s when regional administrations were formally established as Government Office Regions. A regional assembly and regional development agency were created in 1999, then abolished in 2008 and 2012 respectively. It has been argued that
11322-736: The Mendip Hills were run by the military. The Romans established a defensive boundary along the new military road known the Fosse Way (from the Latin fossa meaning "ditch"). The Fosse Way ran through Bath , Shepton Mallet , Ilchester and south-west towards Axminster . The road from Dorchester ran through Yeovil to meet the Fosse Way at Ilchester. Salt was produced on the Somerset Levels near Highbridge and quarrying took place near Bath, named after
11475-627: The Middle Ages, especially the Courtenays Earl of Devon . During the Wars of the Roses, important magnates included the Earl of Devon, William Bonville, 1st Baron Bonville , and Humphrey Stafford, earl of Devon whose wider influence stretched from Cornwall to Wiltshire. After 1485, one of the county's influential figures included Henry VII's courtier Robert Willoughby, 1st Baron Willoughby de Broke . In 1549,
11628-660: The Patron Saint of Devon. Devon's toponyms include many with the endings "coombe/combe" and "tor". Both 'coombe' (valley or hollow, cf. Welsh cwm , Cornish komm ) and 'tor' (Old Welsh twrr and Scots Gaelic tòrr from Latin turris ; 'tower' used for granite formations) are rare Celtic loanwords in English and their frequency is greatest in Devon which shares a boundary with historically Brittonic speaking Cornwall. Ruined medieval settlements of Dartmoor longhouses indicate that dispersed rural settlement (OE tun , now often -ton)
11781-506: The RAF. Weather historian Philip Eden has described this theory as "preposterous". The small group of houses on the bank of the East Lyn River called Middleham, between Lynmouth and Watersmeet, was destroyed and never rebuilt. Today, a memorial garden stands on the site. A memorial hall dedicated to the disaster is on the front toward the harbour; it contains photographs, newspaper reports and
11934-624: The River Tamar as at present: until the late 19th century a few parishes in the Torpoint area were in Devon and five parishes now in north-east Cornwall were in Devon until 1974 (however, for ecclesiastical purposes these were nevertheless in the Archdeaconry of Cornwall and in 1876 became part of the Diocese of Truro ). The region of Devon was the dominion of the pre-Roman Dumnonii Celtic tribe , known as
12087-518: The River Tamar—-with a division almost exactly following the modern county boundary —but also between Devon and the rest of Southern England. Devon's population also exhibited similarities with modern northern France, including Brittany . This suggests the Anglo-Saxon migration into Devon was limited, rather than a mass movement of people. The border with Cornwall was set by King Æthelstan on
12240-783: The Romano-British remaining in Dorset for 200 years after the withdrawal of the Roman legions. The Western Wandsdyke earthwork was probably built during the 5th or 6th century. This area became the border between the Romano-British Celts and the West Saxons following the Battle of Deorham in 577. The Anglo-Saxons then gained control of the Cotswold area; but most of Somerset, Dorset and Devon (as well as Cornwall) remained in British hands until
12393-536: The Teign Valley Museum), as well as one of the county's football teams, Plymouth Argyle . On 17 October 2006, the flag was hoisted for the first time outside County Hall in Exeter to mark Local Democracy Week, receiving official recognition from the county council. In 2019 Devon County Council with the support of both the Anglican and Catholic churches in Exeter and Plymouth, officially recognised Saint Boniface as
12546-679: The UK. The project aims to create 50 hectares of new rainforest across three sites, planting trees near existing rainforest areas along the coast and inland. Among the tree species to be planted is the rare Devon whitebeam , known for its unique reproduction method and once-popular fruit. Led by the National Trust and with the assistance of volunteers and community groups, the initiative will focus on locations in Exmoor , Woolacombe , Hartland , and Arlington Court . The administrative centre and capital of Devon
12699-501: The United Kingdom. Three major roads enter the region from the east. The M4 motorway from London to South Wales via Bristol is the busiest. The A303 cuts through the centre of the region from Salisbury to Honiton , where it merges with the A30 to continue past Exeter to the west of Cornwall. The A31 , an extension of the M27 , serves Poole and Bournemouth and the Dorset coast. The M5 runs from
12852-455: The West Midlands, though almost all intercity trains operated by GWR run through the region. Transport for Wales also operates services between Maesteg and Cheltenham Spa . West Midlands Railway operated a parliamentary train between Birmingham New Street and Gloucester via Worcester Shrub Hill , which was withdrawn in 2019 (there was once a regular service on the route, but this
13005-419: The area could provide cover with their newer motor lifeboats. The boat house was then used as a club, but was washed away in the flood of 15 August 1952. It has since been rebuilt, and now includes a public shelter. At 7:52 pm on 12 January 1899, the 1,900 ton three-masted ship Forrest Hall , carrying thirteen crew and five apprentices, was in trouble off Porlock Weir on the north Somerset coast, owing to
13158-522: The area sometimes called Greater Bristol , which includes parts of South Gloucestershire ; and the South East Dorset conurbation , covering Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch . The population of the South West in 2009 was about five million. The region lies on several main line railways . The Great Western Main Line runs from London Paddington to Bristol , Exeter , Plymouth , and Penzance in
13311-571: The badge of the Devonshire Regiment . During the forming of a county council by the Local Government Act 1888 adoption of a common seal was required. The seal contained three shields depicting the arms of Exeter along with those of the first chairman and vice-chairman of the council ( Lord Clinton and the Earl of Morley ). On 11 October 1926, the county council received a grant of arms from
13464-461: The boat by road to Porlock's sheltered harbour, 13 miles (21 km) around the coast, and launch it from there. The boat plus its carriage weighed about 10 tons, and transporting it would not be easy. 20 horses and 100 men started by hauling the boat up the 1 in 4 Countisbury Hill out of Lynmouth. Six of the men were sent ahead with picks and shovels to widen the road. The highest point is 1,423 feet (434 m) above sea level. After they had crossed
13617-517: The boundary being an irregular line approximately across the higher part of Dartmoor and then along the canal eastwards. Botanical reports begin in the 17th century and there is a Flora Devoniensis by Jones and Kingston in 1829. A general account appeared in The Victoria History of the County of Devon (1906), and a Flora of Devon was published in 1939 by Keble Martin and Fraser. An Atlas of
13770-416: The coast and the moors. The climate of inland areas is more noticeable the further north-east into the region. In comparison to inland areas, the coast experiences high minimum temperatures, especially in winter, and it experiences slightly lower maximum temperatures during the summer. Rainfall is the lowest at the coast and snowfall is rarer than the rest of the region. Coastal areas are the windiest parts of
13923-437: The coat of arms, but following the loss in 1998 of Plymouth and Torbay re-adopted the coat of arms. In April 2006 the council unveiled a new logo which was to be used in most everyday applications, though the coat of arms will continue to be used for "various civic purposes". Devon also has its own flag which has been dedicated to Saint Petroc, a local saint with dedications throughout Devon and neighbouring counties. The flag
14076-421: The county has attractive rolling rural scenery and villages with thatched cob cottages. All these features make Devon a popular holiday destination. In South Devon the landscape consists of rolling hills dotted with small towns, such as Dartmouth , Ivybridge , Kingsbridge , Salcombe , and Totnes . The towns of Torquay and Paignton are the principal seaside resorts on the south coast. East Devon has
14229-575: The county is ranked fourth by area (due to the creation of Cumbria) amongst ceremonial counties and is the third largest non-metropolitan county . The island of Lundy and the reef of Eddystone are also in Devon. The county has more mileage of road than any other county in England. Inland, the Dartmoor National park lies wholly in Devon, and the Exmoor National Park lies in both Devon and Somerset. Apart from these areas of high moorland
14382-676: The county of Cornwall on a widespread scale. The region is home to six universities: University of Bristol, University of The West of England (UWE), University of Exeter, University of Plymouth, Plymouth Marjon University, University of Gloucestershire (Gloucester and Cheltenham), and Falmouth University (Cornwall). The largest cities and towns in order of population are: Bristol (700,000) Plymouth (300,000) Bournemouth (250,000) Swindon (230,000) Poole (180,000) Gloucester (180,000) Exeter (160,000) Cheltenham (150,000) Torbay (150,000) Bath (130,000) Weston-super-Mare (80,000) Taunton (70,000) Salisbury (50,000) Weymouth (50,000). The largest conurbations are
14535-594: The diocese of Wessex, while nothing is known of the church organisation of the Celtic areas. About 703 Devon and Cornwall were included in the separate diocese of Sherborne and in 900 this was again divided into two, the Devon bishop having from 905 his seat at Tawton (now Bishop's Tawton ) and from 912 at Crediton , birthplace of St Boniface. Lyfing became Bishop of Crediton in 1027 and shortly afterwards became Bishop of Cornwall . The two dioceses of Crediton and Cornwall, covering Devon and Cornwall, were united under Edward
14688-562: The east around 600 AD, firstly as small bands of settlers along the coasts of Lyme Bay and southern estuaries and later as more organised bands pushing in from the east. Devon became a frontier between Brittonic and Anglo-Saxon Wessex, and it was largely absorbed into Wessex by the mid ninth century. A genetic study carried out by the University of Oxford & University College London discovered separate genetic groups in Cornwall and Devon. Not only were there differences on either side of
14841-619: The east bank of the River Tamar in 936 AD. Danish raids also occurred sporadically along many coastal parts of Devon between around 800AD and just before the time of the Norman conquest, including the silver mint at Hlidaforda Lydford in 997 and Taintona (a settlement on the Teign estuary) in 1001. Devon was the home of a number of anticlerical movements in the Later Middle Ages . For example,
14994-537: The east seems to have been halted by battles between the British and Saxons, for example at the siege of Badon Mons Badonicus (which may have been in the Bath district, perhaps at Solsbury Hill ), or Bathampton Down . The Battle of Bedwyn was fought in 675 between Escuin , a West Saxon nobleman who had seized the throne of Queen Saxburga , and King Wulfhere of Mercia . The earliest fortification of Taunton started for King Ine of Wessex and Æthelburg , in or about
15147-529: The easternmost parts of Devon. Smaller outcrops of younger rocks also exist, such as Cretaceous chalk cliffs at Beer Head and gravels on Haldon, plus Eocene and Oligocene ball clay and lignite deposits in the Bovey Basin, formed around 50 million years ago under tropical forest conditions. Devon generally has a cool oceanic climate, heavily influenced by the North Atlantic Drift . In winter, snow
15300-602: The end of the ice age; however, it is unclear whether the region was continuously inhabited during the previous 4000 years, or if humans returned to the gorge after a final cold spell. A Palaeolithic flint tool found in West Sedgemoor is the earliest indication of human presence on the Somerset Levels. During the 7th millennium BC the sea level rose and flooded the valleys, so the Mesolithic people occupied seasonal camps on
15453-613: The eve of the Black Death of 1348–49. The plague resulted in a prolonged pause in the growth of Bristol's population, with numbers remaining at 10,000–12,000 through most of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Wars of the Roses , there were frequent skirmishes between the Lancastrian Thomas Courtenay, Earl of Devon and Yorkist William, Lord Bonville . In 1470, Edward IV pursued Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick and George, Duke of Clarence as far as Exeter after
15606-400: The far west of Cornwall. The South West Main Line runs from London Waterloo and Southampton to Bournemouth , Poole and Weymouth in Dorset. The West of England Main Line runs from London Waterloo to Exeter via south Wiltshire, north Dorset and south Somerset. The Wessex Main Line runs from Bristol to Salisbury and on to Southampton. The Heart of Wessex Line runs from Bristol in
15759-601: The first seaside resort to be developed in the county, Exmouth and the more upmarket Georgian town of Sidmouth , headquarters of the East Devon District Council. Exmouth marks the western end of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site . Another notable feature is the coastal railway line between Newton Abbot and the Exe Estuary: the red sandstone cliffs and sea views are very dramatic and in
15912-544: The government of the western counties of England. It was analogous in form to the Council of the North . The council was established in March 1539, with Lord Russell as its Lord President. Members included Thomas Derby, Sir Piers Edgcumbe, Sir Richard Pollard and John Rowe. However, the fall of Thomas Cromwell , the chief political supporter of government by Councils, and the tranquillity of
16065-519: The growing sway of the Norsemen . Eventually England came to be ruled by Norse monarchs, and the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms fell one by one, Wessex being conquered in 1013 by King Sweyn Forkbeard . Sweyn's realms included Denmark and Norway , and parts of England such as Mercia (an Anglian kingdom roughly coinciding with the English Midlands ), much of which, along with northern England, fell under
16218-535: The higher ground, indicated by scatters of flints. The Neolithic people continued to exploit the reed swamps for their natural resources and started to construct wooden trackways. These included the Post Track and the Sweet Track . The Sweet Track, dating from the 39th century BC, is thought to be the world's oldest timber trackway and was once thought to be the world's oldest engineered roadway. The Levels were also
16371-423: The highest levels of snowfall and the lowest levels of sunshine. Exposed areas of the moors are windier than lowlands and can be almost as windy as the coast. The boundaries of the South West region are based upon those devised by central government in the 1930s for civil defence administration and subsequently used for various statistical analyses. The region is also similar to that used in the 17th-century Rule of
16524-406: The introduction of Edward VI 's Book of Common Prayer . The day after Whit Sunday 1549, a priest at Sampford Courtenay was persuaded to read the old mass . This insubordination spread swiftly into serious revolt. The Cornish quickly joined the men of Devon in the Prayer Book Rebellion and Exeter was besieged until relieved by Lord Russell. The Cornish had a particular motivation for opposing
16677-787: The late 7th century. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , the Saxon Cenwalh achieved a breakthrough against the British Celtic tribes, with victories at Bradford-on-Avon (in the Avon Gap in the Wansdyke) in 652, and further south at the Battle of Peonnum (at Penselwood ) in 658, followed by an advance west through the Polden Hills to the River Parrett . The Saxon advance from
16830-627: The location of the Glastonbury Lake Village as well as two lake villages at Meare . Stonehenge , Avebury and Stanton Drew are perhaps the most famous Neolithic sites in the UK. The region was heavily populated during the Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age periods. Many monuments, barrows and trackways exist. Coin evidence shows that the region was split between the Durotriges , Dobunni and Dumnonii . The Iron Age tribe in Dorset were
16983-637: The main centres of surfing in Britain. A geological dividing line cuts across Devon roughly along the line of the Bristol to Exeter line and the M5 motorway east of Tiverton and Exeter. It is a part of the Tees–Exe line broadly dividing Britain into a southeastern lowland zone typified by gently dipping sedimentary rocks and a northwestern upland zone typified by igneous rocks and folded sedimentary and metamorphic rocks . The principal geological components of Devon are i)
17136-601: The mid-fourth century AD, Christianity was introduced to Devon. In the Sub-Roman period the church in the British Isles was characterised by some differences in practice from the Latin Christianity of the continent of Europe and is known as Celtic Christianity ; however it was always in communion with the wider Roman Catholic Church . Many Cornish saints are commemorated also in Devon in legends, churches and place-names. Western Christianity came to Devon when it
17289-699: The new English language prayer book, as there were still many monoglot Cornish speakers in West Cornwall. The Cornish language declined rapidly afterwards and the Dissolution of the Monasteries resulted in the eventual loss of the Cornish language as a primary language. By the end of the 18th century it was no longer a first language. The Council of the West was a short-lived administrative body established by Henry VIII for
17442-487: The north of the region to Weymouth on the south Dorset coast via Westbury , Castle Cary and Yeovil , with most services starting at Gloucester . The vast majority of trains in the region are operated by CrossCountry , Great Western Railway (GWR) and South Western Railway (SWR). GWR is the key operator for all counties in the region except Dorset where SWR is the key operator. CrossCountry operates services to Manchester Piccadilly , Glasgow and Aberdeen . Dorset
17595-563: The official South West region does not possess a cultural and historic unity or identity of itself, which has led to criticism of it as an "artificial" construct. The large area of the region, stretching as it does from the Isles of Scilly to Gloucestershire, encompasses diverse areas which have little more in common with each other than they do with other areas of England. The region has several TV stations and newspapers based in different areas, and no single acknowledged regional "capital". Many people in
17748-402: The old Roman walls of Exeter, are nearly always near the coast, as in those days travelling was done mainly by sea. The Devonian villages of Petrockstowe and Newton St Petroc are also named after Saint Petroc and the flag of Devon is dedicated to him. The history of Christianity in the South West of England remains to some degree obscure. Parts of the historic county of Devon formed part of
17901-607: The partial assimilation of Dumnonia into the kingdom of Wessex in the eighth and ninth centuries, and the western boundary with Cornwall was set at the Tamar by king Æthelstan in 936. The name Devon derives from the name of the Brythons who inhabited the southwestern peninsula of Britain at the time of the Roman conquest of Britain known as the Dumnonii , thought to mean 'deep valley dwellers' from Proto-Celtic * dubnos 'deep'. In
18054-480: The peninsula and they receive the most sunshine. The general coastal climate is more typical the further south-west into the region. Areas of moorland inland such as: Bodmin Moor , Dartmoor and Exmoor experience lower temperatures and more precipitation than the rest of the southwest (approximately twice as much rainfall as lowland areas), because of their high altitude. Both of these factors also cause it to experience
18207-440: The peninsula where the status of being from the region is less equivocal. In particular, Cornwall 's inclusion in the region is disputed by Cornish nationalists. The cross-party Cornish Constitutional Convention and Cornish nationalist party Mebyon Kernow have campaigned for a Cornish Assembly ever since the idea of regional devolution was put forward. The South West region is largely rural, with small towns and villages;
18360-574: The period, including the remains at Bath. The area of Somerset was part of the Roman Empire from AD 47 to about AD 409. The empire disintegrated gradually, and elements of Romanitas lingered on for perhaps a century. In AD 47, Somerset was invaded from the south-east by the Second Legion Augusta , under the future emperor Vespasian . The hillforts of the Durotriges at Ham Hill and Cadbury Castle were captured. Ham Hill probably had
18513-535: The plot revolves around World War II child evacuees from London. The Song "13 Miles" by the punk folk band Skinny Lister details the story of the 1899 Lynmouth lifeboat launch from Porlock; where a lifeboat had to be carried 13 miles over the moor due to poor weather conditions at Lynmouth Lifeboat Station. The launch saved all 18 souls stranded at sea. Lynmouth is served by the following bus services: The Lynton & Lynmouth Cricket Club, founded in August 1876, meet at
18666-407: The poem " Queen Mab ". He was delighted with the village. A lifeboat station was established in Lynmouth on 20 January 1869, five months after the sailing vessel Home was wrecked nearby. The lifeboat was kept in a shed on the beach, until a purpose-built boat house was built at the harbour. This was rebuilt in 1898 and enlarged in 1906–07. It was closed at the end of 1944 because other stations in
18819-504: The region have some level of a "South West" or "West Country" regional identity, although this may not necessarily correspond to an identification with the official government-defined region . It is common for people in the region to identify at a national level (whether English , British , Cornish or a county, city or town level). Identifying as being from 'the Westcountry', amorphous though it is, tends to be more predominant further into
18972-504: The region is divided into the largely igneous and metamorphic west and sedimentary east, the dividing line slightly to the west of the River Exe . Cornwall and West Devon's landscape is of rocky coastline and high moorland, notably at Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor . These are due to the granite and slate that underlie the area. The highest point of the region is High Willhays , at 2,038 feet (621 m), on Dartmoor . In North Devon
19125-442: The region to rise in temperature and become the hottest region in the United Kingdom. Inland areas of low altitude experience the least amount of precipitation. They experience the highest summer maxima temperatures, but winter minima are colder than the coast. Snowfalls are more frequent in comparison to the coast, but less so in comparison to higher ground. It experiences the lowest wind speeds and sunshine total in between that of
19278-735: The region. Limestone is also found in the region, at the Cotswolds , Quantock Hills and Mendip Hills , where they support sheep farming. All of the principal rock types can be seen on the Jurassic Coast of Dorset and East Devon, where they document the entire Mesozoic era from west to east. The climate of South West England is classed as oceanic ( Cfb ) according to the Köppen climate classification . The oceanic climate typically experiences cool winters with warmer summers and precipitation all year round, with more experienced in winter. Annual rainfall
19431-411: The resorts railway line and beaches are very near. North Devon is very rural with few major towns except Barnstaple , Great Torrington , Bideford and Ilfracombe . Devon's Exmoor coast has the highest cliffs in southern Britain, culminating in the Great Hangman , a 318 m (1,043 ft) "hog's-back" hill with a 250 m (820 ft) cliff-face, located near Combe Martin Bay. Its sister cliff
19584-402: The sea level rose, resulting in major coastal changes. The Somerset Levels were flooded, but the dry points such as Glastonbury and Brent Knoll are known to have been occupied by Mesolithic hunters. The landscape at this time was tundra . Britain's oldest complete skeleton, Cheddar Man , lived at Cheddar Gorge around 7150 BC (in the Upper Palaeolithic or Old Stone Age), shortly after
19737-467: The setting for many of his best-known novels. Most of the region is located on the South West Peninsula , between the English Channel and Bristol Channel . It has the longest coastline of all the English regions, totalling over 700 miles (1,130 km). Much of the coast is now protected from further substantial development because of its environmental importance, which contributes to the region's attractiveness to tourists and residents. Geologically
19890-408: The slates of the west and limestones of the east meet at Exmoor National Park. The variety of rocks of similar ages seen has led to the county's name being given to that of the Devonian period. The east of the region is characterised by wide, flat clay vales , and chalk and limestone downland . The vales, with good irrigation, are home to the region's dairy agriculture. The Blackmore Vale
20043-430: The source of most of the county's rivers, including the Taw , Dart , and Exe . The longest river in the county is the Tamar , which forms most of the border with Cornwall and rises in Devon's northwest hills. The southeast coast is part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site , and characterised by tall cliffs which reveal the Triassic , Jurassic and Cretaceous geology of the region. The county gives its name to
20196-430: The south coast, which is the most populous part of the county; Barnstaple (31,275) and Tiverton (22,291) are the largest towns in the north and centre respectively. For local government purposes Devon comprises a non-metropolitan county , with eight districts, and two unitary authority areas: Plymouth and Torbay . Devon has a varied geography. It contains Dartmoor and part of Exmoor , two upland moors which are
20349-435: The stricken Forrest Hall and rescue the thirteen men and five apprentices with no casualties. However, four of the horses employed died of exhaustion. The Forrest Hall was towed into Barry , Wales. [1] [2] The feat was immortalised in C Walter Hodges' 1969 children's historical novel The Overland Launch , and was re-enacted 100 years after the event, in daylight, on today's much better roads. On 15 and 16 August 1952,
20502-406: The third-least populous, with an estimated 5,764,881 residents in 2022. The region includes the West Country and much of the ancient kingdom of Wessex . It includes two entire national parks , Dartmoor and Exmoor (a small part of the New Forest is also within the region); and four World Heritage Sites : Stonehenge , the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape , the Jurassic Coast and
20655-465: The time of the Roman invasion , the inhabitants of the entire area spoke a Brythonic Celtic language. Its descendant languages are still spoken to a greater or lesser extent in Cornwall , Wales, and Brittany . During the Roman era , the east of the region, particularly the Cotswolds and eastern Somerset, was heavily Romanised but Devon and Cornwall were much less so, though Exeter was a regional capital. There are villas, farms and temples dating from
20808-436: The traditional orchard-visiting Wassail in Whimple every 17 January, and the carrying of flaming tar barrels in Ottery St. Mary , where people who have lived in Ottery for long enough are called upon to celebrate Bonfire Night by running through the village (and the gathered crowds) with flaming barrels on their backs. Berry Pomeroy still celebrates Queene's Day for Elizabeth I . Devon's total economic output in 2019
20961-471: The upper West Lyn valley, a dam was formed by fallen trees and other debris; this in due course gave way, sending a huge wave of water and debris down that river. The River Lyn through the town had been culverted in order to gain land for business premises; this culvert soon choked with flood debris, and the river flowed through the town. Much of the debris was boulders and trees. Overnight, over 100 buildings were destroyed or seriously damaged along with 28 of
21114-499: The west of the region, but these were small compared with the established wealth of ancient cathedral cities in the east of the region such as Exeter , Bath and Wells . Wealth grew from sheep farming in the east of the region: church controlled estates such as Glastonbury Abbey and Wells became among the richest in England, while tin and silver mining was important in Devon and Cornwall; Stannary Parliaments with semi-autonomous powers were established. Farming prospered until it
21267-416: The west. The city of Plymouth is the largest settlement, and the city of Exeter is the county town . The county has an area of 2,590 sq mi (6,700 km ) and a population of 1,194,166. The largest settlements after Plymouth (264,695) are the city of Exeter (130,709) and the seaside resorts of Torquay and Paignton , which have a combined population of 115,410. They all are located along
21420-428: The words: 'Aye beautiful the dreaming brought By valleys and green fields; But deeper feeling, higher thought, Is what the city yields.' and in the footnote she speaks of her great love for London. Another of her poetical illustrations, again to a Thomas Allom picture but in a different vein, is [REDACTED] Valley of Linmouth, North Devon . The British technical modern rock band InMe make recurring references to
21573-469: The year 710. However, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle this was destroyed 12 years later. Alfred the Great refortified Exeter as a defensive burh , followed by new erections at Lydford , Halwell and Pilton , although these fortifications were small compared to burhs further east, suggesting that they were protection for the elite only. The English defeated a combined Cornish and Danish force at Hingston Down (near Gunnislake) in 838. Edward
21726-431: Was Thomas Hardy 's "Vale of the Little Dairies"; another, the Somerset Levels was created by reclaiming wetlands. The Southern England Chalk Formation extends into the region, creating a series of high, sparsely populated and archaeologically rich downs, most famously Salisbury Plain , but also Cranborne Chase , the Dorset Downs and the Purbeck Hills . These downs are the principal area of arable agriculture in
21879-426: Was adopted in 2003 after a competition run by BBC Radio Devon . The winning design was created by website contributor Ryan Sealey, and won 49% of the votes cast. The colours of the flag are those popularly identified with Devon, for example, the colours of the University of Exeter , the rugby union team, and the Green and White flag flown by the first Viscount Exmouth at the Bombardment of Algiers (now on view at
22032-449: Was an important port, handling much of England's trade with Ireland. During this period Bristol also became a centre of shipbuilding and manufacturing. Bristol was the starting point for many important voyages, notably John Cabot 's 1497 voyage of exploration to North America. By the 14th century Bristol was one of England's three largest medieval towns after London, along with York and Norwich , with perhaps 15,000–20,000 inhabitants on
22185-409: Was approved by both Devon County Council and Torbay Council to create a Combined County Authority with various powers such as transport, housing, skills, and support for business devolved from the UK Government. The main settlements in Devon are the cities of Plymouth, a historic port now administratively independent, Exeter, the county town , and Torbay , the county's tourist centre. Devon's coast
22338-406: Was named after Devon by Roderick Murchison and Adam Sedgwick in the 1840s and is the only British county whose name is used worldwide as the basis for a geological time period. Devon's second major rock system is the Culm Measures, a geological formation of the Carboniferous period that occurs principally in Devon and Cornwall. The measures are so called either from the occasional presence of
22491-407: Was over a long period incorporated into the kingdom of Wessex and the jurisdiction of the bishop of Wessex. Saint Petroc is said to have passed through Devon, where ancient dedications to him are even more numerous than in Cornwall: a probable seventeen (plus Timberscombe just over the border in Somerset), compared to Cornwall's five. The position of churches bearing his name, including one within
22644-439: Was over £26 billion, larger than either Manchester, or Edinburgh. A 2021 report states that "health, retail and tourism account for 43.1% of employment. Agriculture, education, manufacturing, construction and real estate employment are also over-represented in Devon compared with nationally". South West England South West England , or the South West of England , is one of the nine official regions of England in
22797-556: Was severely hit by the Black Death which arrived in Dorset in 1348 and quickly spread through Somerset, causing widespread death, with mortality rates perhaps as high as 50% in places. The resulting labour shortage led to changes in feudal practices. Crafts and industries also flourished; the Somerset woollen industry was then one of the largest in England. Coal mining in the Mendips was an important source of wealth while quarrying also took place. Many parish churches were rebuilt in this period. Between 1107 and 1129 William Giffard ,
22950-421: Was sold off in 1818. Where conditions were suitable, coastal villages and ports had an economy based on fishing. The larger ports such as Fowey contributed vessels to the naval enterprises of the King and were subject to attack from the French in return. Bridgwater was part of the Port of Bristol until the Port of Bridgwater was created in 1348, covering 80 miles (130 km) of the Somerset coast line, from
23103-416: Was spun into thread on isolated farms and collected by merchants to be woven, fulled, dyed and finished in thriving towns such as Dunster . The land started to be enclosed and from the 17th century onwards larger estates developed, leading to establishment of areas of large regular shaped fields. During this period a royal forest and hunting ground was established, administered by the Warden. The royal forest
23256-431: Was very similar to that found in Cornish 'tre-' settlements, however these are generally described with the local placename -(a)cott , from the Old English for homestead, cf. cottage . Saxon endings in -worthy (from Anglo-Saxon worthig ) indicate larger settlements. Several 'Bere's indicate Anglo-Saxon wood groves, as 'leighs' indicate clearings. Devon has a variety of festivals and traditional practices, including
23409-527: Was withdrawn in 2009). It has been proposed that the former London & South Western Railway Exeter to Plymouth railway be reopened to connect Cornwall and Plymouth as an alternative to the route via the Dawlish seawall that is susceptible to closure in bad weather. Local bus services are primarily operated by FirstGroup , Go-Ahead Group and Stagecoach subsidiaries as well as independent operators. Megabus and National Express operate long-distance services from South West England to all parts of
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