Dartmouth and Compton Castle….glimpses of history.

Dartmouth and Compton Castle….glimpses of history.

There is something tantalising about catching a ‘glimpse’ of a street, church or garden. Curiosity seems to grip me if I look down a narrow alley, or through an arched window or door. I have to go forth and explore.

The alleys of Dartmouth afford attractive glimpses of houses and inns…. Rarely am I disappointed by the discoveries I make. The town is some nine hundred years old so finding ancient stones and buildings is not difficult.

The five hundred year old Bayard’s Cove Fort in Dartmouth has further glimpses out to the harbour through arched windows and doors.

Compton Castle is another place where arches give teasing looks into walled gardens and shadowy rooms.

Strangely a connection between Dartmouth and Compton Castle exists in the shape of Sir Humphrey Gilbert who helped colonise Newfoundland….the Gilbert family owned the Castle for much of its existence.

Plaque on a house in Dartmouth close to Bayard’s Fort.

The Coroner…a new afternoon program on BBC1, is set in Dartmouth.

Compton Castle…June visit of rose garden and rooms.

Compton Castle…June visit of rose garden and rooms…photographers treasure chest.

My second visit to the Castle was to see the inside. The castle is some seven hundred years old and is a solid piece of medieval architecture. The walls are three feet thick and the windows small and barred against invasion….despite this it has a fairy tale quality.

The rose garden was beautiful. Enclosed by stone walls roses rambled across borders and trellises. Some of the roses had gone past their first bloom and were left petal-less due to wind and rain, but there were still enough roses and peonies left to make this garden sweetly perfumed and colourful and quite gorgeous.

A typical English, country-cottage type, flower border filled with roses, peonies, foxgloves and daisies.

The first sight of the inside of the castle was through the kitchen. It had a large fireplace and tables full of crockery, pots and herbs. A delightful place for visitors with no hint of the long, arduous work that must have taken place there in years gone by.
A little inner room held some old clothing for those visitors who want to get in the feel of things….a place for giggling and looking the fool.

Across and opposite the kitchen was the hall. Portraits of previous owners hang on the walls. The living areas have a warmth about them missing from castles I’ve visited in the pass….volunteers in traditional costume are around to give a history of the castle, past and present.

The Gilbert family who owned the castle for much of its existence were important people in Britain’s history.
Sir John Gilbert’s son John helped command forces against the Spanish Armada.
Sir Humphrey Gilbert was half brother to Sir Walter Raleigh. He helped colonise Newfoundland.
Raleigh Gilbert helped establish a colony in Maine, USA in 1607.

Upstairs was the Solar, an area in the castle where the family lived and slept. The winding staircase was narrow…only allowing one person to go up or down at a time…so I feel they must have been very protective of their families privacy and need for private space.

The children’s room had a sweet little rocking chair that was said to be Sir Walter Raleigh’s

Dotted around the castle were squints, little holes in the wall where people could keep an eye on, or hear, what was going on in another room without being seen…medieval CCTV.
This one in the chapel.

The chapel is a small room…simple and barely decorated. The pews are modern. It has an attractively shaped, but plain glass window.

Compton Castle is a delightful fortified manor house….a place to dream and wonder… a photographers treasure chest.

Compton Castle…nr Torquay Devon..surprising connection to English/American history.

Compton Castle..Nr Torquay Devon

Tucked away down the narrow wandering lanes of Devon is Compton Castle. A charming, solid, fortified manor house.

Set in grounds of lawn, orchards, rose gardens, wild flowers and tall trees, it has a romantic look about it. A quiet home for its owners with a surprising connection to English and American history.

A house has stood on this ground for some nine hundred years. The first manor house was built in the 12th century for Sir Maurice de la Pole. In the middle of the 14th century the manor was replaced by a large hall and family and service rooms.
In 1520 a fortress like front was added by Sir John Gilbert whose son John helped command the forces sent against the Spanish Armada.

Sir Humphrey Gilbert, half brother to Sir Walter Raleigh, lived here in the 1500s. He sailed with Sir Walter to America and helped colonise Newfoundland. His son Raleigh Gilbert helped establish a colony in Maine, USA in 1607.
Sir Walter Raleigh was said to have smoked the first ever pipe of tobacco brought from his travels, when visiting the castle.
The building was allowed to decay over time, but was eventually rebuilt and restored.

It now looks just as a fortified house or castle should look, with three feet thick, sturdy walls, turrets and heavy wooden doors. I do love doors..open..they are so tempting…