Venues in Devon; hire a String Quartet
Dartmouth
A town of much historical and architectural interest
about i mile from the mouth of the River Dart, superbly situated on a steep
hill on the west bank of the river. It has been an important harbour since
the Roman era. Many-historic naval expeditions, including the fleet sent by
Edward III to assist in the siege of Calais in 1347, sailed from here.
String Quartets at Barnstaple Hotel, Barnstaple, Devon
String Quartets at Beaford Country House, Winkleigh, Devon
String Quartets at Bickleigh Castle, Tiverton (nr Exeter), Devon
String Quartets at Bicton College, East Budleigh, Devon
String Quartets at Bovey Castle, Dartmoor National Park, Devon
String Quartets at Brookdale House, South Brent, Devon
String Quartets at Browns Hotel, Tavistock, Devon
String Quartets at Buckerell Lodge Hotel, Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at Buckland-tout-Saints Hotel, Kingsbridge, Devon
Dartmouth is a fishing port as well as a popular holiday resort. Boat trips along the beautiful estuary of the Dart are among the local attractions.
A waterside path leading to the open sea passes St Petrox's Church, rebuilt in the Gothic style in 1641-2. Alongside the church are the remains of a 15th-century cliff castle, which faces Kingswear Castle—also ijth-century— across the estuary. (Kingswear Castle is not open to the public.) The two castles were built in such a way that a thick chain could be stretched across the river to hold off enemy ships in time of war.
Other notable buildings in Dartmouth include the Butterwalk, a row of 17th-century houses on granite pillars with carved overhanging storeys, damaged by a bomb in 1943 and restored in 1954; the Castle Hotel, mostly igth century, which incorporates a 17th-century coaching inn; Agincourt House, which dates from 1671; and the Customs House, built in 1739. Overlooking them all, from the crest of the highest hill above the town, stands the Royal Naval College, which has trained naval cadets since 1905. A car ferry plies across the river to Kingswear, the railway terminus.
The 11 mile long estuary of the River Dart offers a varied panorama of south Devon landscapes—from the urban scenery of Dartmouth on the river's west bank, to open views uf woodland and fresh green fields
String Quartets at Burton Farmhouse, Kingsbridge, Devon
String Quartets at Canonteign Estate, Christow, nr Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at Castle Hill, Barnstable, Devon
String Quartets at Castle Hill, Barnstaple, Devon
String Quartets at Clovelly, Clovelly, Bideford, Devon
String Quartets at Coombe House Hotel, nr Crediton, Devon
String Quartets at Deer Park Hotel, Honiton, Devon
String Quartets at Eggesford Barton, Chumleigh, Devon
String Quartets at Escot House, Ottery St Mary, Devon
Kingsbridge
This little market town, sometimes known as the capital of the South Hams, at the head of the Kingsbridge Estuary. Among the town's interesting buildings are St Edmund's Church, with its 13th-century tower; the Shambles, a 16th-century market arcade largely rebuilt in 1796; and the lyth-century grammar school. William Cook-worthy (1705-80), who discovered china clay in Cornwall and made the first true porcelain in England, was born here.
String Quartets at Fishponds House, Honiton, Devon
String Quartets at Gipsy Hill Hotel, Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at Hare and Hounds, nr Sidmouth, Devon
String Quartets at Hatswell Meadows, Tiverton, Devon
String Quartets at Hazlewood, Loddiswell, Nr. Kingsbridge, Devon
String Quartets at Highbullen Hotel, Golf & Country Club, Chittlehamholt, Umberleigh, Devon
String Quartets at Holiday Inn Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon
Modbury
Like many South Hams towns, Modbury is built on a steep hill. It is a picturesque market town with a number of Georgian buildings and several slate-hung houses, typical of this part of south Devon. The half-timbered Exeter Inn has been in use since Elizabethan times, and the church, imposingly sited astride the hill, has a tower with a medieval spire.
String Quartets at Holne Park House, Ashburton, Devon
String Quartets at Huntsham Court, Huntsham, nr Tiverton, Devon
String Quartets at Kitley House Hotel, Yealmpton, Plymouth, Devon
String Quartets at Kittiwell House Hotel, Croyde Bay, Devon
String Quartets at Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe, Devon
String Quartets at Langdon Court Hotel, Wembury, Plymouth, Devon
String Quartets at Muddifords Court & Courtyard, Cullompton (nr Tiverton), Devon
Newton Ferrers
Gabled houses and thatched cottages flank a steep lane above the wooded banks of the Yealm Estuary. Across the water, the village of Noss Mayo holds a traditional May Day procession each year. There is bathing on a sandy beach at Stoke, i J miles south of Noss Mayo.
String Quartets at Northcote Manor Hotel, Umberleigh, Devon
String Quartets at Oxenways, Axminster, Devon
String Quartets at Park Hotel, Barnstaple, Devon
String Quartets at Pickwell Manor, Nr. Braunton, Devon
String Quartets at Reed Hall, Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at Royal Beacon, Exmouth, Devon
String Quartets at Royal Clarence Hotel, Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at Saunton Sands Hotel, Braunton, Devon
String Quartets at Southgate Hotel, Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at St Elizabeth's House, Plympton St Maurice, Devon
String Quartets at St Olavs Hotel, Exeter, Devon
Plymouth
With a population of just under 250,000, Plymouth is the largest city in the West Country. It was formed from the union of the old towns of Plymouth, Stone-house and Devonport. It has one of the grandest sites of any city in Britain, lying mainly between the mouths of the
Tamar and the Plym, which flow into the broad estuary of Plymouth Sound. Out to sea, past the fine headlands that enclose The Sound, or inland to Dartmoor and the Cornish hills, the views are superb.
The centre of the city was almost obliterated during the Second World War, and the crowded area around Sutton Pool represents virtually all that is left of old Plymouth, a noted seaport since the i3th century. During the Hundred Years' War, many ships sailed from here against the French, and later it was the port from which the Elizabethan sailors Hawkins, Raleigh and Frobisher embarked on their great voyages. Above all, it is the city of Sir Francis Drake, who played his famous game of bowls on the Hoe before setting out to destroy the Spanish Armada in 1588. The tale that he finished his game before turning his attention to the Spaniards is almost certainly true; but Drake's nonchalance must have been at least partly due to a shrewd assessment of the state of the wind and the tide, which would anyway have prevented him from sailing straightaway.
The Pilgrim Fathers sailed from Plymouth to America in the Mayflower in 1620; and in 1772 James Cook departed from Plymouth on his great three-year circumnavigation of the world. From Plymouth, too, Sir Francis Chichester sailed on his single-handed voyage round the world in 1966-7.
Rebuilt since the war, Plymouth is a thriving industrial and naval centre with more recorded history than visible remains. The most notable historic building is the Citadel, at the east end of The Hoe; it commands the entrance to Sutton Pool and the Cattewater (the mouth of the River Plym). It was built in the I7th century by Charles II, on what were then the most advanced principles of fortress architecture.
String Quartets at Stoodleigh Court, Stoodleigh, Tiverton , Devon
String Quartets at Tavistock Town Hall, Tavistock, Devon
String Quartets at The Fox and Hounds Hotel, Eggesford, Chumleigh, Devon
String Quartets at The Old Vicarage, Malborough, Near Salcombe, Devon
String Quartets at The Tumbling Weir Hotel, Ottery St Mary, Devon
String Quartets at Thistle Hotel, Exeter, Devon
String Quartets at Tiverton Hotel, Tiverton, Devon