Stokeinteignhead () is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the

Teignbridge Teignbridge is a local government district in Devon, England. Its council is based in the town of Newton Abbot. The district also includes the towns of Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Dawlish, Kingsteignton and Teignmouth, along with numerous vi ...

district of

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) 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 the west ...

, England, above the southern bank of the estuary of the

River Teign The River Teign is a river in the county of Devon, England. It is long and rises on Dartmoor, becomes an estuary just below Newton Abbot and reaches the English Channel at Teignmouth. Toponymy The river-name ''Teign'' is first attested in a ...

. The parish has a short boundary on the estuary, and is otherwise surrounded, clockwise from the north, by the parishes of

Shaldon Shaldon is a village and civil parish in the Teignbridge district, in south Devon, England, on the south bank of the estuary of the River Teign, opposite Teignmouth. The village is a popular bathing place and is characterized by Georgian archit ...

Torbay Torbay is a unitary authority with a borough status in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. It is governed by Torbay Council, based in the town of Torquay, and also includes the towns of Paignton and Brixham. The borough consists of ...

Coffinswell Coffinswell is a small village in South Devon, England, just off the A380, the busy Newton Abbot to Torquay road. It lies within Teignbridge District Council. Coffinswell has a church dedicated to Saint Bartholomew with a Norman font. Near the ...

and

Haccombe with Combe Haccombe with Combe is a civil parish in the Teignbridge local government district of Devon, England. The parish lies immediately to the east of the town of Newton Abbot, and south of the estuary of the River Teign. Across the estuary are the p ...

. At the 2021 census, it had a population of 734, which was slightly more than the 703 recorded at the 2011 census. It is twinned with the French commune of

Trévières Trévières () is a Communes of France, commune in the Calvados (department), Calvados Departments of France, department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy Regions of France, region in northwestern France. Administration Tréviè ...

, Calvados.

History

Despite its closeness to the river Teign, the name is not derived from it: in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

the district contained thirteen manors which totalled an area of ten hides and the whole area was known as the "Ten Hide". This was later corrupted to "Teignhead" through the influence of the river name. The name of the nearby village of

Combeinteignhead Combeinteignhead or Combe-in-Teignhead is a village in Teignbridge, South Devon, England. It lies within the civil parish of Haccombe with Combe, between Newton Abbot and Shaldon, about half a mile (1 km) inland from the estuary of the R ...

has a similar derivation. Most of the village forms a conservation area and there are over fifty

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

s nearby. The mascot of Stokeinteignhead, appearing on the village signs, is the

cirl bunting The cirl bunting ( ), (''Emberiza cirlus''), is a passerine bird in the Emberiza, bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. It breeds across southern Europe, on the List of islands ...

Governance

Stokeinteignhead in elections every four years elects one representative to

Devon County Council Devon County Council is the county council administering the English county of Devon. The council is based at Devon County Hall in the city of Exeter. The area administered by the county council is termed the non-metropolitan county, which is ...

, and one representative to

District Council. The parish council has eight elected councillors with elections every four years.

Amenities

Stokeinteignhead village is the largest settlement of the parish and includes a primary school, pre-school, a community shop and one

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

, The Church House Inn. Stokeinteignhead Village Hall was demolished in 2005 with a plan to re-build it at the same location; it is now in a former part of the school field and construction began in 2006 and was completed some months later. The village church, dating from the 14th century and enlarged in the 15th, is dedicated to

Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Church stems from the Gospel of Jo ...

. Its high altar was dedicated by Bishop Grandisson in 1336. Its

rood screen The rood screen (also choir screen, chancel screen, or jubé) is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, o ...

is one of the oldest in Devon and believed to be 14th century; the church also contains the earliest brass engraved to a priest in the county, dated to 1375. The church, which is Grade II* listed, underwent major restoration in 1894 having instructed architects Tait and Harvey. Lower and Higher Gabwell

Hamlets

Lower Gabwell is the second largest

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

, less than from the village centre. About further south is Higher Gabwell, the largest hamlet. Buildings at Higher Rocombe The hamlets of Lower, Middle and Higher Rocombe are less than to the west. Across these there are four

s, three focussed around Higher Rocombe Farm and the largest, that of Orchard Farm and adjoining Lower Rocombe Cottage dating back several centuries. Cottages at Teignharvey and Teign estuary The hamlet of Teignharvey to the north-west contains a cluster of cottages. Its oldest is Little Harvey, from which the village takes its name, and this (the only important or ancient building) dates to the

Tudor period In England and Wales, the Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603, including the Elizabethan era during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603). The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England, which began with ...

in the early 16th century.

References

External links

Official site
{{authority control Villages in Devon