Haytor, also known as Haytor Rocks, Hay Tor, or occasionally Hey Tor, is a

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

tor Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to: Places * Toronto, Canada ** Toronto Raptors * Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain * Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city * Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano * Tor Bay, Devon, England * Tor ...

on the eastern edge of

Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite that forms the uplands dates from the Carb ...

in the English

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

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 ...

Location

The tor is at grid reference , near the village of

Haytor Vale Ilsington is a village and civil parish situated on the eastern edge of Dartmoor, Devon, England. It is one of the largest parishes in the county, and includes the villages of Ilsington, Haytor Vale, Liverton and South Knighton. The parish is ...

in the parish of

Ilsington Ilsington is a village and civil parish situated on the eastern edge of Dartmoor, Devon, England. It is one of the largest parishes in the county, and includes the villages of Ilsington, Haytor Vale, Liverton and South Knighton. The parish is s ...

. There is an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

with the same name. The population at the 2011 census is 2,862.

History

''Idetordoune'' (1566), ''Ittor Doune'' (1687), ''Idetor'' (1737), ''Eator Down'' (1762) and ''Itterdown'' (1789) are a few recorded examples of earlier names by which Haytor was known. The name ''Haytor'' is of comparatively recent origin, and is probably a corruption of its old name and that of the

Haytor Hundred The hundred of Haytor was the name of one of thirty two ancient administrative units of Devon, England. The hundred covered the coastal area between the River Teign and River Dart. It was likely named after a lost village located somewhere betwee ...

, which covered the coastal area between 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 ...

and

River Dart The River Dart is a river in Devon, England, that source (river), rises high on Dartmoor and flows for to the sea at Dartmouth, Devon, Dartmouth. Name Most hydronyms in England derive from the Common Brittonic, Brythonic language (from which ...

, itself now considered to have been named after a lost village located somewhere between Totnes and Newton Abbot. In the 19th century steps were made to allow pedestrians up to the top of the tor and a metal handrail fixed to allow tourists easier access to the summit. This was not entirely welcomed and in 1851, a Dr Croker complained about the rock steps that had been cut "to enable the enervated and pinguedinous scions of humanity of this wonderful nineteenth century to gain the summit". The handrail was removed in the 1960s due to it rusting: the stumps of the uprights are still embedded in the rock.Hemery 1983, p. 693 In 1953, Haytor was used as a major location for the feature film ''

Knights of the Round Table The Knights of the Round Table (, , ) are the legendary knights of the fellowship of King Arthur that first appeared in the Matter of Britain literature in the mid-12th century. The Knights are a chivalric order dedicated to ensuring the peace ...

'' starring Robert Taylor and

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' att ...

. An "elaborate and impressive castle" was built between the two main rock piles of the tor and traditional medieval sports, including

jousting Jousting is a medieval and renaissance martial game or hastilude between two combatants either on horse or on foot. The joust became an iconic characteristic of the knight in Romantic medievalism. The term is derived from Old French , ultim ...

, were staged here for the film. The whole of Haytor Down was sold to the newly formed

Dartmoor National Park Authority The Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) is a national park authority in England, legally responsible for Dartmoor in Devon. It came into existence in its present form in 1997, being preceded by a committee of Devon County Council (from 1951 ...

in 1974.

Geology

Haytor has the form of a typical "avenue" tor, where the granite between the two main outcrops has been eroded away. Its characteristic shape is a notable landmark visible on the skyline from many places in south Devon between

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

and

Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and ab ...

. The majority of the tor consists of coarse-grained granite, but at the base of the western outcrop is a layer of finer-grained granite which has eroded more than the rock above, leaving a pronounced overhang (a

rock shelter A rock shelter (also rockhouse, crepuscular cave, bluff shelter, or abri) is a shallow cave-like opening at the base of a bluff or cliff. In contrast to solutional caves (karst), which are often many miles long or wide, rock shelters are alm ...

) of two or three feet in places.Perkins 1972, pp. 93–5 ''Haytorite,'' a variety of

quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...

found in an iron mine adjacent to the Hay Tor granite quarries, was named “in honour of its birth-place”.

Quarrying

The granite below the tor has fewer large

feldspar Feldspar ( ; sometimes spelled felspar) is a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. The most common members of the feldspar group are the ''plagiocl ...

crystals than at the tor itself, and this was preferred for building. There are several quarries on the northern slopes of Haytor down which were worked intermittently between 1820 and 1919. Between 1820 and 1858 the rock from these quarries was transported by the

Haytor Granite Tramway The Haytor Granite Tramway (also called Heytor) was a tramway built to convey granite from Haytor Down, Dartmoor, Devon to the Stover Canal. It was very unusual in that the track was formed of granite sections, shaped to guide the wheels of hors ...

to the

Stover Canal The Stover Canal is a canal located in Devon, England. It was opened in 1792 and served the ball clay industry until it closed in the early 1940s. Today it is derelict, but the Stover Canal Society is aiming to restore it and reopen it to naviga ...

. The tramway itself was built out of the granite it would carry, and due to its durable nature much of it remains visible today. Haytor granite was used in the reconstruction of

London Bridge The name "London Bridge" refers to several historic crossings that have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark in central London since Roman Britain, Roman times. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 197 ...

which opened in 1831 and was moved in 1970 to

Lake Havasu City Lake Havasu City (, ) is a city in Mohave County, Arizona, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 57,144, up from 52,527 in 2010. It is served by Lake Havasu City Airport. History The community first started dur ...

in Arizona.Perkins 1972, pp. 112–4 The last rock quarried here in 1919 was used for the

Exeter war memorial Exeter War Memorial, also known as The Northernhay War Memorial is a war memorial in Northernhay Gardens in the city of Exeter, Devon. Designed by John Angel (sculptor), John Angel, it was erected by public subscription in 1923 and cost over £ ...

Today

Haytor rocks and quarries are protected from development and disturbance as a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

. The area is considered a natural beauty spot and is arguably Dartmoor's most famous landmark, visited by coach parties and walking groups. It is accessible by road and at a height of right on the eastern side of the moor, it provides views of the coastline, the

Teign Estuary 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 an ...

and the rolling countryside between, with the ridge of

Haldon The Haldon Hills, usually known simply as Haldon, is a ridge of high ground in Devon, England. It is situated between the River Exe and the River Teign and runs northwards from Teignmouth, on the coast, for about until it dwindles away north ...

behind. In 2013,

Simon Jenkins Sir Simon David Jenkins FLSW (born 10 June 1943) is a British author, a newspaper columnist and editor. He was editor of the ''Evening Standard'' from 1976 to 1978 and of ''The Times'' from 1990 to 1992. Jenkins chaired the National Trust f ...

rated the view from Haytor as one of the top ten in England. The smaller, western outcrop is sometimes known as "Lowman".

Rock climbers Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in guidebooks, and o ...

make use of both outcrops; each has routes of varying difficulty. The road that passes below the tor hosted a summit finish on Stage 6 of the

2013 Tour of Britain The 2013 Tour of Britain was the tenth running of the current Tour of Britain and the 74th British tour in total. The race consisted of eight stages, starting on 15 September in Peebles, and finishing on 22 September in London. The race was part ...

, and the climb was again used for the finish of the sixth stage of the

2016 Tour of Britain The 2016 Tour of Britain was a nine-stage men's professional Road bicycle racing, road cycling race. It was the thirteenth running of the modern version of the Tour of Britain and the 76th British tour in total. The race started on 4 September in ...

References

Sources

* *

External links

Dartmoor Archive - Hay Tor Images
{{Settlements of Dartmoor Tors of Dartmoor Dartmoor