Milton Damerel is a village, parish and former manor in north

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. Situated in the political division of

Torridge Torridge may refer to: * Torridge District Torridge is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in north-west Devon, England. Its council is based in the town of Bideford. The district also includes the towns of Great Torringt ...

, on the river Waldon, it covers . It contains many tiny hamlets including Whitebeare, Strawberry Bank, East Wonford and West Wonford. The parish has a population of about 450. The village is about from Holsworthy, from

Bideford Bideford ( ) is a historic port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, South West England. It is the main town of the Torridge District, Torridge Districts of England, local government district. Toponymy In ancient records Bi ...

and from

Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from ...

. The A388 is the main road through the parish.

History

Milton Damerel's settlement dates back to Saxon times. Pre-Norman settlements included: *Gidcott (Latinized to ''Giddescotta''), the

cott Primo Water Corporation (formerly Cott Corporation) is an American-Canadian water company offering multi-gallon bottled water, water dispensers, self-service refill water machines, and water filtration appliances. The company is headquartered in ...

or semi-independent estate of an Anglo-Saxon man named Gidde. *Middleton (''Mideltona'') i.e. Middle Town, which became 'Milton'. *Wonford (''Wonforda'') i.e. West Wonford. The Saxon name signified "a ford suitable for heavy wagons". Following the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

of 1066,

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

granted West Wonford, with twenty-eight other manors in Devon, to Ruald Adobed, but it later

escheat Escheat () is a common law doctrine that transfers the real property of a person who has died without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in "limbo" without recognized ownership. It originally applied t ...

ed to the Crown. However Milton, Gidcott and thirteen other manors in Devon he granted to Robert d'Aumale (

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

1086) ( Latinised to ''de Albemarle''), whose lands are listed in 17 entries 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 ...

of 1086.Thorn, Caroline & Frank, (eds.) Domesday Book, (Morris, John, gen.ed.) Vol. 9, Devon, Parts 1 & 2, Phillimore Press, Chichester, 1985, part 2, Chapter 28 He was

lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...

of Aumale in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, now in the

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

Seine-Maritime Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inf� ...

, France. The majority of his holdings later formed part of the very large

feudal barony of Plympton The feudal barony of Plympton (or Honour of Plympton) was a large feudal barony in the county of Devon, England, whose '' caput'' was Plympton Castle and manor, Plympton. It was one of eight feudal baronies in Devonshire which existed during th ...

. His descendants appear to have become known as ''Damerel, Damarrell'', etc. In the

Book of Fees The ''Book of Fees'' is the colloquial title of a modern edition, transcript, rearrangement and enhancement of the medieval (Latin: 'Book of Fiefs') which is a listing of feudal landholdings or fief (Middle English ), compiled in about 1302, bu ...

"John de Albemarle" is listed as holding ''Middelton'', part of the

, from Isabella de Forz, widow of

William de Forz, 4th Earl of Albemarle William de Forz, 4th Earl of Albemarle (died 1260) ( Latinised as ''de Fortibus'', sometimes spelt Deforce) played a conspicuous part in the reign of Henry III of England, notably in the Mad Parliament of 1258. William married twice. His fir ...

and

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

Countess of Devon, whose heir was the Courtenay family. The 6th Earl was succeeded by his son, Baldwin de Redvers, 7th Earl of Devon (d.1262), who died without progeny. His sister, Isabella de Forz, widow of

, became Countess of Devon ''

''. Her children predeceased her and she had no grandchildren. Her lands were inherited by her second cousin once removed,

Hugh de Courtenay Sir Hugh de Courtenay (1251–1292) was the son and heir of John de Courtenay, feudal baron of Okehampton, Devon, by Isabel de Vere, daughter of Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford. His son inherited the earldom of Devon. Early years Sir Hugh de ...

(1276–1340), feudal baron of Okehampton, the great-grandson of Mary de Redvers and Robert de Courtenay (d.1242) of Okehampton. He was summoned by

writ In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrant (legal), Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, and ''certiorari'' are commo ...

to Parliament in 1299 as ''Hugo de Curtenay'', whereby he is held to have become Baron Courtenay. However, forty-one years after the death of Isabel de Forz,

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

were issued on 22 February 1335 declaring him Earl of Devon, and stating that he 'should assume such title and style as his ancestors, Earls of Devon, had wont to do', by which he was confirmed as Earl of Devon. The manor of Milton Damerel remained

held Held may refer to: Places * Held Glacier People Arts and media * Adolph Held (1885–1969), U.S. newspaper editor, banker, labor activist *Al Held (1928–2005), U.S. abstract expressionist painter. *Alexander Held (born 1958), German television ...

from the honour of Plympton by the family of the Damerels until the time of King Edward II (1307-1327), when Hugh Courtenay (1303-1377), later 2nd Earl of Devon, of

Tiverton Castle Tiverton Castle is the remains of a medieval castle dismantled after the English Civil War and thereafter converted in the 17th century into a country house. It occupies a defensive position above the banks of the River Exe at Tiverton, Devo ...

, "procured" possession of it from Ralph Damerel. Courtenay retained the manor house and lordship of the manor, but granted the

demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land subinfeudation, sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. ...

lands of it to Sir Richard Stapledon (d.1326) of

Annery, Monkleigh Annery was an historic estate in the parish of Monkleigh, North Devon. It was one of the original endowments of Tavistock Abbey, founded in 961.Thorn, Caroline & Frank, (eds.) Domesday Book, (Morris, John, gen.ed.) Vol. 9, Devon, Parts 1 & 2, ...

in North Devon. These demesne lands passed with Annery to Sir Richard I Hankford, heir by marriage to Stapledon, whose descendant was Sir

William Hankford Sir William Hankford ( 1350 – 1423), also written Hankeford, of Annery in Devon, was an English lawyer who acted as Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1413 until 1423. Origins Born about 1350, he came from a minor gentry family who took ...

(d. 1422), KB,

Lord Chief Justice of England The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales. Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English an ...

. In 1538 the Courtenays lost the manor of Milton Damerel and their other possessions following the attainder and execution of

Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter, 2nd Earl of Devon (c. 1498 – 9 December 1538), feudal baron of Okehampton, feudal baron of Plympton, of Tiverton Castle, Okehampton Castle and Colcombe Castle all in Devon, was a grandson of ...

(c.1498-1538). In the 1870s, Richard Baker, tenant of the main farm, built a large house next to the church; in 1896 he got permission from Arthur Stanhope, 6th Earl Stanhope to enclose the village green. The parish has a

Grade II* listed 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, H ...

Holy Trinity Parish Church that dates back to, in parts, the 13th century. The tower was destroyed by lightning in 1879 and for 20 years the church was in ruins but was re-opened in 1904 and the tower partly re-erected in 1892 and rebuilt in 1910 - 11. The church holds weekly services and other events in the old school room.

Buildings and facilities

The parish has no schools, though the children in the parish normally go to schools in Bradworthy, Holsworthy, and North Devon College. Milton Damerel has many small businesses that serve the local community. Although the parish doesn't have a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

, there are ones in

Bradworthy Bradworthy is a village and civil parish in Devon, England, situated north-east of the border with Cornwall. This location has led to it being called the "last village in North Devon" – traveling further west leads to the Cornish village of K ...

, Holsworthy and a part-time one in Shebbear. The parish has a parish hall that is used for community events. It has a skittle alley attached, with skittle league matches taking place there during the winter months. The hall and skittle alley are both available for private hire. There is a

mobile library A bookmobile, or mobile library, is a vehicle designed for use as a library. They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service. Boo ...

that visits the parish every two weeks. There is a permanent library in Holsworthy. The 'Woodford Bridge Country Club' on the A388 is a former coaching inn, with a thatched roof. It is believed to be the 'Woodford Hall' where the diatomist Frederick Mills lived in the 1930s.

Public transport

There is a bus service that operates 4 times a day, in each direction, along the A388 between Holsworthy and

and then on to

. On Saturday mornings a bus used to go to Launceston,

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...

and

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

with a return service later in the day. This service however no longer is in operation, much to the dismay of local residents who relied on the service to go to Plymouth mainly for a Saturday shopping trip or to see friends.

Gallery

File:Chapel at Milton Damerel - geograph.org.uk - 599808.jpg, Chapel at Milton Damerel File:Milton Damerel Church - geograph.org.uk - 599830.jpg, Milton Damerel's church File:Cottages at Milton Damerel - geograph.org.uk - 599798.jpg, Cottages at Milton Damerel

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

Milton Damerel Village Website

History, Location and Statistics of Milton Damerel
{{authority control Villages in Devon Civil parishes in Devon Torridge District