Widecombe-in-the-Moor is a small
villageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a town or city. Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New York City and the Saifi Village in...
located within the heart of the
DartmoorDartmoor is an area of moorland in the centre of Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops , providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...
National Park in
DevonDevon is a large county in England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, although that is an unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county itself and often indicating a traditional or historical context. The county shares borders with Cornwall to the west and Dorset and Somerset to...
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. . The name is thought to derive from 'Withy-combe' which means Willow Valley.
According to Widecombe's official website, there are 196 households in the village, although its large and sprawling parish stretches for many miles and encompasses dozens of isolated cottages and moorland farms.
Tourism is a major source of income for Widecombe today, as reflected by the fact that within a small area there are several gift shops (including a
National TrustThe National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
shop), two cafes and two pubs (the Old Inn and the Rugglestone).
The village is probably best known for
Widecombe FairWidecombe Fair takes place annually on the second Tuesday in September, attracting thousands of visitors to the tiny Dartmoor village of Widecombe-in-the-Moor. It is well known as the subject of the folk song of the same name, featuring Uncle Tom Cobley and his friends.- History :The earliest...
, held annually and celebrated by a well-known folksong of the same name, featuring 'Old
Uncle Tom CobleyThe phrase Uncle Tom Cobley and all is used in British English as a humorous or whimsical way of saying et al., often to express exasperation at the large number of people in a list. The phrase comes from a Devon folk song "Widecombe Fair", collected by Sabine Baring-Gould...
and All'. Its words were first published in 1880. The characters from the song are featured in many of the souvenirs on sale in the local shops. Also popular are the traditional 'Toby Jugs' - a type of mug, with a handle, shaped as a three dimensional caricature of a person's head - sometimes fictional, sometimes a celebrity.
The church of
St Pancras-Saints:* Pancras of Taormina, martyred in 40 AD in Sicily* Pancras of Rome, the saint martyred c.304 AD after whom the following are directly or indirectly named-London:* St Pancras, London, a district of London...
is known as the 'Cathedral of the Moors' in recognition of its 120 foot tower and relatively large capacity for such a small village. The church was originally built in the fourteenth century, in the Perpendicular style (late
GothicGothic architecture is a style of architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
), using locally quarried
graniteGranite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite has a medium to coarse texture, occasionally with some individual crystals larger than the groundmass forming a rock known as porphyry. Granites can be pink to dark gray or even black, depending on their...
. It was enlarged over the following two centuries, partly on the proceeds of the local
tin miningThe Dartmoor tin mining industry is thought to have originated in pre-Roman times, and continued right through to the 20th century. From the 12th century onwards tin mining was regulated by a Stannary Parliament which had its own laws....
trade. Inside, the ceiling is decorated with a large number of decorative
roof bossesIn architecture, a boss is a knob or protrusion of stone or wood.Bosses can often be found in the ceilings of buildings, particularly at the intersection of a vault. In Gothic architecture, such roof bosses are often intricately carved with foliage, heraldic devices or other decorations...
, including the tinner’s emblem of a circle of
three haresThe three hares is a circular motif which appears in sacred sites from the Middle and Far East to the churches of south west England ....
(known locally as the Tinners' Rabbits).
The church was badly damaged in
the Great ThunderstormThe Great Thunderstorm of Widecombe-in-the-Moor, Dartmoor, took place on Sunday, 21 October 1638, when the church of St Pancras was apparently struck by ball lightning during a severe thunderstorm. An afternoon service was taking place at the time, and the building was packed with approximately 300...
of 1638, apparently struck by ball lightning during a severe thunderstorm. An afternoon service was taking place at the time, and the building was packed with approximately 300 worshippers. Four of them were killed, around 60 injured. According to local legend, the Great Thunderstorm was caused by the village being visited by the
DevilThe Devil is believed in certain religions and folklore to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The Devil is commonly associated with heretics, infidels, and other unbelievers...
.
The size of the parish meant that, for centuries, families were obliged to walk for miles to go to church at Widecombe every Sunday. The task was even more challenging when it came to burying their dead, whose coffins had to be carried over rough ground and both up and down exceptionally steep hills. Halfway up
DartmeetDartmeet is a popular tourist spot in the centre of Dartmoor, Devon, England at .It lies at the end of the B3351 road, about east of Two Bridges. From here, the road continues eastwards as a minor road with restrictions on the size of vehicles, past Poundsgate and over Holne Bridge and New Bridge...
Hill, for example, lies the Coffin Stone, close to the road, where the body would be placed to allow the bearers to take a rest. The rock is split in two, along its length. Local legend has it that the body of a particularly wicked man was laid there. God took exception to this, and struck the stone with a thunderbolt, destroying the coffin and splitting the stone in two.
In Widecombe churchyard is the grave of novelist
Beatrice ChaseBeatrice Chase was the pen name for a British writer, who became well known for her Dartmoor-based novels during the first half of the 20th century...
who lived for much of her life in a cottage close to the village. Her real name was Olive Katharine Parr, and she was a direct descendant of William Parr, the brother of
CatherineCatherine Parr was the last of the six wives of Henry VIII of England. She was queen consort of England during 1543–1547, then Dowager Queen of England...
, the sixth wife of
Henry VIIIHenry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was also Lord of Ireland and claimant to the Kingdom of France. Henry was the second monarch of the House of Tudor, succeeding his father, Henry VII.Henry VIII was a significant figure in the history of the English monarchy...
.
Next to the church stands
the Church HouseThe Church House is a fine two-storey granite building in Widecombe-in-the-Moor, Devon, England, dating from 1537, which stands alongside the church, overlooking the tiny village square...
, built in 1537 for the production of church ales. It is now managed by the
National TrustThe National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
.
The
Deserted medieval villageDeserted medieval village sites are former settlements which have been abandoned for one reason or another over the years, usually leaving little but the remains of earthworks or cropmarks...
of Hutholes and the abandoned farmstead Dinna Clerks (also spelt Dinah Clark's) lie nearby.
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