About Dartmouth

A little town clinging to the size of a steep hill, Dartmouth is where one of the loveliest rivers in England, the River Dart, enters the sea. This historic Devon town is filled with narrow winding streets and is home to many fine shops, restaurants and stylish galleries.

The river Dart starts its life in the great central bogs of Dartmoor and from there it flows some 46 miles before reaching the port of Dartmouth. The Dart was called the "English Rhine" by Queen Victoria, and the river, together with its tributaries serves to drain much of the moorland. Much of the coastline round the Dart estuary is now in the hands of the National Trust and, as well as being a valuable nesting area for seabirds, it also contains some ancient oak woodland and the remains of lime kilns that can be spotted from the banks of the estuary.

For many centuries, Dartmouth was one of England's main ports, a strategic base with a long connection with the Royal Navy. Dartmouth has featured in many historical events:

• Alfred the Great developed Dartmouth as a strategic base
• in the 12th century Crusaders on both the second and third Crusades gathered in Dartmouth before setting sail
• Geoffrey Chaucer visited Dartmouth in 1373 (he was Inspector of customs). He is thought to have modelled the Shipman in his Canterbury Tales on the then Mayor of Dartmouth, John Hawley. Hawley, an enterprising merchant seafarer, was responsible for building the first Dartmouth Castle - the dramatically situated fortress that guards the entrance to the Dart estuary. However the building that remains today is one that was erected by Edward IV after the War of the Roses.
• In the shelter of Devon's Dartmouth harbour Queen Elizabeth 1's warships lay in wait to see off the Spanish Armada
• Over the centuries countless casks of French and Spanish wine have been offloaded onto the Dartmouth quayside
• In 1620, the Mayflower put in at Dartmouth for a few days for repairs before hoisting sail on August 20 for Plymouth. From there the pilgrims set off on their three month voyage to the New World

Dartmouth harbour is still busy with naval vessels as well as pleasure boats, visiting yachts and ferries. As a Devon holiday destination Dartmouth is particularly colourful during the June Carnival and the Dartmouth Royal Regatta in late August. No trip to dartmouth would be complete without a trip on the Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway or a river boat trip from Dartmouth all the way up to Totnes and back.