Dartmouth
Our first port of call, on this circumnavigation of the British Isles, was picturesque Dartmouth harbor, splendidly situated in the deep and narrow estuary of the River Dart on the Devon coast of England. The town has a proud naval history, reaching back from D-Day to the Pilgrim Fathers. The Mayflower and the Speedwell departed for America from Bayard’s Quay in the center of the town, later calling at Plymouth en route. Francis Drake, Walter Raleigh and John Davis were each associated with the town that in Tudor times was heavily defended against possible attack from the Catholic powers of Europe.
By the sixteenth century, Britain had established itself as a power to be reckoned with. It did so in the cause of Protestantism. Our visits to the churches of St Saviour’s in the town center and to the even earlier foundation of St Petrox’s at Castle Point helped to illuminate the rich religious history of the locality. St Petrox was a Celtic saint who brought Christianity to this place as early as AD594. After the break with Rome in the 1530s, St Saviour’s was fortunate indeed to retain its remarkable fifteenth century rood screen. The pulpit decorations, also fifteenth century, which unite the emblems of the four nations that make up the United Kingdom, colorfully summarized the object of our voyage.
We had been greeted in the morning by the ample voice and frame of the town crier. Never one to miss a good dinner, he readily accepted an invitation to dine with us aboard the M/S Endeavour in the evening, in the company of the town’s mayor. Moored in the middle of the River Dart, with fine views of the Royal Naval College and the delightful ensemble of mediaeval vernacular architecture visible through the windows of the dining room, we relaxed and reflected on a day full of charm and historical interest.
Our first port of call, on this circumnavigation of the British Isles, was picturesque Dartmouth harbor, splendidly situated in the deep and narrow estuary of the River Dart on the Devon coast of England. The town has a proud naval history, reaching back from D-Day to the Pilgrim Fathers. The Mayflower and the Speedwell departed for America from Bayard’s Quay in the center of the town, later calling at Plymouth en route. Francis Drake, Walter Raleigh and John Davis were each associated with the town that in Tudor times was heavily defended against possible attack from the Catholic powers of Europe.
By the sixteenth century, Britain had established itself as a power to be reckoned with. It did so in the cause of Protestantism. Our visits to the churches of St Saviour’s in the town center and to the even earlier foundation of St Petrox’s at Castle Point helped to illuminate the rich religious history of the locality. St Petrox was a Celtic saint who brought Christianity to this place as early as AD594. After the break with Rome in the 1530s, St Saviour’s was fortunate indeed to retain its remarkable fifteenth century rood screen. The pulpit decorations, also fifteenth century, which unite the emblems of the four nations that make up the United Kingdom, colorfully summarized the object of our voyage.
We had been greeted in the morning by the ample voice and frame of the town crier. Never one to miss a good dinner, he readily accepted an invitation to dine with us aboard the M/S Endeavour in the evening, in the company of the town’s mayor. Moored in the middle of the River Dart, with fine views of the Royal Naval College and the delightful ensemble of mediaeval vernacular architecture visible through the windows of the dining room, we relaxed and reflected on a day full of charm and historical interest.
