| Kingsbridge | |
|---|---|
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.svg) Coat of Arms of Kingsbridge | |
  Kingsbridge Location withinDevon | |
| Population | 6,116 (2011 census) |
| OS grid reference | SX7344 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | KINGSBRIDGE |
| Postcode district | TQ7 |
| Police | Devon and Cornwall |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| 50°17′00″N3°46′35″W / 50.2833°N 3.7765°W /50.2833; -3.7765 | |
Kingsbridge is a market town in theSouth Hams district ofDevon,England, with a population of 6,116 at the2011 census.[2] Twoelectoral wards bear the name ofKingsbridge (East & North). Their combined population at the above census was 4,381.[3][4] It is situated at the northern end of theKingsbridge Estuary, aria that extends to the sea six miles (10 km) south of the town. It is the third largest settlement in the South Hams and is 17 miles (27 km) southwest ofTorquay and 17 miles (27 km) southeast ofPlymouth.
The town formed around a bridge which was built in or before the 10th century between the royal estates ofAlvington, to the west, andChillington, to the east, hence giving it the name of Kyngysbrygge ("King's bridge"). In 1219[5][6] the Abbot ofBuckfast was granted the right to hold a market there, and by 1238 the settlement had become aborough.[5] The manor remained in possession of the abbot until theDissolution of the Monasteries, when it was granted to Sir William Petre. Kingsbridge was never represented in Parliament or incorporated by charter, the local government being by aportreeve. It lay within thehundred of Stanborough.[7]
Kingsbridge is in fact a combination of two towns, Kingsbridge andDodbrooke. Dodbrooke was granted its own market in 1257 and had become a borough by 1319. While Dodbrooke was originally considered to be the dominant of the two, Kingsbridge later expanded to include it. The town consists of two ecclesiasticalparishes:St. Edmund's in the west and St.Thomas Becket at Dodbrooke in the east. St. Edmund's Church, in mainlyPerpendicular style, retains some 13th-century features including afont, but was enlarged and reconsecrated around 1414 and was mostly rebuilt in the 19th century. The parish church of St. Thomas Becket displays a particularly well-preservedrood screen, restored in 1897.
In 1798 the town mills were converted into a woollen manufactory, which produced large quantities of cloth, andserge manufacture was introduced early in the 19th century. During the 19th century the town had an active coastal shipping trade, shipbuilding, a tannery, other industries and a large monthly cattle market. The chief exports were cider, corn, malt, and slate.[7]
Kingsbridge was used byAnthony Trollope as the setting for his novelRachel Ray (1863)[8] and by Rachel Joyce as the setting for her 2012 novelThe Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. In October 2021 Embankment Films started filming in Kingsbridge for the big screen version ofThe Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, starring Jim Broadbent, Penelope Wilton, Monika Gossmann and Bethan Cullinane. The film was released in April 2023.
The town centre retains many 18th and 19th century buildings. The Shambles, or market arcade, was rebuilt in 1796 but retains its 16th century granite piers. The former grammar school, now a museum, was founded and built by Thomas Crispin in 1670.[5]
Kingsbridge has been the main market town in the area for centuries. Being situated within theSouth Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and with its proximity to the south Devon coast and sailing venues such asSalcombe, the town has developed into a popular tourist destination. Its attractions include several restaurants, pubs, a cinema housed in the oldKingsbridge Town Hall building, and a museum devoted to the chemistWilliam Cookworthy who was born in the town in 1705.[9]
There are twosupermarkets in Kingsbridge: aMorrisons and aTesco Store, which opened in 2010. It also has a large secondary school,Kingsbridge Community College, which has over 1,000 pupils and serves the surrounding area. Kingsbridge was home to "the only nightclub in the South Hams",Coast (which has since closed), with the next nearest club being inTorquay.[10]
The town is linked toPlymouth andDartmouth by theA379 road, and toSalcombe andTotnes by theA381. For seventy years it had a railway station until thebranch line, viaSouth Brent, was closed in 1963 as part of theBeeching cuts. An industrial estate now occupies the site of the former station yard, but a railway bridge and a short section of overgrown embankment can still be seen.
Kingsbridge has its ownParish Council with an elected TownMayor.[11]
A twinning arrangement withIsigny-sur-Mer inNormandy, France, ended in 2019 after 58 years.[12]
A song titled "Farewell to Kingsbridge" was collected bySabine Baring-Gould at Lydford, Devon. It belongs to the years 1778–80 when soldiers stationed here had to depart for North America.[13]
Neighbouring areas | |
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Kingsbridge".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 815. (Some text may have been edited).
