The Manor of Ashton (anciently ''Asseriston'', ''Ashriston'', etc.) was a historic manor in Devonshire, England, of which the

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

was called Ashton House (or Ashton Place), in the parish of Ashton, situated about 6 miles south-west of

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

, on the western slopes of the

Haldon Hills The Haldon Hills, usually known simply as Haldon, is a ridge of high ground in Devon, England. It is situated between the River Exe and the River Teign and runs northwards from Teignmouth, on the coast, for about until it dwindles away north ...

. It was long the seat of the Chudleigh family, from about 1320 to 1745, which originated at the manor of

Chudleigh Chudleigh () is an ancient wool town located within the Teignbridge District Council area of Devon, England between Newton Abbot and Exeter. The electoral ward with the same name had a population of 6,125 at the 2011 census. Geography Chudl ...

, 3 miles south of Ashton, and for which was created the Chudleigh baronetcy in 1622. It was abandoned by

Sir George Chudleigh, 4th Baronet ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

(died 1738) who in 1735 built himself nearby a grand mansion named

Haldon House Haldon House (pronounced: "Hol-don") on the eastern side of the Haldon Hills in the parishes of Dunchideock and Kenn, near Exeter in Devon, England, was a large Georgian country house largely demolished in the 1920s. The surviving north wing ...

, on the east side of the

, influenced by Buckingham House in London, and moved his residence there. Ashton House was an abandoned ruin when painted in 1794 by Rev.

John Swete Rev. John Swete (born John Tripe) (baptised 13 August 1752 – 25 October 1821) of Oxton House, Kenton in Devon, was a clergyman, landowner, artist, antiquary, historian and topographer and author of the ''Picturesque Sketches of Devon'' consi ...

(d.1821), but part of the former mansion survives as a

grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

farmhouse now known as "Place Barton", formerly "Lower Barton", at Higher Ashton (in which hamlet is situated the parish church of St John the Baptist), not to be confused with the present house known as "Higher Barton" also at Higher Ashton (the hamlet of "Lower Ashton" being situated a few hundred yards to the west). Place Barton was purchased in 1997 by John Birkin, a director of television advertisements and his wife Emma, a television producer, and much restoration work has been undertaken, including the building of a new thatched roof for the "Great Barn", as of 2020 hired out as a wedding venue.

References

{{Reflist ;Sources * Pole, Sir William (d.1635), Collections Towards a Description of the County of Devon, Sir John-William de la Pole (ed.), London, 1791, p. 255, * Risdon, Tristram (d.1640), Survey of Devon, 1811 edition, London, 1811, with 1810 Additions, p. 131-2 * Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitations of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895, pp. 189–90, pedigree of ''Chudleigh of Ashton'' Ashton