Bratton Clovelly is a village, parish and former manor in the west part of

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

, England. It is situated about south-west of

Okehampton Okehampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in West Devon in the English county of Devon. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor, and had a population of 5,922 at the 2011 census. Two electoral wards are based in the town (east and west) ...

immediately north of the

A30 road The A30 is a major road in England, running WSW from London to Land's End. The road has been a principal axis in Britain from the 17th century to early 19th century, as a major coaching route. It used to provide the fastest route from Lond ...

. The manor of Bratton Clovelly was listed in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...

of 1086. The parish church dedicated to St Mary is 15th-century, with many

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

features. The former village stocks are kept in the belfry. The parish is thought to have been the birthplace of influential 13th-century jurist

Henry de Bracton Henry of Bracton, also Henry de Bracton, also Henricus Bracton, or Henry Bratton also Henry Bretton (c. 1210 – c. 1268) was an English cleric and jurist. He is famous now for his writings on law, particularly ''De legibus et consuetudinibus ...

; however, this claim is also made for at least two other places.

Pack Horse Trail

The village lies on one of the oldest Pack Horse Trails between Devon and Cornwall. The trail followed a ridge linking

(Devon) to Launceston (Cornwall), both having fortifications in the form of Norman Castles. Bratton Clovelly lies midway between these centres hence affording a high ground resting point for travellers and traders.

Historic estates

Burnby

The estate of Burnby (''alias'' Burneby, Burnaby, Bunbury, etc.) is not listed in the

of 1086 but in 1810 "Bunbury" was described as "the principal estate in the parish", and was then the property of John Hawkes of

. It had long been the seat of the Burnby family, as stated by

Risdon Risdon is a surname and also a first name, and may refer to: ; Given name * Risdon Beazley (1904–1979), British businessman ; Surname * Dustin Risdon (born 1981), Canadian professional golfer * Elisabeth Risdon (1887–1958) English film act ...

(d.1640):
:''Burnby hath been the dwelling of the Burnbeys many generations, a name extracted even from the line of the English-Saxon nation and continueth the inheritance of that name to this day, who are allied to worshipful families''. Vestiges of the Burnby family survive in St Mary's Church, in the form of fragments of 15th century heraldic glass now in the vestry but originally in the window of a former chapel at the east end of the south aisle, of which chapel the

piscina A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. For Roman Ca ...

survives. The glass was removed from the south-east window by Rector Birdwood (in office 1816-46) and replaced in the east window and was moved again in 1886 to the vestry. Beneath the choir stalls is the

ledger stone A ledger stone or ledgerstone is an inscribed stone slab usually laid into the floor of a church to commemorate or mark the place of the burial of an important deceased person. The term "ledger" derives from the Middle English words ''lygger'', ' ...

of Thomas Burneby and under the

lectern A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon. A lectern is usually attached to a stand or affixed to some other form of support. ...

is the ledger stone of Richard Burnby 1603. Kelly's Directory of 1893 states a descendant of this family to have been the swashbuckling "Col.

Fred Burnaby Colonel Frederick Gustavus Burnaby (3 March 1842 – 17 January 1885) was a British Army intelligence officer. Burnaby's adventurous spirit, pioneering achievements, and swashbuckling courage earned an affection in the minds of Victorian imper ...

, RHG, killed in the Sudan", at the

Battle of Abu Klea The Battle of Abu Klea, or the Battle of Abu Tulayh took place between the dates of 16 and 18 January 1885, at Abu Klea, Sudan, between the British Desert Column and Mahdist forces encamped near Abu Klea. The Desert Column, a force of approxim ...

. The pedigree of "Burnby of Burnby" is included in the

Heraldic Visitation Heraldic visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms (or alternatively by heralds, or junior officers of arms, acting as their deputies) throughout England, Wales and Ireland. Their purpose was to register and regulate the ...

s of Devon. Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) ''The Visitations of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620'', Exeter, 1895, p. 119, pedigree of "Burnby of Burnby"

References

External links

* * www.brattonclovelly.co.uk/ Bratton Clovelly website
Bratton Clovelly at GENUKI
{{Devon parishes Villages in the Borough of West Devon