England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Milton Abbot St Constantine & St Aegidius

The Parish

The parish of Milton Abbot lies in the extreme west of Devon forming a stretch of the county's border, here formed by the deeply incised and meandering River Tamar, with neighbouring Cornwall. Milton Abbot is located roughly 6 miles northwest of the market town of Tavistock and sits upon the B3362 road which heads from the A390 (Tavistock to Liskeard) road to  the A388 road (Launceston to Plymouth). Milton Abbot is a small and compact village with most properties lining the B3362 or one of its side roads, the wider parish is a typical west Devon scene of rolling hills and pastures dotted with farmsteads and cottages all sunken into steep sided and narrow lanes. Pastoral farming dominated the local economy, Devon butter being renowned for its richness and quality, and today the trade still dominates local life. A small, steeply sided valley to Milton Abbot's southeast golds the stream which drains the parish southwards to meet the Tamar which continues its winding course southwards to meet the English Channel to the west of Plymouth, passing under the iconic Tamar bridge as it does so. Milton Abbot is sited at around 160 metres above the sea with land continuing to rise to its northeast to top out at 286 metres just before one reaches Ramsdown Cross in markedly undulating countryside. Milton Abbot parish was rather extensive at over 6,600 acres within which it would have supported a population of around 1,250 parishioners. In Domesday times Milton Abbot was an important holding of Tavistock Abbey holding an impressive 20 ploughs, a small patch of woodland and the extensive pastures that characterise the area today, a somewhat sobering statistic recorded was that the Abbey held 15 slaves to work this holding, a true reflection of their Christian kindness.

The Church

St Constantine & St Aegidius' church stands at the heart of Milton Abbot, in the junction between the B3362, here named The Vig, and Venn Hill and on the southern side of the B-road. The church is mostly a work of the late medieval period and is almost entirely built in the Perpendicular style of that era. Began, perhaps, in the 14th century the majority of the church's fabric dates from the 15th century and utilised the local granite, mainly cut into hard ashlar blocks. The earlier 14th century work remains solely in the doorway where the deep moulding and hood-mould may be 14th century work. Everything points to the church being completed in a single campaign starting around c1480 and running onwards for perhaps 50 or more years. The church certainly received a typical Victorian restoration, the chancel arch is 19th century as its roof and many windows, but Pevsner declines to give a precise date in this instance, a clue lies in a window of that era commemorating Robert Stephen Jago who died in 1866. The Vig is sufficiently broad as to be well-used for locals parking allowing an extended visit. The churchyard has a low and fairly recent wall with a lychgate at the eastern end by the junction for entry, the churchyard is open and uncluttered with no obstacles to restrict the photographer.