England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Stoke Fleming St Peter

The Parish

The parish of Stoke Fleming lies in the extreme south of Devon forming a stretch of its English Channel coastline. Stoke Fleming is located about 3 miles south of the port of Dartmouth and sits on the A379 road which connects Dartmouth with Kingsbridge. Stoke Fleming is something of a long strip of properties lining the A379 from the church, at the southern, coastal, end of the village through to more modern development further north and covering over a half mile in extent. Whilst a coastal settlement Stoke Fleming had no usable beach, the coast here being formed by high cliffs and sandy and largely inaccessible coves, a recipe for the notorious smuggling operations of storybook reknown. Instead Stoke Fleming looked to the land where the thin soils were largely used for arable agriculture. Today Stoke Fleming earns much of its income from tourism, a base for holiday lets, as well as trade generated from nearby Blackpool Beach (not the famous northern tourist bastion) and the passing trade from the South West Coast Path National Trail which passes through the village. Steeply rushing streams drain into nearby Blackpool and Redlap Coves draining the parish. Stoke Fleming is sited at between 90 metres above the sea, by the church, to 130 metres at its northern end, the landscape barely rises a further 20 metres higher but is deeply incised by the local streams and strongly undulating in nature. Stoke Fleming parish was fairly typically sized for its area, covering just over 3,000 acres it would have supported a population of almost 750 parishioners. In Domesday times Stoke Fleming was a moderately sized and prosperous holding of Walter de Douai, a healthy 20 ploughs, the usual meadows and woodland and a mill were sufficient to place it amongst the largest 20% of settlements recorded in that tome.

The Church

St Peter's church, as already mentioned. sits at the southern end of the village; where the A379 performs a sharp right-angled bend Church Road heads onward uphill to the church which sits opposite the Green Dragon Inn. The church may well have had earlier form, short transepts either side of the church are speculatively implied by Pevsner to refer to an earlier layout. Today's building is, however, a product of the Perpendicular style and of the 14th century in particular. The fine western tower, a landmark within its area and also to passing shipping where it functioned as a navigation marker, is a good example of the style and echoes the similar tower at Ashburton. Like many churches there was a Victorian restoration, in this case in 1871 when both roofing and windows were renewed but major rebuilding was not required. Church Road is very narrow but opposite the Green Dragon there is room for a car to park carefully, the churchyard, surrounded by a tall wall and with metal gates for entry, is raised above road level with a rising pathway heading to the church. The wholse churchyard is devoid of major obstacles making for an easy subject for the camera.