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32-581: Clovelly ( / k l ə ˈ v ɛ l i / ) is a privately owned harbour village in the Torridge district of Devon , England. The settlement and surrounding land belongs to John Rous who inherited it from his mother in 1983. He belongs to the Hamlyn family who have managed the village since 1738. The village, which is built into the wooded sea cliffs of the north Devon shore, has a steep pedestrianised cobbled main street with traditional architecture. Due to

64-464: A fess dancettée or between three crescents argent ; Crest: A Pyramid of Bay Leaves in the form of a cone Vert . Supporters: Dexter: A Lion Argent, maned and tufted Or, gorged with a Wreath of Bay Leaves Vert . Sinister: A Sea-Horse Argent, maned and finned Or, the tail round an Anchor Azure, gorged with a Wreath of Bay Leaves Vert. The Baronetcy , of Henham in the County of Suffolk , was created in

96-580: A fishing village. The privately owned village has been associated with only three families since the middle of the 13th century. In 1738, the Clovelly Estate was acquired by the Hamlyn family. In 1901, the village had a population of 521. Clovelly's preservation owes much to Christine Hamlyn who dedicated herself to renovating and expanding the ancient cottages while beautifying the village. The village has had an RNLI lifeboat station since 1870. The boathouse cost £175 to build. Between 1899 and 1931,

128-521: A lead. The 16th century Carys of Clovelly feature in the historical novel The Grove of Eagles by Winston Graham . An 18th century chapbook entitled The History of John Gregg and his Family of Robbers and Murderers explains that "Chovaley" (i.e., Clovelly) was once the home of a tribe of fictional cannibalistic bandits. It is alleged that Gregg and his extended family of dozens were eventually tracked down by bloodhounds and were burnt alive in three fires. They were said to have lived in "a cave near

160-495: A property in Higher Clovelly on the outskirts of the village in 1989. Ackland lived there until his death in 2023; Rosemary died in 2002 and is buried in the grounds of their home. Ackland appeared in promotional videos for the town and spoke often of his love of and connection to Clovelly. In 1973 the film Malachi's Cove was shot largely at Clovelly. Clovelly is twinned with: Torridge District Torridge

192-527: Is Lieutenant General Sir William Rous . The seat of the Rous family from the early 14th century was Dennington Hall, Woodbridge (near Stradbroke) in Suffolk, in 2015, the residence of Robert Charles Rous, a grandson of the 3rd Earl. The family seat of Henham Hall , near Blythburgh , Suffolk , was demolished in 1953 by the 4th Earl, but the 6th Earl still owns the 4,200 acre park. The arms of Rous are Sable,

224-498: Is a local government district in north-west Devon , England. Its council is based in the town of Bideford . The district also includes the towns of Great Torrington , Holsworthy and Northam , along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. The island of Lundy forms part of the district. The district is named after the River Torridge . The district's coast is recognised for its natural beauty, forming part of

256-783: Is a member of NAVCA, the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action, being largely funded by Devon County Council and Torridge District Council. Earl of Stradbroke Earl of Stradbroke , in the County of Suffolk , is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom . It was created in 1821 for John Rous, 1st Baron Rous , who had earlier represented Suffolk in the House of Commons . He had already succeeded his father as 6th Rous Baronet (of Henham) in 1771 and been created Baron Rous , of Dennington in

288-576: Is also described by Charles Dickens in " A Message from the Sea " and was painted by Rex Whistler , whose cameos of the village were used on a china service by Josiah Wedgwood . In Susan Coolidge 's In the High Valley (1890), part of the Katy series , a walk into Clovelly is described: ...–surely a more extraordinary thing in the way of a street does not exist in the known world. The little village

320-499: Is built on the sides of a crack in a tremendous cliff; the "street" is merely the bottom of the crack, into which the ingenuity of man has fitted a few stones, set slant-wise, with intersecting ridges on which the foot can catch as it goes slipping hopelessly down. Clovelly is mentioned in passing by Rudyard Kipling in Stalky & Co. as being located to the west of the boys' academy. Actor Joss Ackland and his wife Rosemary bought

352-423: Is not accessible by motor vehicles. The lack of vehicular access to the main street has led to deliveries being made by sledge. This is not done as a tourist attraction, but as a matter of practicality. Goods are delivered by being pulled down on a sledge from the upper car park, and refuse is collected by being pulled down the hill to a vehicle at the harbour. The village is served by Stagecoach bus service 319;

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384-600: The Baronetage of England in 1660 for John Rous . He sat as Member of Parliament for Dunwich and Eye . His son, the second Baronet, represented Dunwich and Suffolk in Parliament. On his death the title passed to his son, the third Baronet. He was Member of Parliament for Dunwich. His nephew, the fifth Baronet, represented Suffolk in the House of Commons. He was succeeded by his son, the aforementioned sixth Baronet, who

416-497: The County of Suffolk , in the Peerage of Great Britain in 1796, and was made Viscount Dunwich , in the County of Suffolk, at the same time he was given the earldom. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Earl who notably served as Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk . Admiral Henry John Rous , was the second son of the first Earl. The third Earl was Governor of Victoria from 1920 to 1926 as well as Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk. He

448-568: The National Gallery of Ireland , Dublin . The novelist Charles Kingsley lived here as a child from 1831 to 1836, while his father, Rev. Charles Kingsley, served first as senior curate then as rector . Later, in 1855, his novel Westward Ho! did much to stimulate interest in Clovelly and to boost its tourist trade. On Sunday, 28 October 1838 twelve fishing vessels with a total of twenty-six men on board left Clovelly Harbour for

480-566: The North Devon Coast , an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty . The South West Coast Path runs through the area. The neighbouring districts are North Devon , Mid Devon , West Devon and Cornwall . The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 . The new district covered the area of six former districts, which were all abolished at the same time, plus Lundy Island: The new district

512-518: The "Independent Group", two sit with the Greens as the "Green Independents", and the other two do not belong to a group. The next election is due in 2027. Council meetings are usually held at Bideford Town Hall , which had been built in 1851 for the old Bideford Corporation. The council's main offices are at Riverbank House in Bideford, which had been built c.  1982 as the headquarters of

544-639: The 2011 census, the parish population was 443, a decrease of 50 on the 2001 census. The island of Lundy is part of the electoral ward of Clovelly Bay. The area has had human habitation since the Iron Age as there is a hillfort at Windbury Head northwest of the village. Following the Norman conquest of England in 1066, the Manor of Clovelly was acquired by William the Conqueror from its Saxon tenant. It

576-505: The Western Counties Building Society, before being bought by Torridge District Council in 1988. Since the last boundary changes in 2019, the council has comprised 36 councillors representing 16 wards , with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. Most of Torridge is covered by civil parishes . The exception is Lundy, which is an unparished area . Some of

608-627: The buildings in the village and is responsible for maintaining the village and preserving its character. The company is led by John Rous, a descendant of the Hamlyn family who lives at Clovelly Court . John Rous is the only son of Keith Rous, the 5th Earl of Stradbroke , by his second marriage, to Mary Asquith, granddaughter of former prime minister H. H. Asquith . As of 2021, Clovelly included approximately "80 cottages, two chapels, two hotels", woodlands and about 2000 acres of farmland. The village encourages tourism and has been financially successful in that endeavour as of 2019. The village main street

640-525: The coasts of the United Kingdom, while engaged in their lawful occupations; and also to render necessary assistance to such mariners, soldiers, or other poor persons as suffer shipwreck upon the said coasts. Local resident Joseph Harvey Jewell and his wife Mary Ann Jewell were two of only ten passengers to survive the wreck of the General Grant in 1866. The charity is active supporting the seafaring community suffering hardship and distress. Clovelly

672-487: The council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: The leaders of the council since 2004 have been: Following the 2023 election and a by-election in May 2024, the composition of the council was: Of the sixteen independent councillors, twelve form

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704-590: The fishing grounds. Only one vessel and its crew ever returned after a ferocious storm in the Bristol Channel . This event led to the founding of the Shipwrecked Mariners' Society early the following year with the object of: giving relief and assistance to the widows and orphans of fishermen; and of mariners, members of the Society, who lose their lives by storms and shipwreck on any part of

736-410: The gradients, donkeys (now mostly replaced with sledges) have been used to move goods and cargo from Clovelly Bay. Visitors to the village entering via the visitor centre are required to pay an entrance fee which covers parking, entrance to two museums, Clovelly Court gardens, and an audiovisual history guide. The village is a tourist destination and is host to an annual Lobster and Crab festival. At

768-488: The late 16th century, when the squire , George Cary had the stone breakwater erected creating a harbour. This provided the only safe haven for ships along this stretch of the Devon coast between Appledore and Boscastle . He also erected fish cellars and warehouses at the cliff base and cottages along the banks of the stream that provided the only route to the shore from the plateau above. Cary spent £2,000 turning Clovelly into

800-497: The lifeboat saved 158 lives. In 1988, the RNLI closed the station. In response, the villagers operated their own rescue service. In 1998 the RNLI reopened the station. An Atlantic 85-class lifeboat was installed in 2014. It was named in honour of Toby Rundle, an Oxford student who took his own life in 2010. Almost all the terraced buildings along the village's cobbled street are architecturally listed . More than 50 out of 71 are on

832-508: The main street itself. Only seven buildings are not listed. The village's only Grade I listed building is the Church of All Saints, parts of All Saints' Church might still have some late Norman . Although its listing summary states, "Virtually all C15 and early C16, restored in 1843 and again in 1884". The Grade II* buildings are numbers 16, and 45–47, 53–54 (53 has the house name Crazy Kate's ), and 59–61. The Clovelly Estate Company owns all of

864-400: The route includes Barnstaple , Bideford and Hartland . The South West Coast Path National Trail runs from the top of the village. From 2023, a per-person fee was instigated for entry into the village, including the gardens of Clovelly Court and car parking, to fund maintenance of the village. Adult entry costs £9.50 and child entry is £5.50. Children under 7 are free. Dogs must be kept on

896-564: The sea-side" and had committed some 1,000 murders. Writer Daniel Codd observes that a stretch of Clovelly Bay is called "the Devil's Kitchen"—"an apt name indeed if there is any truth in the ghoulish story of the Gregg family". The surgeon Campbell De Morgan (1811–1876), who first speculated that cancer arose locally and then spread more widely in the body, was born here. J. M. W. Turner 's painting of Clovelly Harbour from around 1822 hangs in

928-760: The smaller parishes have a parish meeting rather than a parish council. The parish councils for Bideford, Great Torrington, Holsworthy and Northam take the style "town council". Torridge CVS is a charitable organisation providing vulnerable people across the Torridge district with day-to-day living assistance. It provides advice, befriending schemes, support for carers, help to older people and help with charitable fund-raising, liaising with voluntary and community groups where necessary. It offers placements for individuals who want to get more involved in their local communities and relies on local volunteers, with over 2000 volunteers registered. It has been in operation since 1988 and

960-651: Was listed in the Domesday Book as "Clovelie". William would make a gift of the village to his wife Matilda of Flanders . In the late 14th century, during the reign of Richard II , the Manor of Clovelly was bought by the judge Sir John Cary . The Church of All Saints contains several monuments to the Cary family , who remained the Lords of the Manor for another 400 years. The village remained an agricultural parish until

992-401: Was named after the River Torridge which flows through the area. Torridge District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Devon County Council . Most of the district is also covered by civil parishes , which form a third tier of local government. The council has been under no overall control since the 2023 election . The first election to

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1024-498: Was succeeded by his eldest son, the fourth Earl, who also served as Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk. As of 2019 , the titles are held by the latter's nephew, the sixth Earl, who succeeded his father the 5th Earl in 1983 and until 2016 lived at Mt Fyan's Station, Dundonnell, Victoria, Australia, a 5,900 hectare (14,580 acre) ranch which he purchased in 1989 and sold in 2016 for $ Aus 34 million (£19 million). Lord Stradbroke has been married twice and has thirteen children. His younger brother

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