Welcome to the Three Crowns, Chagford

Our History…

The Three Crowns, once an old manor house belonging to Sir John Whyddon, was described by famous clergyman and writer, Charles Kingsley, as ‘a beautiful old mullioned and gabled perpendicular inn’ and in 1952 was registered as a building of historical and architectural interest.

Built of Dartmoor granite in the thirteenth century, the Three Crowns retains a wonderful sense of history, with its great open fireplaces and fine oak beams still in their original state of preservation.

It was in the unusual stone porch that young Sidney Godolphin, aged 32, Cavalier and poet, and described as ‘one of the four wheels of Charles 1sts wain,’ was killed during a skirmish with the Roundheads in 1642. He died on one of the stone seats in the sides of the porch.

Chagford is one of four medieval Stannary towns on Dartmoor, situated high above the River Teign. The name of Chagford means ‘gorse ford’ from the old dialect word chag (gorse, broom), and the ford being that over the River Teign which is crossed by Chagford Bridge and has existed since before 1224.

Chagford had developed as a market centre for the wide moorland areas as early as the 12th Century. In 1305 it was made a Stannary town where tinners had to bring their metal for coinage. The Stannary brought prosperity to Chagford, which later became an important woollen centre. This dwindled in time and, in the early 20th century, Chagford grew again as a holiday and residential town for those who thrive on moorland air.

Sitting opposite The Three Crowns is the church of St Michael of Archangel, a fine example of a 15th Century granite church with parts dating back to the 13th Century.

If you’d like to take yourself on a guided tour, The Chagford History Society has produced a Town Trail, sponsored by the Three Crowns, that you can download here or pick up a copy from Reception.