Cockington

Cockington
Cockington
Cockington shown within Devon
Population 10,636 (ward2011)[1]
OS grid reference SX8963
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Torquay
Postcode district TQ2
Dialling code 01803
Police Devon and Cornwall
Fire Devon and Somerset
Ambulance South Western
EU Parliament South West England
UK Parliament

Cockington is a village in Torquay in the English county of Devon. It has old cottages within its boundaries, and is about a half a mile away from Torquay.

History

Cockington
Cockington Village, ca. 1890 - 1900.

The village was probably founded 2,500 years ago during the Iron Age with evidence of two hill forts on either side of Cockington valley. Little is known about Cockington from that point up until the remains of a small Saxon village were found near the Drum Inn. The evidence from this village shows that it was primarily a fishing and farming village. The first official documentation of the village was in the 10th century. The manor was owned by Alric the Saxon, before William Hostiarus, William de Falesia and Robert FitzMartin, who passed it down to his son Roger, who renounced his name to become Roger de Cockington. The Cockington family owned Cockington Estate from 1048–1348. The Cary family (this particular branch included George Carey (c. 1541–1616)) owned the court from 1375 to 1654. It was then sold to the Mallock family a family of rich silversmiths from Exeter, who owned it from 1654 to 1932 when they sold the estate to the Torquay Corporation.[2]

Buildings

There are several buildings of note in Cockington.

Cricket Pavilion and grounds

The cricket field during a match at full swing.

The park which is now home to the cricket grounds was originally a medieval deer park. Cricket started to be played on it in 1947. The current cricket pavilion was built after the original burnt down ten years ago.

Drum Inn

The Drum Inn is the local pub/restaurant in Cockington. Designed by Edwin Lutyens, it opened in 1936 to replace the old ale-house.

The Almshouses

The Almshouses consist of seven terraced cottages built during the reign of King James I of England by the Cary family to house the poor and those who could not work within the village. When the Mallock family took over the Cockington estate, the almshouses fell into disrepair. They were rebuilt between 1790 and 1810.

Cockington Court

The Court[3] was the mansion house of the Mallock family, and remains the focal point of the estate. Originally built in the 16th century, it has few architectural features remaining from then, but was altered and extended several times, particularly in 1673 by Rawlyn Mallock and about 1820 by the Rev'd Roger Mallock. He had the top floor removed and the interior remodelled. Its historical significance merits great care in maintaining its existing fabric and in ensuring new elements are sympathetically designed.[4]

Cockington Court Craft Centre

Cockington Court was built over the remains of a medieval court. A far cry from the days of the Cary family when it was an actual court, it is now filled with various arts and crafts workshops.[5][6]

In her youth, Agatha Christie regularly visited Cockington. Her novel Why Didn't They Ask Evans? is dedicated to Christopher Mallock. The Mallock family were friends of Christie's from the years before her first marriage. The Mallocks staged amateur theatricals at Cockington Court, in which Christie, managing to overcome her usual crippling shyness, took part.[7][8]

Other notable buildings

  • Cockington Church which has been estimated to have been standing since 1069 [9] built by William de Falaise. [10]
  • A water mill that is in the middle of the village;
  • Cockington Forge, which has been in the same place in the village for 500 years.

Notable residents

Chronologer Robert Cary was born in Cockington in about 1615.[11] Robert Sweet (1782-1835), horticulturalist and author, was also born in the village.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Torbay ward 2011". Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  2. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
  3. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-07-19. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
  4. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-07-19. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
  5. ↑ Cockington Court Craft Centre
  6. ↑ Cockington Court Centre for Arts, Crafts and Culture
  7. ↑ Cockington Court history
  8. ↑ The Manor House
  9. ↑ https://toplocalplaces.com/united-kingdom/torquay/church/cockington-parish-churches/187058691318449
  10. ↑ https://toplocalplaces.com/united-kingdom/torquay/church/cockington-parish-churches/187058691318449
  11. ↑ Hutton, Charles (1815). A philosophical and mathematical dictionary containing... memoirs of the lives and writings of the most eminent authors, Volume 1. Charles Hutton. p. 278.
  12. ↑ Blewitt, Octavian (1832). The panorama of Torquay: a descriptive and historical sketch of the district comprised between the Dart and Teign. Simkin. pp. 270, 274.
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