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Dartmouth Castle
Dartmouth Castle is one of a pair of forts (the other being Kingswear Castle) that guard the mouth of the Dart Estuary. Dating back to 1388 the present Guntower is the earliest surviving English coastal fortress specifically built to carry guns.
During the Civil War it was held by the Royalists for 3 years before it was attacked and taken by Sir Thomas Fairfax for the Parliamentarians in 1646. It remained in military use throughout the First and Second World Wars, overlooking the D-Day preparations in the latter.
St Petroc's Church is immediately adjacent to the Castle. Dartmouth Castle is now in the ownership of English Heritage.
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Britannia Royal Naval College
Naval Officers have been trained at Dartmouth since 1863 when the wooden hulk HMS Britannia was moved from Portland and moored in the River Dart. The present building dates from 1905.
Naval Cadets originally joined RN College Osborne, at the age of 13 for two years before joining Dartmouth, with four years here before starting sea training at 17.
Today most cadets join after finishing university, although some still join directly from school, spending between 28 and 49 weeks at the college, depending on specialisation.
Following the closure of the RN College Greenwich, in 1998, BRNC is now the only naval college in the United Kingdom.
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Agatha Christie
Greenaway is the name of the sprawling mansion that was Agatha Christie?s summer home in Devon. The beautiful gardens bordering the river have been open to the public for many years, but the house has only recently been restored by the National Trust and opened its doors in 2009.
The house pictured above was built in 1792, replacing an earlier Tudor mansion on the site. Agatha Christie arrived in 1938. She published over 200 books in her time, including the famous Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries.
Access is tricky along a narrow lane through the village or you can catch a vintage bus from Torquay or Paignton.