Towns & cities · South West England
Princetown
Princetown — village in Devon, United Kingdom.
Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 3 h–6 h
- Free entry
- Family-friendly
- Dog-friendly
About
Princetown is a town, city, village or settlement in the United Kingdom. Address: PL20. Wikidata describes it as: "village in Devon, United Kingdom". Coordinates: 50.5451°, -3.9942°.
Photo gallery
From the Wikipedia article
Princetown is a village located within Dartmoor national park in the English county of Devon. It is the principal settlement of the civil parish of Dartmoor Forest. At the 2021 census, the village had a population of 1,443. The village has its origins in 1785, when Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt, then secretary to the Prince of Wales, leased a large area of moorland from the Duchy of Cornwall estate, hoping to convert it into good farmland. He encouraged people to live in the area and suggested that a prison be built there. He called the settlement Princetown after the Prince of Wales. Princetown is the site of Dartmoor Prison. At around 1,430 feet (435 m) above sea level, it is the highest settlement on the moor, and one of the highest in the United Kingdom. It is also the largest settlement located on the high moor. The Princetown Railway, closed in 1956, was also the highest railway line in England: its Princetown terminus was also 1,430 feet above sea level.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
In 1780, a farm was reclaimed on the site of an ancient tenement near the Two Bridges, and in 1785, Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt set about improving the moor at a place which he named Tor Royal (present day Tor Royal Farm), about 1 km south-east of Princetown. A small town grew up near the prison. Two large inns were built during the war – the current Prince of Wales and the former Devil's Elbow / Railway Inn (now the Ramblers' Rest Guesthouse). Many of the prisoners had prize money to come from their own country; many others made their own money in their hammocks at night, even forging Bank of England and local bank notes, which they passed off in the great daily market held in the prison. With the…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 50.5451, -3.9942
- County
- Devon
- District
- West Devon
- Parish
- Dartmoor Forest
- Postcode
- PL20
- Parliamentary constituency
- Torridge and Tavistock
Sources
- wikidata: Q1221024 (CC0)
- wikipedia: Princetown (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Princetown.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Other places nearby
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Nearby
📷 5Historic churches · South West England
Church of St Michael, Princetown
Church of St Michael, Princetown — church in Princetown, Devon, England, UK.
📷 3Memorials & monuments · South West England
Princetown War Memorial
Princetown War Memorial — Grade II listed building-listed memorial in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
📷 5Distilleries · South West England
Dartmoor Distillery
Dartmoor Distillery — Whisky/spirit distillery.
📷 5Museums · South West England
River Swincombe
River Swincombe — a museum in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
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Plume of Feathers Campsite
Plume of Feathers Campsite — a campsite in england south west.
📷 5Other places · South West England
HM Prison Dartmoor
HM Prison Dartmoor — a other in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Princetown?
- Princetown is in Devon, South-West England, United Kingdom (postcode PL20), in the parish of Dartmoor Forest.
- Is Princetown free to visit?
- Yes, Princetown is free to enter.
- How do I get to Princetown?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode PL20. It sits within the Torridge and Tavistock parliamentary constituency.