GREENWAY
the river from amongst a grove of trees on the east side of the river opposite Dittisham, is in itself stunning. In reality, though, it is the reputation of one of its recent owners that draws fans to the honey pot. agatha christie continues to cast her spell over mystery lovers the world over. however, Greenway is more than just the holiday home of the world’s most popular mystery writer. It has been in existence for more than five hundred years, firstly as a route for travellers going to and from Torbay across the Dart to Dittisham. The first Tudor mansion was built when a family from
GREENWAY E
compton castle took it on: the Gilberts. Brothers John and humphrey made a name for themselves working for the Queen elizabeth I. John was admiral of Devon when the armada sailed up the channel bent on england’s destruction. When weather and clever seamanship left the spanish fleet in tatters, he brought the crew of a spanish ship into the harbour and set them to work, to build terraces in Greenway’s gardens. sir humphrey was not so lucky, though he came close
to greatness. after years in loyal service to the Queen, fighting at sea, in Ireland and the netherlands, he received a potentially rich reward: a licence to form the very first english colony abroad. elizabeth signed an instruction that he could go to foreign lands and, if not already ruled by a christian king, take them in the name of the crown. It has been called the magna carta of Greater Britannia, or the first step towards the British empire.
By Phil Scoble
A house prized by the famous, enjoyed by millions and steeped in national and local history and culture
very year hundreds of thousands of visitors come to the river Dart often for one reason: Greenway. This beautiful Georgian house, looking down on
If all had gone to plan, sir humphrey would have been a national hero and today would be as well known as his half brother sir Walter ralegh (15 years his junior, who visited the estate often during his life, when he famously smoked a pipe in the boathouse, which still stands to this day). But alas, that was not sir humphrey’s fate. he was fascinated by the myth of the north West
passage, a route around the north of the americas to the pacific, avoiding the annoyingly distant and treacherous route round cape horn. so he went north. Or rather he tried to, as his first expedition failed rather spectacularly in 1578. he barely made it into the atlantic, let alone around the north of the continent. Five years later he tried again and was rather more successful. he reached north america and claimed newfoundland for the Queen and even convinced some fishermen to pay taxes to the crown on the fish they were catching. he then turned for home and chose to stay aboard the smallest ship in his fleet, which weighed in at just ten tonnes.
It was not a wise choice. The fleet ran into high seas in the atlantic and the little boat was sunk. sir humphrey was last sighted sitting on deck, reading a book, supposedly to calm his crew’s nerves. his last recorded words were “We are as near heaven by sea as by land”. In 1700 the Gilberts sold up to the roopes, one of the new breed of successful business dynasties in Dartmouth, who had built their wealth on the triangular trade between Dartmouth, sir humphrey’s newfoundland and the mediterranean. They were
Picture by permission of the National Trust © Mark Passmore/
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