Molland, North Devon
Molland - A Unique Exmoor Village written by Mark S Asher
Of all the settlements on Exmoor, Molland must count as perhaps the most unique in the National Park. For centuries the greater part of this charming and uncluttered little village has remained in the tenure of the Throckmorton family who continue to run the estate today. Situated on the southern most boundary of Exmoor, it is best approached from the heather-clad moorland above called Molland Common; the name translates as ‘land of the bare hills’, a description that does little justice to such a wonderful landscape. Over 1000 feet up and clothed in heather it commands panoramic views right down to the brooding hills of Dartmoor. The comparative remoteness of this common - emphasised by two Bronze Age burial mounds - has created a haven for herds of native red deer and Exmoor ponies, all watched over by the ubiquitous patrol of buzzards overhead. Off the recognised tourist trail, the village of Molland is a veritable find.
Dropping down off the moor, the medieval church stands on the hill, looking proudly over the scattered buildings of Molland village. The church from the outside is little different to many other churches across Exmoor. In the porch stand the village stocks, a stark reminder of shameful days past. On entering the heavy oak door that leads into the church one is immediately struck by the individuality of the church interior. The box pews, stone arches and sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows create a beautifully serene entrance to a church with a story all of its own. With ornate and yet simple elegance, the columns of the arches disappear into the regiments of box pews, demonstrating the perfect marriage of two vastly different eras of craftsmanship. What is fascinating about the interior of this church is that it retains many original features, having largely escaped the feverish attentions of Victorian church ‘restorers’. A magnificent pulpit that must have seen some fire and brimstone sermons preached from it in days past, commands an elevated view over the ranks of Georgian box pews. According to the little parish church guide, the last salaried parish clerk who held office between 1815-66, would sit on the hinged seat by the door,watching his flock. In these times the men and women would have been segregated, occupying opposite sides of the church. The clerk was equipped with a stave with a wooden ball at one end and feathers at the other. Any man who deigned to fall asleep during a service would receive the wooden ball on his head. Sleeping ladies similarly would be tickled with the feathered end.
A Heart Box is an intriguing addition to the church. Heart boxes are commonly associated with deaths abroad, particularly those of fallen crusaders. Where it was not viable to bring an entire body back from a hot and distant country, the heart was removed and shipped home for eventual entombment. The Heart Box in Molland church is reputed to hold the hearts of Courtenay family members, a name indelibly linked to the history of the village. On one of the church walls a poignant memorial reads: ’To the memory and to record the disastrous deaths of Thomas and Sarah Pincombe and their family of six, all of whom perished by shipwreck together with 187 of their fellow passengers. The calamitous event happened on the Manacle Rocks near the St. Keverne coast of Cornwall on the night of the 3rd May 1855, within six hours after the lamented victims had left the harbour of Plymouth, as emigrants on their voyage to Quebec’. It seems that the Pincombe family were never destined to leave Molland for a new life in Cananda.
The Domesday survey of 1086 identifies two separate manors at Molland; Molland Bottreaux and Molland Champson, each under separate ownership. By 1700 the two manors had merged and shortly after the Throckmorton family began their long tenure of Molland.
Leafing through the fragile pages of White’s Devonshire Directory of 150 years ago, unearths some interesting trades that Molland once had to hand. A brace of victuallers, thatchers and millers alike, farmers, blacksmiths, carpenters, dressmakers, masons, shoemakers, shopkeepers, butchers, tailors, wheelwrights and miners. Today the victualler and the farmer remain, but many of the other village skills have disappeared. The copper and iron mines closed in the late 1870’s, and farms were deserted in the agricultural depression of the 1930’s. Sometimes the farms were rebuilt, only to be deserted again. The ruins of many a man’s labour can still be found scattered around Molland village, in the shape of ancient farmsteads and mines.
Myths, legend and lore survive in Molland to this day. The village has historically been held in the hands of Roman Catholics for centuries. Between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries Roman Catholics who did not attend the services of the Church of England or who refused to submit to authority were known as recusants. Recusants were for the most part tolerated although the Puritan regime of Cromwell later subjected their properties to raids. A tale still survives that a secret tunnel connected two of these recusant houses in the village, to escape the attentions of the raiders. Local legend also speaks of a spectral white horse haunting the narrow lane up to the house found at West Molland. The house itself maintains a baronial feel to it, highlighted by the old Courtenay coat of arms that stands over the porch entrance.
The Molland of today retains the essential qualities of village life. The London Inn was as the name suggests on the coaching route to London. At one time the place would have been full of begrimed miners, slaking their thirsts after a long day down one of the village mines. Today it is the preserve of villagers and visitors alike. The narrow arteries of lanes-where horse-drawn wagons once drew heavy loads of iron ore away to the railway station - remain for the most unmarked by the plethora of white lines and garish signposts so beloved of modern highway agencies. The village cricket season has an air of eccentricity hanging over the outfield. All the first half of the season’s fixtures are played away as cattle use the outfield for summer grazing. Between 1703 and 1890 the Quartly family carved out a name breeding Devon Red cattle in Molland, then considered some of the best draught oxen in the country.The Devon Red still grazes the Molland acres today.
Molland hangs on proudly to her heritage whilst maintaining an eye to the future,the estate owners encouraging and promoting the diversification of village businesses so essential to modern village survival.