COUNTESS WEIR
In order to revenge himself on the citizens he built a quay at Topsham, and compelled all merchants and captains of ships to unload their cargoes and convey them by wagon to the city, to the inconvenience of the merchants and his own profit. He also took from the citizens their rights of fishing in the river, and oppressed them in various ways. Some years later Edward Courtenay, nephew of Hugh, still further blocked the waterway by erecting two other weirs, under the pretext of building some mills. Many complaints were made to the king, and various writs were issued against the earls, but no one dared to enforce them. For four hundred years the feud continued over what was apparently the destination of a kettle of fish, although in later days there is no doubt that the earls' motives were to increase the income of their own port of Topsham at the expense of Exeter. On the receipt of Queen Elizabeth's charter in 1560 the citizens at length decided to construct a canal to Topsham. This was begun in 1564 and completed in 1697, and it is one of the earliest examples of canal navigation in the country. Topsham is now a little port, whose shipping trade is confined to small coasting schooners and fishing smacks. The Church of St. Margaret is very large, and, with the exception of the tower, has been almost entirely rebuilt. Near Topsham the Exe is joined by the little River Clyst, and just below the confluence the Exe expands until it is more than a mile in width. From the Clyst many villages take name, as Clyst St. Lawrence, Broad Clyst, Honiton Clyst, Clyst St. Mary, and Clyst St. George. The last two are near Topsham and were the scene of a struggle during the Prayer Book Riots. In Devon the insurrection started on Whit-Monday, 1549, at Sampford Courtenay, the day following that on which the Act altering the Church service came into force. The people of the village insisted on the priest saying the usual mass instead of the prayers given in the appointed Book of Common Prayer. The rebellion spread rapidly, and ten thousand men marched on Exeter, with a good sprinkling of old Devon families in their ranks; but they were undisciplined and were quickly dispersed by Lords Grey and Russell. Although demoralized, the rebels assembled at Clyst St. Mary, which they fortified. From here they sent word to the king demanding the continuance of their former Church services, but the king's reply was an army under the command of Lord Russell, and after a brief resistance Clyst St. Mary was burned to the ground and the rebels scattered, to be again beaten and their leaders taken on Clyst Heath. The vicar of St. Thomas's Church, Exeter—at that time situated outside the walls—one of the leaders, was hanged from his own church tower.
On the west bank of the Exe, almost opposite Topsham, are Powderham Park and Castle, the latter supposed to have been built originally by Isabella de Fortibus. It has been conjectured, and is indeed highly probable, that a fortified building or earthwork of some kind occupied the site at a much earlier date, possibly as early as the Danish invasions. In later times the manor belonged to the Bohuns, and it came into possession of the Earls of Devon through the marriage of Margaret de Bohun with Hugh Courtenay, the third earl. In 1645 the castle was besieged, unsuccessfully, by Fairfax, but in the following year it was taken by Colonel Hammond. Until about the middle of the eighteenth century it remained strongly fortified, but at that time it was subjected to many alterations. The oldest part of the present castle dates from the time of Richard II, but the whole fabric has undergone so many restorations that it presents a great variety of architectural styles. The fine modern hall contains a fireplace which is a replica of the one at the Palace, Exeter. The park is a delightful stretch of greensward, studded with ancient oaks, and it extends for many miles around the building. In one corner of the park is the little church of St. Clement, a Perpendicular building of red sandstone, and within which are several memorials of the Courtenays. These include a recumbent effigy popularly supposed to represent the renowned Isabella, although this lady is known to have been buried at Bromnor Priory, Wilts. It is the opinion of some authorities that this monument is a cenotaph to Elizabeth, daughter of Edward I, and wife of Humphrey de Bohun, whose daughter, Margaret, married Hugh Courtenay. On the highest ground of the park is the Belvidere, erected in 1773, a triangular tower with a small hexagonal turret at each corner. It is 60 feet high, and from the summit the view comprises the city of Exeter, the broad estuary of the Exe, the village of Lympstone, and the little town of Topsham, where the spars of the ships appear to mingle with the trees on the river's banks. Looking inland we may see the well-wooded country stretching away in a succession of hills and combes, until the view is bounded by the stone-capped heights of Dartmoor in the far distance.
The parish of Woodbury, on the east bank of the river, contains several small villages and a large stretch of common. Woodbury Castle is a well-known earthwork on the top of a high hill; it is probably prehistoric in origin, although afterwards occupied by the Romans. The church of St. Swithin at Woodbury has a chancel in the Decorated and a tower in the Perpendicular styles. The beautiful screen has been modernized and consequently spoiled, but some good monuments may still be seen. Nutwell Court, overlooking the estuary, is a modern mansion on the site of a castle which had been converted into a dwelling house so early as the reign of Edward IV. It is now the home of the Drakes, of the same family as the famous sailor of Elizabethan days. Among the relics preserved here are the cups given to Sir Francis Drake by Queen Elizabeth on his return from the memorable voyage round the world in the Pelican. Here also is a portrait of Sir Francis by Zucchero.
Exmouth, although a modern watering-place, has a few points of interest, being one of the oldest seaside resorts on the south-west coast.
In the time of King John it was an important port, and it supplied ten ships and one hundred and ninety-three seamen for Edward III's expedition to Calais. The principal part of the present town is very modern, but it is very pleasantly situated. The greater part of the town is included in the parish of Littleham, whose church, dedicated to St. Margaret and St. Andrew, is of Early English and Perpendicular architecture. The Spratshayes aisle was probably built by the Drakes of Spratshayes. The screen, dating from about 1400, has richly undercut cornice bands, the Stafford and Wake knots being freely introduced among the carvings. There are many delightful walks around Exmouth, both along the coast and inland, the view from Beacon Hill being very fine and including a large strip of the eastern and the western coastlines that border the blue waters of the English Channel.
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