Hawkchurch lies near the borders of Dorset and Somerset. For travellers who want to use architectural history as a guiding thread when choosing a destination, the village offers several distinct points of interest: a church, a former inn, Court Cottage, a former rectory and Wyld Court. The periods represented range from the Middle Ages to the early 19th century and Victorian architecture.

From the chancel arch to the former inn

The Church of St John the Baptist in Hawkchurch has a Norman chancel arch, dated to the early 12th century. A chancel arch marks the transition between the nave and the chancel; its date therefore places a specific architectural feature in time. This offers a precise way into architectural history, focusing on the arch, its Norman form and its date.

At the Former Old Inn Public House, the focus shifts from a single architectural feature to the building as a whole. The former inn dates from the early 19th century. Its architecture includes whitewashed rubble-stone walls, brick arches over the windows and a central elliptically vaulted passageway. There is also a reused plaque dated 1547. The date belongs to the plaque, not to the year the inn was built. Thus, features from different periods stand side by side in one building: the history of the former inn and an older, reused element with a date.

Roof form and structure at Court Cottage

Court Cottage has a thatched roof with half-hipped ends. The sloping roof surfaces at the gable ends describe its exterior form; inside are two interconnected cruck trusses, which are elements of the roof structure. Considered together, the roof form and construction offer two different ways to understand the house architecturally.

A comparison with the former inn shows how varied the ways of describing architectural history can be. There, the masonry, brick arches and passageway define the architectural details; at Court Cottage, the focus is on the roof form and structure. Those interested in specific architectural features will find different emphases, without reducing the buildings to a single style label.

The Old Rectory and its historical connections

The Old Rectory in Hawkchurch is a large former Victorian Gothic rectory, built in 1859 by John Hicks. Its former function, architectural classification, size, date of construction and architect provide different clues to its history. Another connection can be found in Thomas Hardy’s annotated sketchbook, which contains a floor plan of the Old Rectory.

The connection to the plan adds a link to Thomas Hardy to the architectural context. The building can therefore be understood both through its form and date of construction and through the documented floor plan in Hardy’s sketchbook. This offers a different historical perspective from the chancel arch or the architectural details of the former inn: here, a specific attribution to an architect and a plan associated with a well-known writer come together.

Wyld Court: the house’s history and a historical account

A house has stood on the site of Wyld Court in Hawkchurch since the Middle Ages. A later, cautiously worded account links the place with Charles II: he is said to have stayed at Wyld Court in 1651 before fleeing to France. The two statements emphasise different things: the first concerns the history of the house on the site, while the second refers to an attributed stay in the 17th century. Here, a medieval history of the house meets a later historical account whose claim is explicitly presented as tradition.

Which focus suits your trip?

If you would like to compare architectural forms, the chancel arch, masonry and roof structure point to different architectural details. For historical connections, the Old Rectory—with the floor plan in Thomas Hardy’s annotated sketchbook—and the cautiously worded account involving Charles II offer different points of reference. This distinction can help you choose a cultural focus for Hawkchurch before looking for a hotel for your stay.

Discover more destinations: Tavistock, Lynmouth, Bishop's Tawton, Instow, Newton Saint Petrock, Halberton, Beer, East Portlemouth.

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