Affeton Castle

Overview and Early History

Affeton Castle stands on a hillside above the Little Dart River near East Worlington in north‑west Devon. Despite its name, the surviving building is actually a late‑medieval gatehouse that formed the entrance to a much larger fortified manor. The estate belonged to the de Affeton family until about 1434, when Sir Hugh Stucley married Catherine de Affeton, heiress to the manor. The Stucley family built an ambitious grey‑rubble mansion in the shape of an “E” with a moat, fish ponds and extensive parkland. Its gatehouse, roughly 18 m by 6.7 m (60 × 22 ft), was designed to defend the entrance with a tall archway through which carts and travellers passed. In the mid‑19th century this fortified manor was described as “one of the most splendid seats in the county.”

Civil War and Decline

During the English Civil War the Stucleys supported the Royalist cause. Sir Thomas Stucley’s manor was attacked several times; in 1646 Parliamentarian troops under General Fairfax razed the mansion and the neighbouring church. Only the gatehouse survived, and a farmhouse was later built over the foundations of the demolished residence. By the early 19th century the gatehouse itself was ruinous.

Restoration and Later History

Sir George Stucley, the first Stucley baronet, restored the gatehouse in 1868–69. He blocked the great archway to create a smaller doorway and refitted the interior as a shooting lodge for grouse hunting on the surrounding moor. The restoration, executed in a neo‑medieval style, left only a few original features intact, notably the stone newel staircase in the stair turret and a first‑floor doorway. An extension to the north provided a coach‑house and additional rooms. The property passed through successive Stucley baronets. In 1956 Sir Dennis Stucley sold the family’s larger home, Moreton Hall, and converted Affeton Castle into his principal residence, installing bathrooms for the first time. His son Sir Hugh Stucley added a nursery wing and extra bedrooms; he still lives there in the 21st century. The house remains a private home and is not open to the public.

Architecture

The restored gatehouse is built of coursed and squared local rubble with freestone dressings. It is square in plan, two storeys high with an embattled parapet and tall chimneys. The blocked central archway on the west façade is flanked by buttresses and mullioned windows with cinque‑foiled heads. A shallow two‑storeyed garderobe turret projects from the south‑west corner. On the east side a three‑storey stair‑turret rises above the roofline, containing a 49‑foot spiral staircase. Most of the interior dates from the 19th‑century restoration, including a panelled room with a Jacobethan fireplace. The building is protected as a Grade II* listed structure.

Current Status

Affeton Castle is privately owned by the Stucley family and is not open to the public. The family’s other residence, Hartland Abbey, welcomes visitors, but Affeton serves as a family home. Visitors can view the gatehouse from the public road but should respect the owners’ privacy. As of 2025 there are no scheduled public open days or tours; any changes to access would likely be announced via local heritage organisations or the Stucley estate.