Project Development

The historical development of the East Devon landscape

Following on from an initial focus of interpreting the earlier Prehistory of the East Devon Pebblebeds the project will go on to investigate the same area in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. This will include a study of the construction of landscaping mounds on the heathlands around the same time as the landscape gardens at Bicton House were being designed and developed. Most of the landscaping mounds on the heathlands are arranged symetrically on either side of the B3179 Woodbury to Yettington road.There are also two other huge mounds set on the western edge of the scarp of the Pebblebed heathlands beside the present B3180 road. These mounds were deliberately constructed so as to resemble prehistoric Bronze Age round barrows and they were planted with Scots Pines as were some prehistoric barrows to add further scenic effect. And make them highly visible as landscape markers. It isinteresting to note that the Scots Pine is not indigenous to The Pebblebed heathlands but was thought to be appropriateas a landscape feature. It appears to be the case that both this particular species of tree and the fake round barrows were deemed to bepowerful signifiers of the wild landscape of the heathlands themselves. So the prehistoric past was clearly romantically associated with a notion of wilderness in the manner we also find in Thomas Hardy’s novel “The Return of the Native”. Here at the centre of the novel is the focal Point of Rainbarrow, a prehistoric mound. Along the Woodbury to Yettington road there are eight places with landscaping mounds including four at the Four Firs cross roads. There are also two genuine Bronze Age round barrows along this road situated to the south-west of Uphams plantation.

One is in the carpark near to the model aircraft flying field. The Original road ran to the south of both these barrows. The Present road was clearly diverted to run between these two Prehistoric barrows and landscaping mounds were constructed Both to the east and west of them. These all occur on the Highlands of the Pebblebed heathlands. None are found to the West of Four Firs where the road dips steeply down the Western edge of the Pebblebed escarpment and they end to the East just as the road begins to dip down steeply to Yettington. There has always been some confusion in the records as to which Of these mounds are genuinely prehistoric. Excavations Undertaken by the project in 2008 (see Excavations 2008) in the NE Mound at Four Firs (Figures 1-2),

Figure 1. The north-east mound at Four Firs

Figure 2. The north-west mound at Four Firs

have proved conclusively that this is a landscaping mound And was constructed by carting up soil from the lowland surrounding the Heathlands probably at the same time as when landscaping work was being Undertaken at Bicton gardens. The question left unresolved at present is Whether these mounds were constructed in the eighteenth century when the original Italian style landscape garden was laid out. Or later in the nineteenth Century when the park was being redesigned and the arboretum was planted. The mounds along the Woodbury to Yettington road were constructed along the main route from Exeter to Bicton. Lord and Lady Rolle would have seen them not on foot (a peasant mode of transport) but from their carriage. This may be a significant observation linked to their visual appearance in the landscape and why they were planted with trees.In Bicton park itself somewhere, probably in the vicinity of the Shell house there are the remains of the Seven Stones prehistoric stone circle which originally stood high up on Mutters Moor about 3 km to the north-east of Bicton park. Why was this stone circle moved? It appears that it may have been treated as useful source of suitably romantic (gnarled and irregular) building stone to use as n ornamental feature in the gardens. The interesting anomaly here is that on the one hand there is the creation of fake prehistoric barrows up on the heathlands while on the other a prehistoric monument is being dismantled and its identity dissolved to form part of Bicton’s garden furniture. It is perhaps significant that no fake barrows occur in the park. They would clearly be inappropriate in this setting. This is because the landscape gardens appear to be all about the present- modernity- and are associated with high culture and the art of the landscape garden with its exotic trees. So we have a clear contrast between the untamed wild heathlands associated with the prehistoric past and the gardens associated with being modern and status emulation in the present. Perhaps the most striking feature of Bicton is the avenue of Monkey Puzzle (Chilean Pine) trees leading towards the house from the Newton Poppleford to Budleigh Salterton. These were among the first of such trees to be planted in England. The species coming from South American was clearly chosen because it was so exotic and differed so dramatically from any English tree. An avenue of oak trees occurs along this same road from Colaton Raleigh towards Bicton. The Rolles would drive through this avenue of oak trees, powerful symbols of longlevity and Englishness and then turn into the drive of exotic Monkey Puzzle trees. On the heathlands, by contrast, they
would be driving through the avenue of ‘prehistoric’ mounds.

The Pebblebed Project will undertake the following research:
• Research estate archives to thrown further light on the construction of the landscaping mounds and the destruction of the circle
• Undertake a phenomenological landscape study of the landscaping mounds and the character of the journey through them.
• Conduct a new detailed topographic survey of these mounds
• Investigate the relationship between the siting of the stone circle and the locations of the prehistoric barrows on the heathlands. The circle, we assume, is broadly
contemporary in date or somewhat earlier than the prehistoric mounds.
• Undertake a phenomenological study of Bicton Park, house and its surroundings.

The Contemporary Landscape
The project will also undertake an investigation of the contemporary use, meanings and significance for people of the Pebblebed Heathlands through ethnographic studies involving interviewing people and participant observation. In many ways this area can be described in Barbara Bender’s terms as a ‘contested landscape’. Many differentindividuals and groups are interested in these heathlands. They use them differently and in accordance with their practices, they value them differently. For individuals different places on the heathlands are of especial significance because they are bound up with personal memories and events.
The main five interest groups today are:
• Clinton Devon Estates who have the responsibility of managing the heathlands and an obvious economic interest in them (see Links)
• The Royal Marines who train on them
• The RSPB and other nature conservation bodies such as Natural England whose concern is to preserve their unique ecology and rare birdlife
• Archaeologists who are interested in the heritage of this area and the preservation and interpretation of this resource
• Different groups who use the area for leisure and well-being: walkers, mountain bikers, horse riders, model aircraft flyers

The Pebblebeds Project will investigate the meaning and significance of the heathlands for these individuals and groups using a variety of methods, where possible, including participant observation, interviewing individuals, and cognitive mapping. Policy implications for the future development and management of the Pebblebed heathlands will be explored.