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Summary

Bennetts Cross is wayside cross of 1.3 metres high used as a boundary stone between Chagford and North Bovey parishes. It also serves as a boundary stone for Headland Warren. The stone may be a Christianised prehistoric standing stone.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1009189: Bennett's Cross: a wayside cross on the south side of the B3212, 900m north east of the Warren House Inn
• Listed Building (II) 1106209: BENNETS CROSS

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX68SE17
• National Monuments Record: SX68SE368
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 1345219
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 443800
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX68SE/52
• Old SAM County Ref: 405
• Old SAM Ref: 24822

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• WAYSIDE CROSS (Constructed, VIII to Late Medieval - 701 AD? (Between) to 1539 AD (Between))
• (Alternate Type) BOUNDARY STONE (Constructed, XVIII - 1701 AD (Between) to 1799 AD (Between))

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

'Bennett's Cross (Stone Cross)' shown on 19th century map.

Masson Phillips, E. N., 1937, The Ancient Stone Crosses of Devon: Part I, 311, plate 32, figure 3 (Article in Serial). SDV240502.

Bennet's Cross on the southern side of the road from Moretonhampstead to Princetown, about 0.75 mile north-east of the Warren House Inn. Type A; a curiously misshapen cross of rough rectangular section. The shaft narrows towards the head, and the head and arms taper slightly. The cross is inclined to one side. On the face towards the road it bears the incised letters "WB" standing for warren bounds, the cross being a boundary mark of Headland Warren.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1952, SX68SE17 (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV256924.

This cross which is in good condition stands 6 feet in height and the arms of the cross are acroximately 2 feet across. The letters 'WB' are inscribed on the northern face.

Brown, T., 1961, Tales of a Dartmoor Village: Some Preliminary Notes on the Folklore of Postbridge, 209 (Article in Serial). SDV238060.

A fine example of a wayside cross. Mentioned as a boundary marker in 1702, but it is probably much older. The name could derive from "benet", meaning exorcist or cleric in minor orders, or it may be a diminutive of St. Benedict.

Greeves, T. A. P., 1982, Bennett's Cross, 24/8/1982, sketch included (worksheets 27-8) (Worksheet). SDV256926.

The cross has recently suffered damage, the north arm being reduced to a truncated stump.
On the east face of the cross, a slab measuring 40 by 20 centimetres has broken away. A fine split 48 centimetres long runs from the damaged area down the main shaft. On the west face, a slab measuring 32 centimetres by 13 centimetres has broken away taking with it part of the "W" incised on this face.
The top of the cross, and its south arm are undamaged as is the main shaft eblow the arms (except for the split mentioned above), i.e.: approximately 1.4 metres of the shaft is still intact.

Robinson, R., 1982, List of Field Monument Warden Visits 1982 (Un-published). SDV342809.

Visted 6/10/1982.

Robinson, R., 1983, List of Field Monument Warden Visits 1983 (Un-published). SDV345762.

Visted 11/10/1983.

Griffiths, D. M., 1986, Bennett's Cross repairs (Correspondence). SDV256928.

Cross was repaired by Dartmoor National Park in 1983.

Department of Environment, 1987, Chagford, 5 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV350463.

Wayside cross and parish boundary marker. Probably 15th century. The cross stands approximately 1.3 metres high and is made from a single piece of granite. It is crudely shaped with small stubby arms and a shaft that is far from straight. The initials WB are carved on the front at the intersection of the arms.

Butler, J., 1991, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Two - The North, 27, Maps 24 and 25 (Monograph). SDV219155.

Bennetts Cross served as a boundary stone between Chagford and North Bovey parishes and as a wayside guide stone for the travellers on the open moor between Moretonhampstead and Postbridge before the present road was constructed post 1772. The cross was first recorded in 1702. It is crudely shaped with a curve to the shaft. 'WB' can be made out cut into the western face though part of it has flaked away in recent years.

Newman, P., 2001, Headland Warren Part 3: The Warren, 3-5, Figure 2 (Report - Survey). SDV359913.

Boundary Stone (3) on the western side of Headland Warren is the re-used Bennett's Cross which was a medieval waymarker.
(25/07/2002) Boundary stones marking the northern and eastern boundary of Headland Warren (SX 68 SE 339). A total of 13 upright granite stones, including the medieval Bennett's Cross each baring the inscription WB. A further flat stone beside the Challacombe road has the inscription 'Warren Bounds'. The stones probably date from the 18th century when the warren was founded.
The positions of the upright stones are: (SX) 6765 8116; 6781 8135; 6800 8163(Bennett's Cross); 6823 8177; 6839 8182; 6860 8167; 6864 8164; 6874 8169; 6882 8174; 6887 8181; 6951 8164 (Warren Bounds); 6965 8097; 6965 8092; 6965 8085.
For discussion of the stones see Brewer 1986, 22-3; Newman 2002 ('New Observations at Headland Warren' Dartmoor Magazine 66, 22-4).

Newman, P., 2002, Headland Warren and the Birch Tor and Vitifer Mines (Report - Survey). SDV363213.

(Visited 10/10/2000) SX 68008162. This feature is as described in 1937 (Masson Phillips) and measures 2.0 metres high 0.4 metres by 0.3 metres at base with a width over the arms of 0.6 metres. The inscription is inscribed in the south-west face. A small erosion hollow surrounds this feature.

Jenkinson, T., 2007, Miscellaneous Milestones and Boundary Markers of Dartmoor Roads, 28/05/2007 (Report - Survey). SDV361800.

Bennett’s Cross about 0.5 miles north-east of the Warren House Inn 5 metres or so back from the road (B3212) on south side near car park. (SX68022 81643). Legend ‘WB’, for ‘Warren Bounds’. Inscribed with faint letters that have eroded considerably; ‘B’ only just visible. Thought to date to around c. 1870.

Watson, A., 2007-2017?, Devon Crosses, 23 (Un-published). SDV360833.

Bennetts Cross is situated on the southern side of the Moretonhampstead to Princetown road, about half a mile north-east of Warren House Inn, it stands well back from the road. It is a curiously misshapen cross of roughly rectangular section, the shaft narrows towards the head, and the head and arms taper slightly. The cross is made of granite and inclines to one side. The letters ‘WB’ are carved on the shaft, probably to signify ‘Warren Bounds’. Bennetts Cross is also a boundary mark, standing on the boundary between North Bovey and Chagford.
How Bennetts Cross got its name is uncertain, in the 16th century a tinner named William Bennett held mining rights in the vicinity.
Cross height 1.73 metres span 0.55 metres.

Ordnance Survey, 2016, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV359352.

'Bennett's Cross' is depicted on the modern mapping.

Historic England, 2016, National Heritage List for England, Accessed 11/07/2016 (National Heritage List for England). SDV359353.

The monument includes an impressively sited and well-preserved monolithic wayside cross of coarse granite with large feldspar crystals, located about 16m south of the B3212 road between Postbridge and Moretonhampstead. The arms of the cross are aligned due north-south. The cross has a maximum height above the ground surface of 1.85m. The shaft is curiously misshapen. The lowest 0.6m is straight, but it then bends northwards about 50mm, before straightening up to the arms. The east side of the shaft bulges outwards in its middle portion. The shaft does not have defined or chamfered edges, but is roughly rectangular in section , having a maximum west-east thickness of 0.36m and a maximum north-south thickness of 0.46m. The head of the cross extends 0.24m above the arms, and tapers towards the top, where it is only 0.2m wide compared with 0.29m wide where it joins the arms. The southern arm of the cross extends a maximum of 0.1m from the shaft, and has a depth of 0.23m. The northern arm extends 0.14m, and has a depth of 0.27m. The cross was damaged in 1982, probably by lightning, and was repaired in 1983. The east face of the cross is damaged between the arms, and the west face has suffered damage on the northern arm. The latter destroyed the first downstroke of the letter `W' which is part of an inscription `WB' in letters 0.12m high with incisions approximately 15mm wide by 7mm deep. These letters probably stand for Warren Bound, as the cross was a boundmark for a rabbit warren in the 18th and 19th century. The cross is also a boundmark between the parishes of Chagford and North Bovey. The northern edge of the north arm has a crack running vertically down it. The crack is open for about 10mm. There is a vertical hairline crack about 170mm long, also on the northern edge of the north arm, and about 40mm in from the west face of the arm. Both these cracks are partially filled. The cross appears to be set in an embanked hollow about 4m in diameter and defined by scarps about 0.15m high. A possible bank on the west side is about 1.5m wide. The style of this cross, which is unlike any other recorded Dartmoor cross, combined with its remote yet conspicuous location, make it a strong candidate for being a Christianised prehistoric standing stone.
Bennetts Cross is one of the most unusually distinctive of surviving wayside crosses on moorland Dartmoor, and is easily visible from the road. Its irregular shape gives it an ancient appearance, and its use as a boundmark for both parish and rabbit warren gives it added status. The stone may be prehistoric in origin.

Historic England, 2022, National Heritage List for England, 1009189 (National Heritage List for England). SDV364675.

Bennetts Cross is an impressively sited and well-preserved monolithic wayside cross of coarse granite with large feldspar crystals, located about 16 metres south of the B3212 road between Postbridge and Moretonhampstead. The arms of the cross are aligned due north-south. The cross has a maximum height above the ground surface of 1.85 metres. The shaft is curiously misshapen. The lowest 0.6 metre section is straight, but it then bends north about 50 millimetres, before straightening up to the arms. The east side of the shaft bulges outwards in its middle portion. The shaft does not have defined or chamfered edges, but is roughly rectangular in section, having a maximum west-east thickness of 0.36 metres and a maximum north-south thickness of 0.46 metres. The head of the cross extends 0.24 metres above the arms, and tapers towards the top, where it is only 0.2 metres wide compared with 0.29 metres wide where it joins the arms. The southern arm of the cross extends a maximum of 0.1 metres from the shaft, and has a depth of 0.23 metres. The northern arm extends 0.14 metres, and has a depth of 0.27 metres. The cross was damaged in 1982, probably by lightning, and was repaired in 1983. The eastern face of the cross is damaged between the arms and the western face has suffered damage on the northern arm. The latter destroyed the first downstroke of the letter 'W' which is part of an inscription 'WB' in letters 0.12 metres high with incisions approximately 15 millimetres wide by 7 millimetres deep. The cross was a boundmark for a rabbit warren in the 18th and 19th century. The cross is also a boundmark between the parishes of Chagford and North Bovey. The northern edge of the northern arm has a crack running vertically down it. The crack is open for about 10 millimetres. There is a vertical hairline crack about 170 millimetres long, also on the northern edge of the northern arm, and about 40 millimetres in from the western face of the arm. Both these cracks are partially filled. The cross appears to be set in an embanked hollow about 4 metres in diameter and defined by scarps about 0.15 metres high. A possible bank on the western side is about 1.5 metres wide. The style of this cross, which is unlike any other recorded Dartmoor cross, combined with its remote yet conspicuous location, make it a strong candidate for being a Christianised prehistoric standing stone.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7139 - Headland Warren and the Birch Tor and Vitifer Mines Survey (Ref: A1/20/2001, A1/34/2002)
• EDV7612 - Miscellaneous Milestone and Boundary Markers of Dartmoor Roads

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