Bishopsteignton

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Bishopsteignton
Bishopsteignton in 2006.
Population	2,423 (2001 Census)
OS grid reference	SX911735
District	Teignbridge
Shire county	Devon
Region	South West
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Postcode district	TQ14
Dialling code	01626
Police	Devon and Cornwall
Fire	Devon and Somerset
Ambulance	South Western
European Parliament	South West England
UK Parliament	Teignbridge
List of places: UK • England • Devon

Bishopsteignton (pronounced /ˌbɪʃəpˈsteɪntən/^{[citation needed]}) is a village in South Devon, England between Newton Abbot and Teignmouth, close to the River Teign Estuary. The village is on a steep hill, and has a post office, small pharmacy and a small, family-run supermarket. The village school has about 150 pupils.

The village has three churches - one gospel hall (Plymouth Brethren), one Methodist and one Anglican - St John The Baptist, with a fine Norman doorway which survived Victorian restoration. Among the tombstones are some who were victims of plague, and above the churchyard are the remains of a 14th century sanctuary chapel built by John Grandisson, Bishop of Exeter to provide a refuge for felons who had accepted life banishment, as they travelled from Exeter to sail from Teignmouth.^[1]

The village has three pubs: The Ring of Bells, The Cockhaven Manor and the Bishop John De Grandisson. It also has a local brewery (Red Rock) and a vineyard (Old Walls).

There is a small beach on the estuary, known locally as The River Beach or Red Rock. It is reached via a footpath from the village that crosses the main Teignmouth to Newton Abbot road and the railway, and goes down some steep steps - Luxton Steps. This ancient footpath leads to the point where villagers could ford the river at low tide to reach Coombe Cellars.

Half a mile away, overlooking the town, is the Bishop's Palace, now a ruin (hence the local name of the old walls), that was built in the 13th century by Walter de Bronescombe, and expanded later by Grandisson.