Property market
Four delightful houses on our picturesque shores
Fort Charles’s Italianstyle gardens rival those of any coastal property in the UK
FEW coastal locations are as romantic as that of Fort Charles, a ruined 16th-century fortification built on a rocky outcrop just off the beach of North Sands at Salcombe, Devon. Originally known as Salcombe Castle, the fort, now owned by the National Trust, was built by Henry VIII in the 1540s to defend the Kingsbridge estuary against French and Spanish pirates. Rebuilt during the English Civil War by the royalist Sir Edmund Fortescue, who renamed it Fort Charles, it was the last castle in England to surrender to Cromwell’s troops in 1646— and then only because all other royalist strongholds had been overrun.
The castle was built with stone quarried from the nearby headland, which today is the setting for one of Salcombe’s most enviable coastal properties—also known as Fort Charles—thanks to the vision and dedication of the late Michael Platt and his wife, Janet. In 1995, they bought the original stone house that was built on the site in the early 1900s. Now on the market through Strutt & Parker (01548 897616) at a guide price of ‘excess £3.5 million’, the house has been reconfigured and upgraded to take maximum advantage of its unique position and breathtaking sea views.
‘Calling on Michael’s long experience as a civil engineer, the Platts inverted the house to its present upside-down format. Other alterations included the addition of a bespoke hand-built kitchen and a stunning conservatory. However, the greatest effort was invested in the creation of Fort Charles’s wonderful, Italian-style gardens that were Michael’s passion and rival those of any coastal property in the UK,’ enthuses selling agent Blair Stewart.
Fort Charles currently offers more than 3,600sq ft of well-organised living space. The upper floor houses a large sun room with a vaulted glazed roof and French doors leading to three different terraces, each with its own spectacular sea or estuary view. The kitchen, with its extensive range of wall and floor units reminiscent of
a ship’s bridge, shares the same magnificent views as the adjoining dining room. Accommodation on this floor is completed by the spacious master suite and its adjoining sitting room, and the ground floor offers a large reception hall, sitting room, study and two further bedrooms.
Subject to the relevant planning consents, the house could be further extended or even rebuilt, the agents say. On the other hand, who could replicate Michael Platt’s extraordinary formal gardens, which follow the contours of the entire headland, covering an area of 1.6 acres at full high tide, and no less than 3.7 acres at low water?
Highlights include the sheltered front garden, predominantly laid to lawn with individual specimen palm trees planted in 1995, and the brilliantly engineered, terraced waterfront gardens—reminiscent of Italy’s dazzling Amalfi coastline— which are dotted with water features and plant collections sourced from nearby nurseries to take advantage of Salcombe’s Mediterranean micro-climate.
Another south Devon landmark, currently on the market with Knight Frank (01392 848842) at a guide price of £3m, is Grade Ii-listed Wixels at Topsham, which sits on the bank of the River Exe, surrounded on three sides by the water, with far-reaching views down the estuary towards Exmouth.
According to its listing, the house, the name of which means ‘nails’—reflecting its historic links with Topsham’s shipbuilding past— dates from the 18th and 19th centuries, when it was a sail loft or similar building. Converted to a dwelling in 1920, it is notable for the quality of its building work, in particular its Dutch gabling, wrought ironwork and decorative stonework along the walls of the old quay.
Wixels was bought in the 1990s as a retirement home by its current owner
Set back from the cliff edge, Stack Point House enjoys coastal and sea views
and her husband, an architect, both keen sailors whose love of the sea is reflected in quirky corners of the house, such as the Cabin, an occasional fifth bedroom, which boasts a clinker-built boat suspended from the ceiling. Magical sunsets can be enjoyed from the River Room, which has outstanding views down the Exe towards the Haldon Hills, and the kitchen/breakfast room, the heart of the house, provides direct access to the south-facing terrace and the water.
Across the county border in Cornwall, Chris Clifford of Savills in Truro (01872 243200) quotes a guide price of £2.5m for imposing Stack Point House at Swanpool, near Falmouth, expansively described by the agents as ‘an impressive coastal mini-estate, set within about 30 acres with its own headland and coastline, in a uniquely sought-after location between the Fal Estuary and Helford Passage’. Within its grounds are the remnants of Penance Cottage, known locally as Tukes Cottage, after well-known local artist Henry Tuke, who lived there from 1885 until his death in 1929.
The present Stack Point House was built as a retirement home by the current owners on the site of an earlier house that had been demolished. Set back from the cliff edge, it enjoys both panoramic coastal and sea views and the privacy and seclusion provided by its surrounding gardens and woodland. The main house offers some 3,300sq ft of living space including three reception rooms, an open-plan kitchen/living/ dining room and four bedroom suites, plus a further open-plan kitchen/living room and bedroom in the detached granite studio annexe, thought to have been partly built with materials taken from Tukes Cottage.
Some 100 miles or so north of Falmouth as the crow flies, Daniel Rees of Savills in Cardiff (02920 368915) quotes an asking price of £2.5m for the gloriously isolated Waterwynch House, which stands in some 26 acres of formal gardens and woodland overlooking unspoilt Waterwynch Bay, two miles from Tenby in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.
The house was built in 1820 under the terms of a lease granted by the Burgess of Tenby to the artist Charles Norris, in recognition of his work in promoting the town. In 1920, it was the home of Lord and Lady Ridsdale, in-laws of Sir Stanley Baldwin who spent many family holidays there. Converted to a hotel in the 1980s, it was restored as a private house by the previous owners, a process continued by the present owners, who bought it as a holiday home in 2012/13.
Now mainly used as a successful selfcontained holiday retreat for large groups, with bookings already confirmed into next year, Waterwynch House also holds a licence for weddings and is being offered as a going concern. Alternatively, with more than 12,000sq ft of accommodation on three floors including five reception rooms, 11 en-suite bedrooms and a large conservatory, and with private access to a partly owned sandy beach, Waterwynch House could easily revert to its former role as a cherished holiday home for extended families.