Hawkridge, Chittlehampton

Hawkridge in the parish of Chittlehampton in North Devon, England, is an historic estate, anciently the seat of a junior branch of the Acland family which originated at nearby Acland, in the parish of Landkey and later achieved great wealth and prominence as the Acland Baronets of Killerton, near Exeter. The former mansion house is today a farmhouse known as Hawkridge Barton, a grade II* listed building. The Devon historian Hoskins (1959) stated of Hawkridge: "Externally there is nothing remarkable except a decaying avenue of ancient walnuts, so often the first indication of a 16th or 17th century mansion". The interior contains a fine plaster heraldic overmantel showing the arms of Acland impaling Tremayne, representing the 1615 marriage of Baldwin Acland (1593–1659) of Hawkridge and Elizabeth Tremayne.

The earliest known holders of the estate was the de Hawkridge family, which took its surname from the estate, as the Devon historian Tristram Risdon (died 1640) stated: "Hawkeridge hath had lords so named". According to the Devon historian Sir William Pole (died 1635), the arms of this family were: Gules, a bend undée argent in sinister point a hawk on a perch or. Nothing is known about this family other than that the last in the male line was William de Hawkridge, who left a daughter and heiress named Alicia de Hawkridge, who married John Akelane (Acland) of Acland, in the parish of Landkey, North Devon, about 4 miles north of Hawkridge.

After Hawkridge passed into the Acland family by the marriage of John Akelane to Alicia Hawkridge, it was held together with Acland in Landkey by seven generations of the family (see Acland, Landkey for details) until it was given by John Akeland of Akeland, who had married Elizabeth Cruwys (or Cruse), to his second son, Anthony.

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