Slapton is a village and civil parish in the South Hams district of Devon, England. It is located near the A379 road between Kingsbridge and Dartmouth, and lies within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). In 1901 the population of the civil parish was 527, decreasing to 473 in 2001, and decreasing further to 434 at the 2011 census. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Blackawton, Strete, Stokenham and East Allington.
Slapton was recorded in the Domesday Book as Sladone. The Collegiate Chantry of St Mary was founded in 1372 or 1373 by Sir Guy de Brian. The Tower Inn and West tower remain and the tower has been designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building. The Church of St James dates from the late 13th or early 14th century, and is also grade I listed.
The nearby beach which is technically a coastal bar (see below), known as Slapton Sands, was in 1944 part of the site of the ill-fated Exercise Tiger. A Sherman tank that was sunk in this action has been recovered and now stands on the road behind the beach at nearby Torcross. Part of Exercise Fabius took place a week after Exercise Tiger on Slapton Sands. The beach itself is not sand, but consists of small smooth pebbles ranging in size from ¼ inch to several inches.
Slapton
