There was probably a Celtic settlement in the valley of the Long brook. By Anglo Saxon times, the village of Plymentum was flourishing on a site with an abundant water supply, sheltered farmland, and woods. Its position, at the cross roads of important routes, attracted the Norman Baldwin de Redvers who built a castle here and laid out Fore Street to benefit from its potential as a market town. Prospering in the Muddle Ages, Plympton Erle, as it was then known, became a stannary town in 1328. A special claim to fame is its association with the Plympton artists, especially Sir Joshua Reynolds, Benjamin Haydon and Sir Charles Lock Eastlake. Its largely unspoilt character featured in the television 'Time Team' programme.Please use the menu on the left to navigate to a more in depth history of this beautiful village and its roads and buildings.