Dartmouth was of strategic importance as a deep-water port for sailing
vessels. The port was used as the sailing point for the Crusades of 1147 and
1190, and Warfleet Creek, close to Dartmouth Castle is supposed by some to be
named for the vast fleets which assembled there. Dartmouth was a home of the
Royal Navy from the reign of Edward III and was twice surprised and sacked
during the Hundred Years' War, after which the mouth of the estuary was closed
every night with a great chain. The narrow mouth of the Dart is protected by
two fortified castles, Dartmouth Castle and Kingswear Castle. Originally
Dartmouth's only
