There has been a town where Dartmouth is now for centuries with records going back to Viking times listing a town named Dunstal (now the area of Townstal). Over the centuries Dartmouth harbour has been prominent in a number of historical events including the Second and Third Crusades, the battles with the Spanish Armada and the Second World War.

It was during the reign of King Edward III that the town received a charter of incorporation, and during the 1580's Sir Humphrey Gilbert and his half brother Sir Walter Raleigh lived at Greenway House. Yes, that Walter Raleigh! And Humphrey Gilbert is the person who claimed Newfoundland for England.

Dartmouth’s most recent expansion followed indirectly from the ingenuity of probably its most famous man, Thomas Newcomen, who in about 1712 produced the first practical steam engine. But it was feuding between two local families who controlled the town in the 18th and 19th centuries that spurred most of the development still to be seen today. The rivalry between the Seale and Holdsworth families saw each trying to outdo the other, and Dartmouth was the winner.

The Seale family came to Dartmouth from Jersey in 1720 and lived in Dartmouth until 1870. During much of this time they used the coat of arms granted to Robert Seale of Northumberland, who was Clerk of the Cheque of Guards (Beefeaters) and this is the coat of arms that is reproduced in the pictorial sign of the Seale Arms today.

It was the Seale family who built the local steam railway as well as a number of other local buildings, including the Old Mill Castle which was built in the early 19th century and saved from dereliction by the kind volunteer work of the naval cadets from Britannia Royal Naval College. It can be found in 11 hectares of woodland called Sansquay Wood behind the Naval College within an area that has recently been brought into woodland management as a community recreation area and incorporates a network of footpaths.

Today the Seale Arms is family run and offers superb en-suite accommodation, home cooked food and a friendly atmosphere which we hope will make your stay even more enjoyable.