The Tynte Arms, Enmore, Somerset

History of The Tynte

The name ‘Tynte’ has been rooted in local history for many many years.

One of the legends surrounding the birth of the name 'Tynte' is of a young knight of the Arundel family who went on crusade with King Richard the Lionheart. He was singled out for his bravery at the battle of Ascalon. The King observing him is supposed to have said:

" .. the maiden knight had borne himself like a lion, and had done work enough for six crusaders".

For which service to the Christian cause the King conferred on the young Knight his armorial bearings (Heraldic device), a lion argent on a field of gold between six crosslets of the first and the motto "Tynetus Cruore Saraceno". This can still be seen on our pub sign today.

The Tynte's had a long association with the local area. In 1689 Sir Halswell Tynte rebuilt Halswell House in nearby Goathurst on the remains of a Tudor manor house, and a Sir Charles Kemeys-Tynte remodelled the west front when he inherited the House in 1740. He wanted to create his own pleasure gardens with follies and lakes and set about buying up local farms to increase the parkland surrounding his newly enlarged modernised house.

In the 1840's the grounds at Halswell House became the main place of relaxation for the local people of Bridgwater and surrounding villages, many visited on their days holiday as the then owner, Colonel Tynte, Member of Parliament for Bridgwater would open his grounds to the public.

The estate previously created and owned by the Tynte's was auctioned off in 1950.

The pub itself dates back to 1848 and was originally 3 farmer's cottages.

For the last 25 years it has been owned and run by Peter Genrey.

If you are interested in the history of the area we would be very happy to tell you more about our local legends - this area is full of them!

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