One of the fascinating things about Dartmoor is that despite its remoteness and isolation there are many traces of settlements dating back to prehistoric times. Hunter’s Tor is such a place: Up here there are remains of a fortress, built during the Iron Age.

Local tradition however claims that a Roman legion was stationed up here, and in bright moonlit nights a ghostly squadron of phantom soldiers can still be seen marching up the hillside. Some witnesses have also heard faint battle cries. Historians believe that it is not unlikely that a real battle between Celtic and Roman troops may have taken place here, and some Roman settlements may have existed in the neighbourhood: In the door sill of Lustleigh Church, there is a curious stone with a Roman inscription, and some historians claim that the church has all the characteristics of a very early Christian temple. (And let’s not forget that Dartmoor is not too far away from Somerset and Glastonbury Tor, where – as legend has it – the first English church was built by Joseph of Arithmathea, a mere 30 years after Jesus’ death).