Iddesleigh S. H. Burton wrote that it gave the appearance of being "thatchier" than anywhere else in Devon. Situated on a south-facing slope, the village has good views of northern Dartmoor, including its highest point, High Willhays. The Church of St James, the parish church, is at the western edge of the village, and is a grade I listed building. With 13th-century origins, but mostly dating from the 15th century, it has wagon roofs in its nave and north aisle. A recumbent effigy of a knight with a plain shield, lying under an arch has been dated to and is believed
County of London Government Act 1963 replaced the county with the much larger Greater London administrative area. The county occupied an area of just under and lay within the London Basin. It was divided into two parts (north and south) by the River Thames, which was the most significant geographic feature. It was bordered by Essex to the north-east, Kent to the south-east, Surrey the south-west and Middlesex to the north. The highest point was Hampstead Heath in the north of the county at , which is one of the highest points in London. In 1900 a number of boundary anomalies were abolished.