Cornwall is the westernmost part of theSouth West Peninsula, and the southernmost county within the United Kingdom. Its coastline is characterised by steep cliffs and, to the south, severalrias, including those at the mouths of the riversFal andFowey. It includes the southernmost point onGreat Britain,Lizard Point, and forms a large part of theCornwall National Landscape. The national landscape also includesBodmin Moor, an upland outcrop of theCornubian batholith granite formation. The county contains many short rivers; the longest is theTamar, which forms the border with Devon.
Cornwall had a minor Roman presence, and later formed part of the Brittonic kingdom ofDumnonia. From the 7th century, theBritons in the South West increasingly came into conflict with the expanding Anglo-Saxon kingdom ofWessex, eventually being pushed west of the Tamar; by theNorman Conquest Cornwall was administered as part of England, though it retained its own culture. The remainder of theMiddle Ages andEarly Modern Period were relatively settled, with Cornwall developing itstin mining industry and becoming aduchy in 1337. During theIndustrial Revolution, the tin and copper mines were expanded and then declined, with china clay extraction becoming a major industry. Railways were built, leading to a growth of tourism in the 20th century. TheCornish language becameextinct as a living community language at theend of the 18th century, but is now being revived.
"Cornweallas" shown on an early 19th-century map of "Saxon England" (and Wales) based on theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle. Cliffs at Land's End
The modernEnglish name "Cornwall" is acompound of two terms coming from two different language groups:
"Corn-" originates from theProto-Celtic*kornu- ("horn", presumed in reference to "headland"), and iscognate with theEnglish word "horn" andLatin "cornu" (both deriving from theProto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂-). There may also have been an Iron Age group that occupied the Cornish peninsula known as theCornovii (i.e. "people of the horn or headland").[8][9][10][11][a]
Cornwall in the Late Bronze Age formed part of a maritime trading-networked culture which researchers have dubbed theAtlantic Bronze Age system, and which extended over most of the areas of present-day Ireland, England, Wales, France, Spain, and Portugal.[14][15]
The first written account of Cornwall comes from the 1st-century BC Sicilian Greek historianDiodorus Siculus, supposedly quoting or paraphrasing the 4th-century BCE geographerPytheas, who had sailed to Britain:
The inhabitants of that part of Britain calledBelerion (or Land's End) from their intercourse with foreign merchants, are civilized in their manner of life. They prepare thetin, working very carefully the earth in which it is produced ... Here then the merchants buy the tin from the natives and carry it over toGaul, and after traveling overland for about thirty days, they finally bring their loads on horses to the mouth of the Rhône.[17]
Celtic tribes of Southern Britain
The identity of these merchants is unknown. It has been theorized that they werePhoenicians, but there is no evidence for this.[18] Professor Timothy Champion, discussing Diodorus Siculus's comments on the tin trade, states that "Diodorus never actually says that the Phoenicians sailed to Cornwall. In fact, he says quite the opposite: the production of Cornish tin was in the hands of the natives of Cornwall, and its transport to the Mediterranean was organized by local merchants, by sea and then overland through France, passing through areas well outside Phoenician control."[19] Isotopic evidence suggests that tin ingots found off the coast ofHaifa,Israel, may have been from Cornwall.[20][21] Tin, required for the production ofbronze, was a relatively rare and precious commodity in the Bronze Age – hence the interest shown in Devon and Cornwall's tin resources. (For further discussion of tin mining seethe section on the economy below.)
In the first four centuries AD, during the time ofRoman dominance in Britain, Cornwall was rather remote from the main centres of Romanization – the nearest beingIsca Dumnoniorum, modern-dayExeter. However, the Roman road system extended into Cornwall with four significant Roman sites based on forts:[22] Tregear nearNanstallon was discovered in the early 1970s, two others were found atRestormel Castle, Lostwithiel in 2007, and a third fort nearCalstock was also discovered early in 2007. In addition, a Roman-style villa was found atMagor Farm, Illogan in 1935.Ptolemy'sGeographike Hyphegesis mentions four towns controlled by theDumnonii,[23] three of which may have been in Cornwall.[24] However, after 410 AD, Cornwall appears to have reverted to rule by Romano-Celtic chieftains of theCornovii tribe as part of the Brittonic kingdom ofDumnonia (which also included present-day Devonshire and the Scilly Isles), including the territory of oneMarcus Cunomorus, with at least one significant power base atTintagel in the early 6th century.
Archaeology supports ecclesiastical, literary and legendary evidence for some relative economic stability and close cultural ties between thesub-RomanWestcountry, South Wales, Brittany, the Channel Islands, and Ireland through the fifth and sixth centuries.[25] In Cornwall, the arrival of Celtic saints such asNectan, Paul Aurelian,Petroc,Piran,Samson and numerous others reinforced the preexisting Roman Christianity.[26]
TheBattle of Deorham in 577 saw the separation ofDumnonia (and therefore Cornwall) from Wales, following which theDumnonii often came into conflict with the expanding English kingdom ofWessex.Centwine of Wessex "drove the Britons as far as the sea" in 682, and by 690St Bonifice, then a Saxon boy, was attending an abbey in Exeter, which was in turn ruled by a Saxon abbot.[26][27] TheCarmen Rhythmicum written byAldhelm contains the earliest literary reference to Cornwall as distinct from Devon. Religious tensions between the Dumnonians (who celebratedceltic Christian traditions) and Wessex (who wereRoman Catholic) are described inAldhelm's letter toKing Geraint. TheAnnales Cambriae report that in AD 722 the Britons of Cornwall won a battle at"Hehil".[28] It seems likely that the enemy the Cornish fought was a West Saxon force, as evidenced by the naming ofKing Ine of Wessex and his kinsman Nonna in reference to an earlier Battle of Llongborth in 710.[29]
TheAnglo-Saxon Chronicle stated in 815 (adjusted date) "and in this year king Ecgbryht raided in Cornwall from east to west." this has been interpreted to mean a raid from the Tamar to Land's End, and the end of Cornish independence.[30] However, theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle states that in 825 (adjusted date) a battle took place between the Wealas (Cornish) and the Defnas (men of Devon) atGafulforda. The Cornish giving battle here, and the later battle at Hingston Down, casts doubt on any claims of control Wessex had at this stage.[31]
In 838, the Cornish and their Danish allies were defeated by Egbert in theBattle of Hingston Down at Hengestesdune. In 875, the last recorded king of Cornwall,Dumgarth, is said to have drowned.[32] Around the 880s, Anglo-Saxons from Wessex had established modest land holdings in the north eastern part of Cornwall; notablyAlfred the Great who had acquired a few estates.[33]William of Malmesbury, writing around 1120, says that KingAthelstan of England (r. 924–939) fixed the boundary between English and Cornish people at the east bank of theRiver Tamar.[34] While elements of William's story, like the burning ofExeter, have been cast in doubt by recent writers[31] Athelstan did re-establish a separateCornish Bishop and relations between Wessex and the Cornish elite improved from the time of his rule.
EventuallyKing Edgar (r. 959–975) was able to issue charters the width of Cornwall, and frequently sent emissaries or visited personally as seen by his appearances in theBodmin Manumissions.
One interpretation of theDomesday Book is that by this time the native Cornish landowning class had been almost completely dispossessed and replaced by English landowners, particularlyHarold Godwinson himself. However, theBodmin manumissions show that two leading Cornish figures nominally had Saxon names, but these were both glossed with native Cornish names.[35] In 1068,Brian of Brittany may have been createdEarl of Cornwall, and naming evidence cited by medievalistEdith Ditmas suggests that many other post-Conquest landowners in Cornwall were Breton allies of the Normans, the Bretons being descended from Britons who had fled to what is todayBrittany during the early years of the Anglo-Saxon conquest.[36] She also proposed this period for the early composition of theTristan and Iseult cycle by poets such asBéroul from a pre-existing shared Brittonic oral tradition.[37]
Soon after theNorman conquest most of the land was transferred to the new Breton–Norman aristocracy, with the lion's share going toRobert, Count of Mortain, half-brother ofKing William and the largest landholder in England after the king with his stronghold atTrematon Castle near the mouth of the Tamar.[38]
Subsequently, however, Norman absentee landlords became replaced by a new Cornish-Norman ruling class including scholars such asRichard Rufus of Cornwall. These families eventually became the new rulers of Cornwall, typically speakingNorman French, Breton-Cornish,Latin, and eventually English, with many becoming involved in the operation of theStannary Parliament system, the Earldom and eventually theDuchy of Cornwall.[39] TheCornish language continued to be spoken and acquired a number of characteristics establishing its identity as a separate language fromBreton.
Thestannary parliaments and stannary courts were legislative and legal institutions in Cornwall and in Devon (in the Dartmoor area). The stannary courts administeredequity for the region's tin-miners and tin mining interests, and they were also courts of record for the towns dependent on the mines. The separate and powerful government institutions available to the tin miners reflected the enormous importance of the tin industry to the English economy during the Middle Ages. Special laws for tin miners pre-date written legal codes in Britain, and ancient traditions exempted everyone connected with tin mining in Cornwall and Devon from any jurisdiction other than the stannary courts in all but the most exceptional circumstances.
Cornish piracy was active during the Elizabethan era on the west coast of Britain.[40] Cornwall is well known for itswreckers who preyed on ships passing Cornwall's rocky coastline. During the 17th and 18th centuries Cornwall was a majorsmuggling area.
In later times, Cornwall was known to theAnglo-Saxons as "West Wales" to distinguish it from "North Wales" (the modern nation ofWales).[41] The name appears in theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle in 891 asOn Corn walum. In theDomesday Book it was referred to asCornualia and in c. 1198 asCornwal.[42][b] Other names for the county include alatinisation of the name asCornubia (first appears in a mid-9th-century deed purporting to be a copy of one dating from c. 705), and asCornugallia in 1086.
Cornwall forms the tip of the south-west peninsula of the island ofGreat Britain, and is therefore exposed to the full force of theprevailing winds that blow in from the Atlantic Ocean. The coastline is composed mainly ofresistant rocks that give rise in many places to tall cliffs. Cornwall has a border with only one other county,Devon, which is formed almost entirely by theRiver Tamar, and the remainder (to the north) by theMarsland Valley.
The north and south coasts have different characteristics. The north coast on theCeltic Sea, part of the Atlantic Ocean, is more exposed and therefore has a wilder nature. TheHigh Cliff, betweenBoscastle andSt Gennys, is the highest sheer-drop cliff in Cornwall at 223 metres (732 ft).[44] Beaches, which form an important part of the tourist industry, includeBude,Polzeath,Watergate Bay,Perranporth,Porthtowan,Fistral Beach,Newquay,St Agnes,St Ives, and on the south coastGyllyngvase beach inFalmouth and the large beach atPraa Sands further to the south-west. There are two river estuaries on the north coast:Hayle Estuary and the estuary of theRiver Camel, which providesPadstow andRock with a safe harbour. The seaside town ofNewlyn is a popular holiday destination, as it is one of the last remaining traditional Cornish fishing ports, with views reaching over Mount's Bay.
The south coast, dubbed the "Cornish Riviera", is more sheltered and there are several broad estuaries offering safe anchorages, such as at Falmouth andFowey. Beaches on the south coast usually consist of coarser sand and shingle, interspersed with rocky sections ofwave-cut platform. Also on the south coast, the picturesque fishing village ofPolperro, at the mouth of the Pol River, and the fishing port ofLooe on theRiver Looe are both popular with tourists.
The interior of the county consists of a roughly east–west spine of infertile and exposed upland, with a series ofgranite intrusions, such asBodmin Moor, which contains the highest land within Cornwall. From east to west, and with approximately descending altitude, these are Bodmin Moor,Hensbarrow north ofSt Austell,Carnmenellis to the south ofCamborne, and thePenwith orLand's End peninsula. These intrusions are the central part of the granite outcrops that form the exposed parts of theCornubian batholith of south-west Britain, which also includesDartmoor to the east in Devon and theIsles of Scilly to the west, the latter now being partially submerged.
Cornwall is known for its beaches (Porthcurno Beach illustrated) and rugged coastline
The intrusion of the granite into the surroundingsedimentary rocks gave rise to extensivemetamorphism andmineralisation, and this led to Cornwall being one of the most important mining areas in Europe until the early 20th century. It is thoughttin was mined here as early as theBronze Age, and copper, lead,zinc and silver have all beenmined in Cornwall. Alteration of the granite also gave rise to extensive deposits ofChina Clay, especially in the area to the north of St Austell, and the extraction of this remains an important industry.
The uplands are surrounded by more fertile, mainlypastoral farmland. Near the south coast, deep wooded valleys provide sheltered conditions for flora that like shade and a moist, mild climate. These areas lie mainly onDevoniansandstone andslate. The north east of Cornwall lies onCarboniferous rocks known as theCulm Measures. In places these have been subjected to severe folding, as can be seen on the north coast nearCrackington Haven and in several other locations.
Thegeology of the Lizard peninsula is unusual, in that it is mainland Britain's only example of anophiolite, a section of oceanic crust now found on land.[c] Much of the peninsula consists of the dark green and redPrecambrianserpentinite, which forms spectacular cliffs, notably atKynance Cove, and carved and polished serpentine ornaments are sold in local gift shops. Thisultramafic rock also forms a very infertile soil which covers the flat and marshy heaths of the interior of the peninsula. This is home to rare plants, such as theCornish Heath, which has been adopted as thecounty flower.[45]
Truro, Cornwall's administrative centre and only city.
Cornwall's only city, and the home of thecouncil headquarters, is Truro. NearbyFalmouth is notable as a port.St Just in Penwith is the westernmost town in England, though the same claim has been made forPenzance, which is larger.St Ives andPadstow are today small vessel ports with a major tourism and leisure sector in their economies.Newquay on the north coast is another major urban settlement which is known for its beaches and is a popular surfing destination, as isBude further north, but Newquay is now also becoming important for its aviation-related industries.Camborne is the county's largest town and more populous than the county town Truro. Together with the neighbouring town ofRedruth, it forms the largest urban area in Cornwall, and both towns were significant as centres of the global tin mining industry in the 19th century; nearby copper mines were also very productive during that period.St Austell is also larger than Truro and was the centre of thechina clay industry in Cornwall. Until fournew parishes were created for the St Austell area on 1 April 2009 St Austell was the largest settlement in Cornwall.[46]
Cornwall borders the county ofDevon at the River Tamar. Major roads between Cornwall and the rest of Great Britain are theA38 which crosses the Tamar atPlymouth via theTamar Bridge and the town ofSaltash, theA39 road (Atlantic Highway) fromBarnstaple, passing throughNorth Cornwall to end in Falmouth, and theA30 which connects Cornwall to theM5 motorway atExeter, crosses the border south ofLaunceston, crosses Bodmin Moor and connects Bodmin, Truro, Redruth, Camborne, Hayle and Penzance.Torpoint Ferry links Plymouth withTorpoint on the opposite side of theHamoaze. A rail bridge, theRoyal Albert Bridge built byIsambard Kingdom Brunel (1859), provides the other main land transport link. The city of Plymouth, a large urban centre in south west Devon, is an important location for services such as hospitals, department stores, road and rail transport, and cultural venues, particularly for people living in east Cornwall.
Cardiff andSwansea, across the Bristol Channel, have at some times in the past been connected to Cornwall by ferry, but these do not operate now.[47]
Cornwall has varied habitats including terrestrial and marine ecosystems. One noted species in decline locally is theReindeer lichen, which species has been made a priority for protection under the national UKBiodiversity Action Plan.[48][49]
Thered-billed chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax), once commonly seen throughout Cornwall, experienced a severe decline in its population in the 20th century.
Botanists divide Cornwall and Scilly into two vice-counties: West (1) and East (2). The standard flora is byF. H. DaveyFlora of Cornwall (1909). Davey was assisted byA. O. Hume and he thanks Hume, his companion on excursions in Cornwall and Devon, and for help in the compilation of that Flora, publication of which was financed by him.
Cornwall has atemperateOceanic climate (Köppen climate classification:Cfb), with mild winters and cool summers. Cornwall has the mildest and one of the sunniest climates of the United Kingdom, as a result of its oceanic setting and the influence of theGulf Stream.[50] The average annual temperature in Cornwall ranges from 11.6 °C (52.9 °F) on theIsles of Scilly to 9.8 °C (49.6 °F) in the central uplands. Winters are among the warmest in the country due to the moderating effects of the warm ocean currents, and frost and snow are very rare at the coast and are also rare in the central upland areas. Summers are, however, not as warm as in other parts of southern England.[51] The surrounding sea and its southwesterly position mean that Cornwall's weather can be relatively changeable.
Cornwall is one of the sunniest areas in the UK. It has more than 1,541 hours of sunshine per year, with the highest average of 7.6 hours of sunshine per day in July.[52] The moist, mild air coming from the southwest brings higher amounts of rainfall than in eastern Great Britain, at 1,051 to 1,290 mm (41.4 to 50.8 in) per year. However, this is not as much as in more northern areas of the west coast.[53] The Isles of Scilly, for example, where there are on average fewer than two days of air frost per year, is the only area in the UK to be in theHardiness zone 10. The islands have, on average, less than one day of air temperature exceeding 30 °C per year and are in the AHS Heat Zone 1. Extreme temperatures in Cornwall are particularly rare; however, extreme weather in the form of storms and floods is common. Due toclimate change Cornwall faces more heatwaves and severe droughts, faster coastal erosion, stronger storms and higher wind speeds as well as the possibility of more high-impact flooding.[54]
Cornish, a member of theBrythonic branch of theCeltic language family, died out as a first language in the late 18th century. In the 20th and 21st centuries, it has beenrevived by a small number of speakers. It is closely related to the other Brythonic languages (Breton andWelsh), and less so to theGoidelic languages. Cornish has no legal status in the UK.
There has been a revival of the language by academics and optimistic enthusiasts since the mid-19th century that gained momentum from the publication in 1904 ofHenry Jenner'sHandbook of the Cornish Language. It is a social networking community language rather than a social community group language.[55] Cornwall Council encourages and facilitates language classes within the county, in schools and within the wider community.[56]
The Cornish language and culture influenced the emergence of particular pronunciations and grammar not used elsewhere in England. The Cornish dialect is spoken to varying degrees; however, someone speaking in broad Cornish may be practically unintelligible to one not accustomed to it. Cornish dialect has generally declined, as in most places it is now little more than a regional accent and grammatical differences have been eroded over time. Marked differences in vocabulary and usage still exist between the eastern and western parts of Cornwall.
Saint Piran's Flag is the national flag and ancient banner of Cornwall,[63][64][65] and an emblem of the Cornish people. The banner of Saint Piran is a white cross on a black background (in terms ofheraldry 'sable, a cross argent'). According to legend Saint Piran adopted these colours from seeing the white tin in the black coals and ashes during his discovery of tin.[63][66] The Cornish flag is an exact reverse of the formerBreton black crossnational flag and is known by the same name "Kroaz Du".[67][68]
Newlyn is home to a food and music festival[80] that hosts live music, cooking demonstrations, and displays of locally caught fish.
As in other former mining districts of Britain, male voice choirs andbrass bands, such asBrass on the Grass concerts during the summer atConstantine, are still very popular in Cornwall. Cornwall also has around 40 brass bands, including the six-times National Champions of Great Britain, Camborne Youth Band, and the bands ofLanner and St Dennis.
Cornish players are regular participants in inter-Celtic festivals, and Cornwall itself has several inter-Celtic festivals such asPerranporth's Lowender Peran folk festival.[81]
St. Michael's Mount in Cornwall (under the fictional name of Mount Polbearne) is the setting of the Little Beach Street Bakery series byJenny Colgan,[92] who spent holidays in Cornwall as a child.[93] The book series includesLittle Beach Street Bakery (2014),Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery (2015),Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery (2016), andSunrise by the Sea (2021).
"FOR THE FALLEN" plaque withthe Rumps promontory beyond
The latePoet LaureateSir John Betjeman was famously fond of Cornwall and it featured prominently in his poetry. He is buried in the churchyard atSt Enodoc's Church, Trebetherick.[95]Charles Causley, the poet, was born in Launceston and is perhaps the best known of Cornish poets.Jack Clemo and the scholarA. L. Rowse were also notable Cornishmen known for their poetry; The Rev.R. S. Hawker of Morwenstow wrote some poetry which was very popular in the Victorian period.[96] The Scottish poetW. S. Graham lived in West Cornwall from 1944 until his death in 1986.[97]
The poetLaurence Binyon wrote "For the Fallen" (first published in 1914) while sitting on the cliffs betweenPentire Point and The Rumps and a stone plaque was erected in 2001 to commemorate the fact. The plaque bears the inscription "FOR THE FALLEN / Composed on these cliffs, 1914". The plaque also bears below this the fourth stanza (sometimes referred to as"The Ode") of the poem:
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old
Cornwall produced a substantial number ofpassion plays such as theOrdinalia during the Middle Ages. Many are still extant, and provide valuable information about the Cornish language. See alsoCornish literature
Colin Wilson, a prolific writer who is best known for his debut workThe Outsider (1956) and forThe Mind Parasites (1967), lived inGorran Haven, a small village on the southern Cornish coast. The writerD. M. Thomas was born in Redruth but lived and worked in Australia and the United States before returning to his native Cornwall. He has written novels, poetry, and other works, including translations from Russian.
Clara Vyvyan was the author of various books about many aspects of Cornish life such asOur Cornwall. She once wrote: "The Loneliness of Cornwall is a loneliness unchanged by the presence of men, its freedoms a freedom inexpressible by description or epitaph. Your cannot say Cornwall is this or that. Your cannot describe it in a word or visualise it in a second. You may know the country from east to west and sea to sea, but if you close your eyes and think about it no clear-cut image rises before you. In this quality of changefulness have we possibly surprised the secret of Cornwall's wild spirit—in this intimacy the essence of its charm? Cornwall!".[98]A level ofTomb Raider: Legend, a game dealing with Arthurian Legend, takes place in Cornwall at a museum above King Arthur's tomb. The adventure gameThe Lost Crown is set in the fictional town of Saxton, which uses the Cornish settlements of Polperro, Talland and Looe as its model.[99]
The main sports played in Cornwall arerugby,football andcricket. Athletes from Truro have done well inOlympic andCommonwealth Games fencing, winning several medals.Surfing is popular, particularly with tourists, thousands of whom take to the water throughout the summer months. Some towns and villages have bowling clubs, and a wide variety of British sports are played throughout Cornwall. Cornwall is also one of the fewplaces in England whereshinty is played; theEnglish Shinty Association is based inPenryn.
Viewed as an "important identifier of ethnic affiliation",rugby union has become a sport strongly tied to notions of Cornishness.[104] and since the 20th century,rugby union has emerged as one of the most popular spectator and team sports in Cornwall (perhaps the most popular), with professional Cornish rugby footballers being described as a "formidable force",[101] "naturally independent, both in thought and deed, yet paradoxically staunch English patriots whose top players have represented England with pride and passion".[105]
In 1985, sports journalistAlan Gibson made a direct connection between the love of rugby in Cornwall and the ancient parish games of hurling and wrestling that existed for centuries before rugby officially began.[105] Among Cornwall's native sports are a distinctive form of Celtic wrestling related toBreton wrestling, andCornish hurling, a kind of mediaeval football played with a silver ball (distinct fromIrish Hurling).Cornish Wrestling is Cornwall's oldest sport and as Cornwall's native tradition it has travelled the world to places likeVictoria, Australia andGrass Valley, California following the miners andgold rushes. Cornish hurling now takes place atSt. Columb Major,St Ives, and less frequently atBodmin.[d]
Inrugby league,Cornwall R.L.F.C., founded in 2021, will represent the county in the professional league system. The semi-pro club will start in the third tierRFL League 1.[106] At an amateur level, the county is represented byCornish Rebels.
The worldpilot gig rowing championships take place annually in theIsles of Scilly.Cornwall's north coast is known as a centre forsurfing.
Due to its long coastline, various maritime sports are popular in Cornwall, notably sailing andsurfing. International events in both are held in Cornwall. Cornwall hosted the Inter-CelticWatersports Festival in 2006. Surfing in particular is very popular, as locations such asBude andNewquay offer some of the best surf in the UK.Pilot gig rowing has been popular for many years and the World championships takes place annually on theIsles of Scilly. On 2 September 2007, 300 surfers atPolzeath beach set a new world record for the highest number of surfers riding the same wave as part of the Global Surf Challenge and part of a project called Earthwave to raise awareness aboutglobal warming.[107]
As its population is comparatively small, and largely rural, Cornwall's contribution to British nationalsport in the United Kingdom has been limited;[101] the county's greatest successes have come in fencing. In 2014, half of the men's GB team fenced for Truro Fencing Club, and 3 Truro fencers appeared at the 2012 Olympics.[108]
Cornwall has a strong culinary heritage. Surrounded on three sides by the sea amid fertile fishing grounds, Cornwall naturally has fresh seafood readily available;Newlyn is the largest fishing port in the UK by value of fish landed, and is known for its wide range of restaurants.[109] Television chefRick Stein has long operated a fish restaurant inPadstow for this reason, andJamie Oliver chose to open his second restaurant,Fifteen, inWatergate Bay nearNewquay.MasterChef host and founder of Smiths of Smithfield,John Torode, in 2007 purchased Seiners inPerranporth. One famous local fish dish isStargazy pie, a fish-based pie in which the heads of the fish stick through the piecrust, as though "star-gazing". The pie is cooked as part of traditional celebrations forTom Bawcock's Eve, but is not generally eaten at any other time.
Cornwall is perhaps best known though for itspasties, a savoury dish made with pastry. Today's pasties usually contain a filling of beef steak, onion, potato andswede with salt and white pepper, but historically pasties had a variety of different fillings. "Turmut, 'tates and mate" (i.e. "Turnip, potatoes and meat", turnip being the Cornish and Scottish term for swede, itself an abbreviation of 'Swedish Turnip', the British term forrutabaga) describes a filling once very common. For instance, the licky pasty contained mostly leeks, and the herb pasty contained watercress, parsley, and shallots.[110] Pasties are often locally referred to asoggies. Historically, pasties were also often made with sweet fillings such as jam, apple and blackberry, plums or cherries.[111]The wet climate and relatively poor soil of Cornwall make it unsuitable for growing many arable crops. However, it is ideal for growing the rich grass required for dairying, leading to the production of Cornwall's other famous export,clotted cream. This forms the basis for many local specialities including Cornishfudge and Cornishice cream. Cornish clotted cream hasProtected Geographical Status under EU law,[112] and cannot be made anywhere else. Its principal manufacturer isA. E. Rodda & Son of Scorrier.
Cornwall Council consider Cornwall's unique cultural heritage and distinctiveness to be one of the area's major assets. They see Cornwall's language, landscape, Celtic identity, political history, patterns of settlement, maritime tradition, industrial heritage, and non-conformist tradition, to be among the features making up its "distinctive" culture.[123] However, it is uncertain exactly how many of the people living in Cornwall consider themselves to be Cornish; results from different surveys (including the national census) have varied. In the2001 census, 7 per cent of people in Cornwall identified themselves as Cornish, rather than British or English. However, activists have argued that this underestimated the true number as there was no explicit "Cornish" option included in the official census form.[124] Subsequent surveys have suggested that as many as 44 per cent identify as Cornish.[125] Many people in Cornwall say that this issue would be resolved if a Cornish option became available on the census.[126] The question and content recommendations for the2011 census provided an explanation of the process of selecting an ethnic identity which is relevant to the understanding of the often quoted figure of 37,000 who claimed Cornish identity.[127] The2021 census found that 17% of people in Cornwall identified as being Cornish (89,000), with 14% of people in Cornwall identifying as Cornish-only (80,000).[128] Again there was no tick-box provided, and "Cornish" had to be written-in as "Other".[128][129]
Thefirst elections for the unitary authority were held on 4 June 2009. At themost recent council election in 2021, theConservative Party won 47 of the 87 seats. Also elected were 16independent councillors, 13Liberal Democrats, five from theLabour Party, five fromMebyon Kernow and oneGreen Party representative. Before the creation of the unitary council, the former county council had 82 seats, the majority of which were held by the Liberal Democrats, elected at the2005 county council elections. The six former districts had a total of 249 council seats, and the groups with greatest numbers of councillors were Liberal Democrats, Conservatives and Independents.
Until 1832, Cornwall was represented by 44Members of Parliament (MPs) in theHouse of Commons—more than any other county—reflecting the importance of tin mining to the Crown.[140] Most of the increase in numbers of MPs came between 1529 and 1584 after which there was no change until theReform Act 1832,[141] which enacted widespread changes to the country'selectoral system and reduced Cornwall's number of MPs to 14. This was reduced further in subsequentboundary commission reviews to better reflect Cornwall's population. The county is currently divided intosix county constituencies.
TheLiberal Party and its successor, the Liberal Democrats, have traditionally been popular in Cornwall; the Liberals won every Cornish seat in1906 andJanuary 1910, and again in1929 despite the party finishing third nationally. The Liberal Democrats won every seat in the county in2005, but lost seats to the Conservatives in2010 before being wiped out in2015. The Conservatives won all six Cornish seats in 2015,2017 and2019. Following expectation of a Conservative defeat at the2024 general election, Cornwall was considered a three-party battleground.[142] The Conservatives lost all six seats and the county is currently represented by four Labour and two Liberal Democrat MPs.
Although Cornwall does not have a designated government department, in 2007 whileLeader of the Opposition David Cameron created a Shadow Secretary of State for Cornwall. The position was not made into a formal UK Cabinet position when Cameron entered government following the2010 United Kingdom general election[143]
Cornish nationalists have organised into two political parties:Mebyon Kernow, formed in 1951, and theCornish Nationalist Party. In addition to the political parties, there are various interest groups such as theRevived Cornish Stannary Parliament and theCeltic League. The Cornish Constitutional Convention was formed in 2000 as a cross-party organisation including representatives from the private, public and voluntary sectors to campaign for the creation of aCornish Assembly,[144][145] along the lines of theNational Assembly for Wales,Northern Ireland Assembly and theScottish Parliament. Between 5 March 2000 and December 2001, the campaign collected the signatures of 41,650 Cornish residents endorsing the call for a devolved assembly, along with 8,896 signatories from outside Cornwall. The resulting petition was presented to the Prime Minister,Tony Blair.[144]
Falmouth Docks is the major port of Cornwall, and one of the largestnatural harbours in the worldTheEden Project near St Austell, Cornwall's largest tourist attraction in terms of visitor numbers
Cornwall is one of the poorest parts of the United Kingdom in terms of per capita GDP and average household incomes. At the same time, parts of the county, especially on the coast, have high house prices, driven up by demand from relatively wealthy retired people and second-home owners.[146] TheGVA per head was 65% of the UK average for 2004.[147] The GDP per head for Cornwall and theIsles of Scilly was 79.2% of the EU-27 average for 2004, the UK per head average was 123.0%.[148] In 2011, the latest available figures, Cornwall's (including the Isles of Scilly) measure of wealth was 64% of the European average per capita.[149]
Historicallymining of tin (and later also of copper) was important in the Cornish economy. The first reference to this appears to be by Pytheas:see above.Julius Caesar was the last classical writer to mention thetin trade, which appears to have declined during the Roman occupation.[150] The tin trade revived in the Middle Ages and its importance to the Kings of England resulted in certain privileges being granted to the tinners; theCornish rebellion of 1497 is attributed to grievances of the tin miners.[151] In the mid-19th century, however, the tin trade again fell into decline. Otherprimary sectorindustries that have declined since the 1960s includechina clay production, fishing and farming.
Today, the Cornish economy depends heavily on its tourist industry, which makes up around a quarter of the economy. The official measures of deprivation and poverty at district and 'sub-ward' level show that there is great variation in poverty and prosperity in Cornwall with some areas among the poorest in England and others among the top half in prosperity. For example, the ranking of 32,482 sub-wards in England in the index of multiple deprivation (2006) ranged from 819th (part of Penzance East) to 30,899th (part of Saltash Burraton in Caradon), where the lower number represents the greater deprivation.[152][153]
Cornwall was one of two UK areas designated as 'less developed regions' by theEuropean Union, which, prior toBrexit, meant the area qualified for EU Cohesion Policy grants.[154] It was grantedObjective 1 status by theEuropean Commission for 2000 to 2006,[155] followed by further rounds of funding known as 'Convergence Funding' from 2007 to 2013[156] and 'Growth Programme' for 2014 to 2020.[157]
Cornwall has a tourism-based seasonal economy which is estimated to contribute up to[clarification needed] 24% of Cornwall's gross domestic product.[158] In 2011 tourism brought £1.85 billion into the Cornish economy.[159] Cornwall's unique culture, spectacular landscape and mild climate make it a popular tourist destination, despite being somewhat distant from the United Kingdom's main centres of population. Surrounded on three sides by theEnglish Channel andCeltic Sea, Cornwall has many miles of beaches and cliffs; theSouth West Coast Path follows a complete circuit of both coasts. Other tourist attractions include moorland, country gardens, museums, historic and prehistoric sites, and wooded valleys. Five million tourists visit Cornwall each year, mostly drawn from within the UK.[160] Visitors to Cornwall are served by the airport atNewquay, whilst private jets, charters and helicopters are also served byPerranporth airfield; nightsleeper and daily rail services run between Cornwall, London and other regions of the UK.
Newquay andPorthtowan are popular destinations for surfers. In recent years, theEden Project nearSt Austell has been a major financial success, drawing one in eight of Cornwall's visitors in 2004.[161]
In the summer of 2018, due to the recognition of its beaches and weather through social media and the marketing of travel companies, Cornwall received about 20 per cent more visitors than the usual 4.5 million figure. The sudden rise and demand of tourism in Cornwall caused multiple traffic and safety issues in coastal areas.[162]
In October 2021, Cornwall was longlisted for theUK City of Culture 2025, but failed to make the March 2022 shortlist.[163]
Other industries includefishing, although this has been significantly re-structured by EU fishing policies (as of 2010[update] the Southwest Handline Fishermen's Association has started to revive the fishing industry).[164]
Agriculture, once an important part of the Cornish economy, has declined significantly relative to other industries. However, there is still a strong dairy industry, with products such as Cornishclotted cream.
Mining of tin and copper was also an industry, but today the derelict mine workings survive only as aWorld Heritage Site.[165] However, theCamborne School of Mines, which was relocated toPenryn in 2004, is still a world centre of excellence in the field of mining and applied geology[166] and the grant of World Heritage status has attracted funding for conservation and heritage tourism.[167]China clay extraction has also been an important industry in the St Austell area, but this sector has been in decline, and this, coupled with increased mechanisation, has led to a decrease in employment in this sector, although the industry still employs around 2,133 people in Cornwall, and generates over £80 million to the local economy.[168]
In March 2016, a Canadian company, Strongbow Exploration, had acquired, from administration, a 100% interest in theSouth Crofty tin mine and the associated mineral rights in Cornwall with the aim of reopening the mine and bringing it back to full production.[169] Work is currently ongoing to build a water filtration plant in order to dewater the mine.
Cornwall is the landing point for twenty-two of the world's fastest high-speed undersea and transatlantic fibre optic cables, making Cornwall an important hub within Europe's Internet infrastructure.[170] TheSuperfast Cornwall project completed in 2015,[171] and saw 95% of Cornish houses and businesses connected to a fibre-based broadband network, with over 90% of properties able to connect with speeds above 24 Mbit/s.[172]
The county's newest industry is aviation:Newquay Airport is the home of a growing business park with Enterprise Zone status, known as Aerohub. Also a space launch facility,Spaceport Cornwall, has been established at Newquay, in partnership with Goonhilly satellite tracking station near Helston in south Cornwall.[173]
Graph showing Cornwall's population from 1800 to 2000
Cornwall's population was 537,400 in the2011 census, with a population density of 144 people per square kilometre, ranking it 40th and 41st, respectively,[clarification needed] among the 47 counties of England. Cornwall's population was 95.7%White British and has a relatively high rate of population growth. At 11.2% in the 1980s and 5.3% in the 1990s, it had the fifth-highest population growth rate of the counties of England.[174] The natural change has been a small population decline, and the population increase is due to inward migration into Cornwall.[175] According to the 1991 census, the population was 469,800.
Cornwall has a relatively high retired population, with 22.9% of pensionable age, compared with 20.3% for the United Kingdom as a whole.[176] This may be due partly to Cornwall's rural and coastal geography increasing its popularity as a retirement location, and partly to outward migration of younger residents to more economically diverse areas.[original research?]
Over 10,000 students attend Cornwall's two universities,Falmouth University and theUniversity of Exeter (includingCamborne School of Mines). Falmouth University is a specialistpublic university for the creative industries and arts, while the University Of Exeter has two campuses in Cornwall, Truro andPenryn, the latter shared with Falmouth. Penryn campus is home to educational departments such as the rapidly growing Centre for Ecology andConservation (CEC), the Environment and Sustainability Institute (ESI), and theInstitute of Cornish Studies.
Cornwall has a comprehensive education system, with 31 state and eight independent secondary schools. There are three further education colleges:Truro and Penwith College,Cornwall College andCallywith College which opened in September 2017. The Isles of Scilly only has one school, while the former Restormel district has the highest school population, and school year sizes are around 200, with none above 270. Before the introduction of comprehensive schools there were a number of grammar schools and secondary modern schools, e.g. the schools that later becameSir James Smith's School andWadebridge School. There are also primary schools in many villages and towns: e.g.St Mabyn Church of England Primary School.
^Eilert Ekwall who studied the place-names of England in the 1930s and 40s gives the following forms: Cornubia in Vita Melori &c.; Middle Welsh Cerniu; Welsh Cernyw; Cornish: Kernow; (on) Cornwalum ASC 891; Cornwealum ASC(E) 997; "The Brit name goes back to *Cornavia probably derived from the tribal name Cornovii. OE Cornwealas means 'the Welsh in Cornwall' this folk-name later became the name of the district".[12]
^"Interpretation Act 1978: Schedule 1",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives, 1978 c. 30 (sch. 1), retrieved16 February 2024,"England" means, subject to any alteration of boundaries under Part IV of the Local Government Act 1972, the area consisting of the counties established by section 1 of that Act, Greater London and the Isles of Scilly. [1st April 1974].
^"Cornwall".Online Etymology Dictionary.Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved21 May 2013.
^"Horn".Online Etymology Dictionary.Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved21 May 2013.
^Cunliffe, Barry (2009). "A Race Apart: Insularity and Connectivity".Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society.75. The Prehistoric Society:55–64.doi:10.1017/S0079497X00000293.S2CID192963510.
^Champion, Timothy (2001). "The appropriation of the Phoenicians in British imperial ideology".Nations and Nationalism.7 (4):451–65.doi:10.1111/1469-8219.00027.
^Keynes, Simon; Lapidge, Michael (tr.) (1983),Alfred the Great: Asser's Life of King Alfred and other contemporary sources, London, Penguin Books, p. 175; cf.ibid, p. 89
^Stenton, F. M. (1947)Anglo-Saxon England. Oxford: Clarendon Press; p. 337
^E. M. R. Ditmas,Tristan and Iseult in Cornwall: The Twelfth-century Romance by Beroul Re-told from the Norman French, by E. M. R. Ditmas Together with Notes on Old Cornwall and a Survey of Place Names in the Poem (Forrester Roberts, 1970)
^Williams, Ann & Martin, G. H. (2002) (tr.)Domesday Book: a complete translation, London: Penguin, pp. 341–357
^Matthew, David (July 1924).The Cornish and Welsh Pirates in the Reign of Elizabeth. Vol. 39. The English Historical Review: Oxford University Press. pp. 337–348.
^Price, J. H., Hepton, C. E. L. and Honey, S. I. (1979).The Inshore Benthic Biota of the Lizard Peninsula, south west Cornwall: the marine algae – History; Chlorophyta; Phaeophyta.Cornish Studies; no. 7: pp. 7–37
^Bere, Rennie (1982)The Nature of Cornwall. Buckingham: Barracuda Books
^Hunt, Robert (1887).British Mining: A Treatise on the History, Discovery, Practical Development. London: E. & F. N. Spon. p. 778.Archived from the original on 25 May 2017. Retrieved8 November 2016.The tin stuff is put into a "kieve" about 31⁄2 feet diameter and 21⁄2 feet deep, and with an equal volume of water is continually stirred with a shovel in one direction until the tin stuff is in a state of suspended motion.
^Dictionary of Mining, Mineral, and Related Terms by American Geological Institute and U S Bureau of Mines; pp. 128, 249 & 613
^Rendle, Phil."Cornwall – The Mysteries of St Piran"(PDF).Proceedings of the XIX International Congress of Vexillology. The Flag Institute.Archived(PDF) from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved17 January 2010.
^Davies Gilbert in 1826 described it as anciently the flag of St Piran and the banner of Cornwall, and another history of 1880 said that: "The white cross of St. Piran was the ancient banner of the Cornish people."
^"Cohesion Policy and the United Kingdom"(PDF).European Union. October 2014.Archived(PDF) from the original on 8 April 2016. Retrieved28 March 2016.For 2014–2020, the UK has been allocated around €11.8 billion (current prices) in total Cohesion Policy funding: €2.6 billion for less developed regions (Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, West Wales and the Valleys).
^"Cornwall Council – Business – Europe".Cornwall Council. 18 December 2015. Archived fromthe original on 25 March 2016. Retrieved28 March 2016.The Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly Growth Programme is worth €603,706,863 (excluding technical assistance) and is made up of two main funding streams: European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) -The ERDF Programme is worth €452,780,147 and makes up 75% of the Programme allocation and European Social Fund (ESF) – The ESF Programme is worth €150,926,716 and makes up 25% of the Programme allocation.
^"Tourism in Cornwall 1992 to 2007"(PDF). Visit Cornwall. 2007. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 18 January 2012.. The total number of visitors to Cornwall includes those on business and visiting relatives.
^Rossiter, Keith (17 July 2018). "Aerohub to push ahead with satellite launches".The Western Morning News. p. 6.Backers of the Spaceport Cornwall project said they had reached an agreement with Virgin boss Richard Branson to launch from Newquay Airport. Virgin Orbit will use a modified Boeing 747 to put satellites into low Earth orbit ... A partnership involving Cornwall Airport Newquay, Goonhilly Earth Station and ... has been bidding for Government cash to create a spaceport ... Newquay has a very long runway, a growing airport with national and international connections and easy access to uncongested airspace over the Atlantic. Its Aerohub Enterprise Zone offers hundreds of acres for developing the business and manufacturing that will support the spaceport.
Clegg, David (2005).Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly: the complete guide (2nd ed.). Leicester: Matador.ISBN1-904744-99-0.
Halliday, Frank Ernest (1959).A History of Cornwall. London: Gerald Duckworth.ISBN0-7551-0817-5. A second edition was published in 2001 by the House of Stratus, Thirsk: the original text new illustrations and an afterword by Halliday's son
Balchin, W. G. V. (1954).Cornwall: an illustrated essay on the history of the landscape (The Making of the English Landscape). London: Hodder and Stoughton.
Berry, Claude (1949).Cornwall (TheCounty Books series). London: Robert Hale.
Boase, George Clement;Courtney, William Prideaux (1874–1882).Bibliotheca Cornubiensis: a catalogue of the writings, both manuscript and printed, of Cornishmen, and of works relating to the county of Cornwall, with biographical memoranda and copious literary references. London: Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer. 3 vols.
du Maurier, Daphne (1967).Vanishing Cornwall. London: Doubleday. (illustrated edition Published by Victor Gollancz, London, 1981,ISBN0-575-02844-0, photographs by Christian Browning)
Graves, Alfred Perceval (1928).The Celtic Song Book: Being Representative Folk Songs of the Six Celtic Nations. London: Ernest Benn. (Available online onDigital Book Index)
Koch, John T. (2006).Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia. London: ABC-CLIO.ISBN1-85109-440-7. (Available online onGoogle Books).
Stansfield-Cudworth, R. E. (2013), "The Duchy of Cornwall and the Wars of the Roses: Patronage, Politics, and Power, 1453–1502",Cornish Studies, 2nd Series,21:104–50,doi:10.17613/r6pf-3e17
Stoyle, Mark (2002).West Britons: Cornish Identities and the Early Modern British State. Exeter: University of Exeter Press.ISBN0-85989-688-9.
Williams, Michael, ed. (1973).My Cornwall. St Teath: Bossiney Books.ISBN0-85989-688-9. (eleven chapters by various hands, including three previously published essays)
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