Cornwall

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Cornwall
Kernow

Onen hag Oll - One and All
Geography
Status	Duchy of Cornwall
Region	South West Britain, UK
Population - Total (2004 est.) - Density - Admin. council - Admin. pop.	517,500 145 / km² 515,300
Admin HQ	Truro
ISO 3166-2	GB-CON
ONS code	15
NUTS 3	UKK30
Demographics
Population - Total (2006 est.) - Density - Admin. council - Admin. pop.	527,216 148 / km² 524,887
Ethnicity	99.0% White
Politics
Cornwall Council [1]	Cornwall Liberal Democrats [2]
Executive	Liberal Democrat
Members of Parliament	Julia Goldsworthy Dan Rogerson Colin Breed Andrew George Matthew Taylor
Districts
Penwith Kerrier Carrick Restormel Caradon North Cornwall Isles of Scilly (Unitary)

Cornwall (Cornish: Kernow) is a region at the extreme South-West of Britain on the peninsula that lies to the west of the low water mark on the eastern bank of the River Tamar. In the 20th century there has been a revival of the Cornish language and as one of the six Celtic nations there has been some debate over the constitutional status of Cornwall. (Many Cornish people refer to Cornwall as a Duchy; its legal status as part of England, and thus the Crown, is a matter of constitutional dispute).

Including the Isles of Scilly, located 28 miles (45 km) offshore, Cornwall covers an area of 1,376 square miles (3,563 km²). There is a population of 513,527 with a population density of 144 people per square kilometre, or 373 per square mile. [3] Tourism provides approximately 25% of the local economy. However, it is the poorest area in the United Kingdom with the lowest contribution to the national economy,[4] (behind Merseyside and the Tees Valley and Durham). Cornwall is the only area in Southern Britain to qualify for Objective One funding (GDP per capita for the region must be below 75% of the EU average).[5]

Contents 1 History 2 Physical geography 3 Politics 4 Flag 5 Demographics 6 Economy 6.1 Tourism 6.2 Industry 6.3 Creative Industries 7 Culture 7.1 Language 7.2 Cornish studies and literary references 7.3 Religion 7.4 Music and festivals 7.5 Sports and games 7.6 Food and drink 8 Settlements 9 Transport 10 Places of interest 11 Miscellanea 12 See also 13 External links

History

See main:- History of Cornwall

The history of Cornwall begins with the pre-Roman inhabitants, including speakers of a Celtic language that would develop into Brythonic and Cornish. After a period of Roman rule, Cornwall reverted to independent Celtic chieftains. The erm for the tribe which inhabited what is now Cornwall at the time of Roman rule, the Cornovii, was derived from a Brythonic tribal name which gave modern Cornish Kernow. (For other examples of the survival of Brythonic names noted by the Romans, see Dyfed / Demetae, Cantiaci / Kent , Gwynedd / Veneti and Durotriges / Dorset.) The present English language name of the region derives from suffixing of Old English wealhas ("foreigners, Britons") to the Celtic name.

The site of ancient Belerion, Cornwall, was the principal source of tin for the civilisations of the ancient Mediterranean and evidence has been found of trade with cultures as far off as Phoenicia, located in present day Lebanon. At one time the Cornish were the world's foremost experts at mining. As Cornwall's reserves of tin began to be exhausted many Cornishmen emigrated to places such as the Americas, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa where their skills were in demand. The Cornish Uprising of 1497 is attributed to tin miners. The tin mines in Cornwall are now worked-out at current prices, but the expertise and culture of the Cornish tin miners lives on in a number of places around the world. It is said that, wherever you may go in the world, if you see a hole in the ground, you will find a Cornishman at the bottom of it. Several Cornish mining words are in use in English language mining terminology, such as costean, gunnies, and vug.

Since the decline of tin mining, agriculture and fishing, the area's economy has become increasingly dependent on tourism — some of Great Britain's most spectacular coastal scenery can be found here. Nevertheless, Cornwall remains the poorest part of the United Kingdom and it has been granted Objective 1 status by the EU. A political party, Mebyon Kernow, MK, or 'Sons of Cornwall', was formed in 1951 to attempt to assert some degree of autonomy (see Cornish nationalism); while the flag of St Piran is seen increasingly across Cornwall at protests, demonstrations and generally, the party has not achieved significant success at the ballot box, although they do have a number of district councillors. Two of the current MPs to Westminster — Andrew George, MP for St Ives; and Dan Rogerson, MP for North Cornwall — repeated their Parliamentary oaths in Cornish. Further, there is a caucus of local county councillors who are well known locally for their persistent advocacy of Cornwall's political uniqueness.

Physical geography

Cornwall, being exposed to the full force of the Atlantic Ocean, is composed entirely of resistant rocks, as less resistant rocks have been eroded away. The centre of the county is largely Devonian sandstone and slate. The north east of the county lies on Carboniferous sandstone. Cornwall is particularly known for its igneous outcrops, which include the granite of Bodmin Moor and the areas around Camborne and Land's End, and the dark green serpentine of the Lizard Peninsula. The granite forms high treeless moors on which sheep graze, and the characteristic Cornish cliffs. The alkaline soils of the Lizard support a rare heathland plant, the Cornish Heath.

Bude and Crackington Haven on the North Cornish coast have given their names to two geological formations — the Bude formation and the Crackington formation. When a tablecloth is pushed inwards, it folds upwards and overlaps; and that it has the spectacular overlapping strata of the cliffs of Bude and Crackington Haven were created during the Carboniferous era. Also of geological importance is the Lizard Peninsula; it contains metamorphic rocks from the Precambrian era (around 640 million years ago in this case) making it the oldest piece of rock in Cornwall.

Cornwall is the southernmost part of Great Britain, and therefore has a relatively warm climate. However, being unprotected from the Atlantic it also has more extreme weather. The average annual temperature for most of the county is 10.2 to 12 degrees Celsius (50 to 54 F), with slightly lower temperatures on the moors. [6]. Cornwall has relatively high rainfall, though less than more northern areas of the west coast, at 1051 to 1290mm (41.4 to 50.8 in) per year.[7][8]

Politics

Parliamentary representation for Cornwall is dominated by the Liberal Democrats. Currently all five of the Cornish MPs are Liberal Democrats. The local councils also have a large portion of Lib Dem members. Most local Liberal Democrat MPs and councillors strongly support moves for Cornish devolution, as do some Welsh nationalists.

Although Cornwall is currently administered as a county of England, an independence movement exists that seeks more autonomy along the lines of the other home Celtic nations. Additionally some groups and individuals question the constitutional status of Cornwall and its relation to the Duchy of Cornwall, which is a private estate of the Prince of Wales. Cornish nationalists have organised into two political parties: Mebyon Kernow and the Cornish Nationalist Party, and in 2005 Mebyon Kernow became the largest political group on Camborne town council after a by-election. In addition to the political parties the Cornish Stannary Parliament acts as a pressure group on Cornish constitutional issues and Cornwall 2000 the Human Rights organisation works with Cornish cultural issues.

In November 2000 the Cornish Constitutional Convention was formed to campaign for a Cornish Assembly. It is a cross-party organisation including representatives from the private, public and voluntary sectors, of all political parties and none.

Between 5 March 2000 and December 2001, the campaign for a Cornish Assembly collected the signatures of 41,650 Cornish residents endorsing the Declaration for a Cornish Assembly, in total 50,546 including people outside Cornwall. The British government however has no plans at present to devolve more power to Cornwall.

Flag

Saint Piran's Flag is regarded as the flag of Cornwall and an emblem of the Cornish people. The banner of Saint Piran is a vertical white cross on a black background. Saint Piran is supposed to have adopted these two colours from seeing the white tin in the black coals and ashes during his supposed discovery of tin. In a history of 1837 Saint Piran's flag was described as the "standard of Cornwall", and another history of 1880 said that: "The white cross of St. Piran was the ancient banner of the Cornish people." The Cornish flag is an exact reverse of the former Breton flag (black cross on a white field) and is known by the same name "Gwynn ha Du" - white and black. There are claims that the design of the Pian flag dates from prior to 1188 when it was used in the Crusades,[9] and an article in Encyclopædia Britannica tells that the flag was carried by the Cornish contigent at the Battle of Agincourt (1415).

There are claims that the patron saint of Cornwall is Saint Michael or Saint Petroc, but Saint Piran is by far the most popular of the three and his emblem is internationally recognised as the flag of Cornwall. St. Piran's Day March 5) is celebrated by Cornish people around the world.

Demographics

Cornwall's population is 513,527, and population density 144 people per square kilometre. Cornwall has a relatively high level of population growth, at 11.2% in the 1980s and 5.3% in the 1990s. The natural change has been a small population decline, and the population increase is due to immigration into the Duchy.[10]. According to the 1991 census, the population was 469,800.

Cornwall has a relatively high retired population, with 22.9% of pensionable age, compared to 20.3% for the United Kingdom.[11]. This may be due to a combination of Cornwall's rural and coastal geography increasing its popularity as a retirement location, and due to the emigration of younger residents to more economically diverse areas. Migration of pensioners from southern England to Cornwall, and emigration of young Cornish people, is a persistent concern — the Cornish ethnicity figures in the census of 2001 showed that 10.8 per cent of those identifying as ethnically Cornish in the United Kingdom lived outside Cornwall, a relatively high rate in terms of global diasporas, comparable to the experiences of Italy or Greece.

Cornwall is one of the six modern Celtic nations alongside Brittany, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland and Wales. Just under 7% of the population of Cornwall gave their ethnicity as Cornish in the last census, however, in a 2004 survey by Morgan Stanley 44% of the population considered themselves Cornish.[12]. Following the 2001 Census, Cornish campaigners made representations to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to provide a clear 'Cornish' tick-box option prior to the next Census to allow people the right to record their nationality as Cornish. [13][14]

Economy

Cornwall is the poorest area in the United Kingdom. The GDP is 62% of the national average.[15] Cornwall is one of four UK areas that qualifies for poverty-related grants from the EU (European Social Fund). Today, the Cornish economy is largely dependent upon agriculture followed by the tourist industry, which makes just under 25% of the Cornish economy.

Traditional areas such as tin mining, fishing and china clay extraction have gradually shed workers in recent years.

Educated young people continue to leave the Duchy in numbers and despite Objective One funding Cornwall's economy continues a downward spiral.

Tourism

Cornwall's unique culture, spectacular landscape and mild climate make it a popular tourist destination, despite being somewhat isolated from the United Kingdom's main tourist centres. Surrounded on three sides by the Atlantic Ocean, English Channel and Celtic Sea, Cornwall has miles of beaches and cliffs. Other tourist attractions include moorland, country gardens and wooded valleys, and tourism is a significant economic sector.

Five million tourists visit Cornwall each year, mostly drawn from within the UK.[16] In particular, Newquay is a popular destination for surfers.

Industry

Other industries are fishing, although this has been significantly damaged by EU fishing policies, and agriculture, which has also declined significantly. Mining of tin and copper was also an industry, but today no longer exists, and several defunct mines have applied for status as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Creative Industries

In recent years Cornwall's creative industries have undergone significant growth, thanks in part to Objective One funding. There is now a significant creative industry in Cornwall encompassing areas like graphic design, product design, web design, packaging design, environmental design, architecture, photography, art and crafts.

Culture

Culture of Cornwall

Language

Cornish language The Cornish language is closely related to Welsh and Breton, and less so to Irish, Scots Gaelic and Manx. It continued as a living Celtic language until the 1800s. The publication of Henry Jenner's "Handbook of the Cornish Language" in 1904 caused a resurgence of interest in the Cornish language. The subsequent revival gathered pace during the twentieth century and, although there has never been a census, most estimates agree that there are now around 4,000 Cornish speakers, around 500 of whom are fluent, and there are several families who have raised their children with the language. Cornish was recognised by the UK government as an official minority language in 2002 and it received government funding in 2005. It is beginning to be taught in many schools and used in religious and civic ceremonies such as the Cornish Gorseth and has helped boost Cornish cultural identity.

Some Cornish surnames are prefixed by Tre, Pol, or Pen, as indicated in the rhyme "by Tre, Pol and Pen ye shall know Cornishmen." These come from Cornish language words meaning, respectively, town (or farm), pool, and head (or end).

Cornish studies and literary references

The Institute of Cornish Studies, established in 1970, is a branch of the University of Exeter, and now part of the Combined Universities in Cornwall Campus at Tremough, Penryn. Philip Payton, professor in Cornish studies, has written a history of Cornwall as well as editing the Cornish studies series, and other academics, including Mark Stoyle of the University of Southampton and John Angarrack of the human rights organisation Cornwall 2000, have also produced work on Cornish culture.

A detailed overview of literature is provided by A. M. Kent's 'The Literature of Cornwall'. It covers everything from medieval mystery plays to more recent literary works that draw on the Cornish landscape. Notable Cornish writers include Arthur Quiller-Couch alias "Q", the deaf short story writer, Jack Clemo and D. M. Thomas acclaimed author and poet.

Cornwall also produced a substantial amount of passion plays during the Middle Ages. Many are still extant, and provide valuable information about the Cornish language.

Daphne du Maurier lived in Cornwall and set many of her novels there, including Jamaica Inn, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel, and The House on the Strand. Rebecca is said to have been set in Cornwall, but this is not stated explicitly in the novel. She is also noted for writing Vanishing Cornwall. Charles de Lint's novel The Little Country, Winston Graham's series Poldark, Kate Tremayne's Adam Loveday series, Susan Cooper's novels Over Sea, Under Stone and Greenwitch, Mary Wesley's The Camomile Lawn and Gilbert and Sullivan's musical The Pirates of Penzance are all set in Cornwall.

Religion

Traditionally, the Cornish have been nonconformists, in religion. Celtic Christianity was a feature of Cornwall and many Cornish saints are commemorated in legends, churches and place names.

The Methodism of John Wesley also proved to be very popular with the working classes in Cornwall in the 18th century. Cornwall has shared in the post-World War II decline in British religious feeling.

In 2003, a campaign group was formed called Fry an Spyrys (free the spirit in Cornish) [17]. It is dedicated to disestablishing the Church of England in Cornwall.

Music and festivals

Cornwall has a rich and vibrant folk music tradition which has survived into the present. Cornwall is well known for its unusual folk survivals such as Mummers Plays, the Furry Dance in Helston, and Obby Oss in Padstow.

Cornish players are regular participants in inter-Celtic festivals, and Cornwall itself has several lively inter-Celtic festivals such as Perranporth's Lowender Peran folk festival[18].

Sports and games

Cornwall has its own unique form of wrestling related to Breton wrestling.

Another sport found in Cornwall is hurling, a kind of medieval football played with a silver ball. Hurling is distinct from Irish Hurling. The sport now takes place in St Columb and St Ives although hurling of a silver ball is part of the beating the bounds ceremony at Bodmin every five years.

Rugby union has the largest following in Cornwall (more so than football), with the Cornish Pirates (recently renamed from Penzance & Newlyn RFC) in National League 1 and hoping to tap into the large amount of Cornish nationalist sentiment). Launceston RFC "the Cornish All Blacks", Redruth RFC "the Reds" and Mounts Bay are also in the national leagues and get good support. The Cornish rugby team regularly draws large crowds of supporters, dubbed Trelawny's Army, especially if they are progressing towards a Twickenham final.

The Cornwall Cricket side compete in the Minor Counties Championship, the second tier National structure. Talented players, produced by the vigorous league sides, have frequently found employment with senior teams and two have gone on to receive international recognition.

Due to its large coastline, various maritime sports are popular in Cornwall, notably sailing and surfing. International events in both are held in Cornwall and Cornwall held the Inter-Celtic Watersports Festival in 2006.

Rock climbing on the sea cliffs and inland cliffs has been popular since the pioneeering work of A. W. Andrews and others in the early 1900s, and is now highly developed.

Euchre is a popular card game in Cornwall, it is normally a game for four players consisting of two teams. Its origins are unclear but some claim it is a Cornish game. There are several leagues in Cornwall at present.

A recent application for a place in the 2006 Commonwealth Games was refused by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF). The Cornwall Commonwealth Games Association claimed that Cornwall should be recognised with a team, in the way that other sub-state entities such as England, Guernsey and the Isle of Man are. However, the CGF noted that it was not their place to make political decisions on whether or not Cornwall is a separate nation.[19][20]

Food and drink

Cornwall is famous for its pasties (not a pastry dish as it is not sweet; traditionally a Cornish pasty — known locally as simply a pasty or an oggie — contains beef steak, potato, onion and turnip with salt and white pepper), but saffron buns, Cornish Heavy (Hevva) Cake, Cornish fairings (biscuit), Cornish fudge and Cornish ice cream are other specialities.

Cornwall is also well-known for clotted cream and local caught fish. The famous UK chef Rick Stein operates a fish restaurant in Padstow and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has opened a beachside restaurant at Watergate Bay near Newquay.

Older traditional foods include star-gazy pie (a fish-based pie with fish heads and tails sticking through the pasty crust, as though star-gazing) and thunder and lightning (bread with clotted cream and golden syrup).

There are also many types of beers brewed in Cornwall — the St Austell brewery is the largest — including a stout. Other notable breweries include Sharps and Skinners. There is also some small scale production of wine and cider.

Settlements

This is a list of the main towns in Cornwall; for a complete list of settlements see list of places in Cornwall.

• Bodmin
• Bude
• Camborne
• Falmouth
• Hayle
• Helston
• Launceston
• Liskeard
• Newquay
• Penzance
• Redruth
• Saltash
• St Austell
• St Ives
• Truro
• Wadebridge

Transport

Cornwall borders the county of Devon at the River Tamar. Major road links between Cornwall and the rest of Great Britain are the A38 road which crosses the Tamar at Plymouth via the Tamar Bridge, and the A30 road which crosses the border south of Launceston. A car ferry (Torpoint Ferry) also links Plymouth with the town of Torpoint on the opposite side of the Hamoaze. A rail bridge, the Royal Albert Bridge, built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1859) provides the only other major transport link.

Newquay has an airport which has flights from London Gatwick, London Stansted, Bristol, Manchester, Leeds Bradford, Dublin, Birmingham, Durham Tees Valley and flys to Ireland, France and Spain. The airport shares RAF St. Mawgan's runways and facilities; however, this is under threat as the Ministry of Defence is planning to mothball the base.

The Isles of Scilly are served by ferry (from Penzance), helicopter (Penzance Heliport) and fixed wing aeroplane (Land's End Aerodrome, near St Just). Further flights to St Mary's, Scilly Isles, are available from Exeter airport in Devon.

Places of interest

Barbara Hepworth Museum Bodmin and Wenford Railway Bodmin Moor Carn Euny Carrick Roads Castle An Dinas Chûn Castle Chûn Quoit Chysauster Ancient Village Commando Ridge, Bosigran Cotehele Eden Project Geevor Tin Mine Godrevy Island Goonhilly Downs The Hurlers Kynance Cove Land's End Lanhydrock House Lanyon Quoit Lappa Valley Steam Railway Looe Island Leach Pottery The Lizard Loe Pool

Lost Gardens of Heligan Mên-an-Tol Minack Theatre Mousehole Mullion Cove Newyn School of Art National Maritime Museum Paradise Park, Hayle Pencarrow Pendennis Castle Penlee House Poldhu Polperro Museum of Submarine Telegraphy Restormel Castle River Fowey River Looe Roseland Peninsula National Seal Sanctuary, Gweek South West Coast Path St Mawes Castle St Michael's Mount Tate St. Ives Tintagel Castle Trelissick Garden Trinity House National Lighthouse Museum Truro Cathedral

Miscellanea

The Isles of Scilly have in some periods been served by the same council administration as Cornwall, but are today a separate Unitary Authority. The Health Authority covering Cornwall, however, does include The Isles of Scilly in its area of responsibility.

See also

• Celtic nations
• Cornish History
• Constitutional status of Cornwall
• Cornish Assembly
• Cornish language
• Cornish nationalism
• Cornish people
• Stannary Courts and Parliaments
• Cornish Stannary Parliament
• Cornish Rebellion of 1497
• Cornwall Commonwealth Games Association
• Duchess of Cornwall
• Duchy of Cornwall
• Duke of Cornwall
• Earl of Cornwall
• Kingdom of Cornwall
• Legendary Dukes of Cornwall
• List of Cornish people
• List of topics related to Cornwall
• Mebyon Kernow
• Perkin Warbeck
• Cornish Rebellion of 1497 - An Gof
• Cornish Rebellion of 1497 - Thomas Flamank
• Keskerdh Kernow 500
• Cornish Prayer Book Rebellion 1549
• Cornish Culture and Identity
• The Cornish National Anthem
• Cornish Stannary Parliament
• The Cornish Gorseth (Gorseth Kernow)
• Cornish Duchy
• Cornish Mines & Engines
• Cornish Inventor - Richard Trevithick
• Heavyweight Boxer - Bob Fitzsimmons
• Cornish Music
• Cornish Nationalist Party
• Cornish Rugby
• Cornish wrestling
• Cornish Pasty
• Helston Furry Dance
• Federation of Old Cornwall Societies
• Mining in Cornwall

External links

• TINE Cornish Forum
• Cornwall Council
• Mebyon Kernow
• The Cornish Stannary Parliament
• Cornish tick box petition
• TGG Kernow
• John Angarrack bookshop
• Cornwall 24 - Cornwall's independent news and discussion site
• Cornish History
• Campaign for a Cornish Assembly
• Cornish Heritage
• Cornish Democrat blog
• Mebyon Kernow - Dick Cole's blog
• Facebook for Cornish Independence
• BBC - Maps and History of Kernow
• YouTube Kernow
• Bro Goth Agan Tasow - Cornish National Anthem
• Cornish History
• Stop the 70,000 new Cornish homes petition
• Cornish Assembly petition
• Cornish Crosses in West Penwith.
• Cornwall Commonwealth Games Association
• Hot topics for Cornwall
• Trelawny's Army - Cornish Rugby Supporters' Club
• TGG Kernow - Tyr-Gwyr-Gweryn means 'Land-Truth-People'
• The Institute of Cornish Studies
• A Cornish Sourcebook
• Cornish Population Trends since 1901
• Cornish National Minority
• BBC - The Cornish: A Neglected Nation?
• Gorseth Kernow
• Cornwall GB
• Map of Cornwall (Kernow)
• The Cornish Assembly - Senedh Kernow
• The Celtic League
• The Cornish Language
• Cornish Objective One
• What makes Cornwall unique? - from Cornwall 24
• London Cornish Association
• Cornish Associations Overseas
• Cornwall Beaches Info and photos of over 150 beaches around Cornwall

Photographs

• Images Cornwall Extensive collection of high quality Cornwall photos