The Cornish Riviera

by Sidney Heath

POLRUAN

As the principal Cornish seaport, the town sent Edward III no less than forty-seven ships and 770 mariners for the Calais expedition—a quota exceeded only by the eastern port of Yarmouth. Leland tells us that the place rose rapidly into importance "partely by feates of warre, partely by pyracie; and so waxing riche felle all to marchaundize, so that the towne was hauntid with shippes of diverse nations, and their shippes went to all nations". When the Cinque Ports of Rye and Winchelsea threatened to oust Fowey from its position as the premier Channel port, the Cornishmen defeated the mariners of Kent in a desperate sea fight, when they quartered the arms of the Cinque Ports on their own scutcheon, and assumed the title of "Fowey Gallaunts". They then made war on their own account against the French, and became little better than pirates ready to attack the ships of their own and every country, in port or on the high seas. They became such a thorn in the side of the king, Edward IV, by reason of their continuing to capture French ships after peace had been concluded, that the angry monarch caused them to be enticed to Lostwithiel, where their ringleaders were taken and hanged. From this period Fowey's maritime position began to decline. The inhabitants were compelled to pay a heavy fine, and the whole of their shipping was handed over to the port of Dartmouth.

Carew tells us that sixty ships belonged to Fowey at that period. The twin forts of Fowey were erected in the reign of Edward IV to protect the roadstead from the ravages of the French. Standing something like those below Dartmouth, on each side of the water, a thick boom or chain stretched across the mouth of the river would be sufficient protection against vessels propelled by sails. The last gallant action performed by these forts was in 1666, when they were assisted by the then almost new fort of St. Catherine. A Dutch fleet of eighty sail of the line was off the town in the hope of capturing an English fleet bound for Virginia, which had put into Fowey for shelter. A Dutch frigate of 74 guns attempted to force the entrance, but after being under the crossfire of the forts for two hours, was forced to tack about and regain the open sea.

Sir A. T. Quiller-Couch writes thus of Fowey in Troy Town. "The visitor," says he, "if he be of my mind, will find a charm in Fowey over and above its natural beauty, and what I may call its holiday conveniences, for the yachtsman, for the sea-fisherman, or for one content to idle in peaceful waters. It has a history, and carries the marks of it. It has also a flourishing trade and a life of its own."

The church of St. Fimbarrus, almost hidden from view except from the harbour side, is mainly of fifteenth-century date, although portions may well be a century earlier. The roof of the tall tower is richly decorated, and the north aisle is undoubtedly the remnant of a much earlier edifice. There are two good brasses and some interesting monuments, also a memorial to Sir John Treffry, who captured the French standard at the battle of Poictiers.

The most important piece of domestic architecture in the neighbourhood is Place House, the seat of the Treffry family. This is a fine Tudor mansion, that is said to occupy the site of a royal palace, reputed to have been the residence of the Earls of Cornwall. Leland records that on one occasion, when the French attempted to take the town, "the wife of Thomas Treffry with her servants, repelled their enemies out of the house, in her husband's absence; whereupon he builded a right faire and strong embattled tower in his house, and embattled it to the walls of his house". The ancient church also is worth a visit, and among its many memorials is an elaborate monument to one of the Rashleigh family, another of the old Cornish families, whose history seems to be as ancient as the legends of the county. The inscription on the tomb reads:—

"JOHN RAISHELEIGHE LYVED YEARES THREESCORE THREE

AND THEN DID YEILDE TO DYE,

HE DID BEQVEATHE HIS SOVLE TO GOD

HIS CORPS HEREIN TO LYE.

"THE DEVONSHEIRE HOWSE Y^t RAISHELEIGHE HEIGHT

WELL SHEWETH FROM WHENCE HE CAME;

HIS VIRTVOVS LIEF IN FOYE TOWNN

DESERVETH ENDLESS FAME.

"LANION HE DID TAKE TO WIFE, BY HER HAD CHILDREN STORE,

YET AT HIS DEATHE BOT DAVGHTERS SIXE, ONE SONNE HE HAD NOE MORE.

ALL THEM TO PORTRAHE VNDER HERE, BECAVSE FITTE SPACE WAS NONE,

THE SONNE, WHOSE ONLI ECHARGE THIS WAS, IS THEREFORE SETT ALONE."

For the yachting man Fowey is very attractive, although during the season the small harbour is rather too crowded with craft. The entrance presents difficulties to the unexperienced amateur, but once inside the headlands there is usually no difficulty in securing a safe and convenient berth.

The favourite anchorage is off Polruan, but there is deep water for a considerable distance beyond that straggling village.

The river excursions from Fowey are full of charm, but so much depends on the state of the tide. The short trip by boat to Golant, a distance of two miles, should not be missed. The village occupies a cleft on the hillside, where the gardens and orchards reach down to the water's edge. Luxulyan, with its deep sylvan valley and large perched blocks of stone, is another favourite spot for excursions.

At the head of the river stands Lostwithiel, with a church whose tower the late Mr. G. Street, R.A., was wont to designate "the pre-eminent glory of Cornwall". Near the church are the ruins of Restormel Castle, while the Fowey and the little river Lerryn are good fishing streams where plenty of salmon and trout fishing may be enjoyed.

For the pedestrian there is a large choice of walks within a moderate distance, to Par Harbour, St. Blazey, and St. Austell, the last with a fine church, on the walls of which is a well sculptured representation of the Veronica. The shore rambles are equally numerous and attractive.

Cornwall may be said to possess three capitals. Launceston the historic capital, Bodmin the town of Assize, and Truro the ecclesiastical and commercial centre. To reach the last named for the purposes of our present journey, the visitor cannot do better than take train at Par Junction. Truro itself cannot be said to possess much in the way of civic beauty or historical interest, although it is an excellent centre for touring purposes. Moreover it has, pending the completion of the fine structure in the course of erection on the banks of the Mersey, the honour of possessing the only Protestant Cathedral erected in this country since the Reformation. The name "Truro" is thought to be derived either from Tru-ru, the three streets, or Tre-rhiw, the village on the slope (of the river). There is a general impression that Truro is on the river Fal, but the truth is that the triangular piece of land on which the city stands, is washed on the east by the river Allen, and on the west by the Kenwyn. Between these two streams lies modern Truro, with its stately cathedral rising high above the houses that surround it. Truro's most eminent son, Samuel Foote, was born in 1720 at the town house of his father's family, the Footes of Lambesso. The house, now the Red Lion Hotel in Boscawen Street, has retained a good many of its original features, including a very fine oak staircase. Foote is generally considered to be the greatest of the dramatic authors of his class, while in power of mimicry and broad humour he had few equals. In late life he lost his leg through an accident in riding, a circumstance that led to his producing a play, The Lame Lover, in which his loss of a limb might be made a positive advantage. In all, his plays and dramatic pieces number about twenty, and he boasted at the close of his life that he had enriched the English stage with sixteen quite new characters.

Truro was also the birthplace of the brothers Richard and John Lander, the explorers; Bode, a painter of some merit; and Richard Polwhele, the historian of Devon and Cornwall.