In this parish are the two camps or treble intrenchments of our ancestors the Britains, called Denis and Great Denis or Dunes, words of two import, signifying the great castle and the little castle, fort, fortress, or fortified place, wherein the inhabitants heretofore posted themselves for their safety against foreign invaders. See [St. Colomb Major].
TONKIN.
By this church is a small promontory of land running out into the sea, which, from its resemblance to Pendinas, is called the Little Dinas. It was formerly fortified, and had some guns planted upon it to secure the entrance of Hailford harbour, which not being very broad it well may command. And in time of wars, it were very convenient there should be still some guns there, for the safety of the ships that trade to and again in this harbour, which, as the case now stands, may be easily carried off by privateers. Thus much may be said for the honour of this place—it was the last which held out for King Charles in Cornwall;[10] for, after the taking of Pendinas, it sustained a siege of several weeks, and at last was forced to surrender for want of ammunition.
THE EDITOR.
The measurement of this parish is 1265 statute acres.
| £. | s. | d. | |
| Annual value of the Real Property, as returned to Parliament in 1815 | 2095 | 3 | 0 |
| Amount of Poor Rate in 1831 | 186 | 0 | 0 |
| Population,— | |||
| in 1801, 261 | in 1811, 224 | in 1821, 330 | in 1831, 300. |
Increase on an hundred in 30 years 14.9, or very nearly 15 per cent.
On an estate near the churchyard, celled Lantenny, foundations of buildings and remains of human bodies have been found; the presumed relics of a cell of black monks of Angiers, belonging to the priory of Tywardreth, which existed at this place as early as the reign of Richard I. Lysons.
Dr. Boase remarks that the rocks of this parish are precisely similar to the rocks of St. Anthony in Powder,