102-568: The geography of Cornwall ( Cornish : Doronieth Kernow ) describes the extreme southwestern peninsula of England west of the River Tamar . The population of Cornwall is greater in the less extensive west of the county than the east due to Bodmin Moor 's location; however the larger part of the population live in rural areas. It is the only county in England bordered by only one other county, Devon , and
204-571: A Dutch , a French , and a German edition) appeared before the end of 1572; twenty-five editions came out before Ortelius's death in 1598; and several others were published subsequently, for the atlas continued to be in demand until about 1612. Most of the maps were admittedly reproductions (a list of 87 authors is given in the first Theatrum by Ortelius himself, growing to 183 names in the 1601 Latin edition), and many discrepancies of delineation or nomenclature occur. Errors, of course, abound, both in general conceptions and in detail; thus South America
306-694: A folk music tradition that has survived into the present and is well known for its unusual folk survivals such as Mummers Plays , the Furry Dance in Helston played by the famous Helston Town Band , and Obby Oss in Padstow . Newlyn is home to a food and music festival that hosts live music, cooking demonstrations, and displays of locally caught fish. Abraham Ortelius Abraham Ortelius ( / ɔːr ˈ t iː l i ə s / ; also Ortels , Orthellius , Wortels ; 4 or 14 April 1527 – 28 June 1598)
408-530: 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. The Cornish flag is an exact reverse of the former Breton black cross national flag and is known by the same name " Kroaz Du ". Since the 19th century, Cornwall, with its unspoilt maritime scenery and strong light, has sustained a vibrant visual art scene of international renown. Artistic activity within Cornwall
510-517: A first language in the late 18th century. In the 20th and 21st centuries, it has been revived by a small number of speakers. It is closely related to the other Brythonic languages ( Breton and Welsh ), and less so to the Goidelic 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
612-540: A keen interest in and formed a fine collection of coins , medals and antiques , and this resulted in the book (also in 1573, published by Philippe Galle of Antwerp) Deorum dearumque capita ... ex Museo Ortelii ("Heads of the gods and goddesses... from the Ortelius Museum"); reprinted in 1582, 1602, 1612, 1680, 1683 and finally in 1699 by Gronovius, Thesaurus Graecarum Antiquitatum ("Treasury of Greek Antiquities", vol. vii). The Theatrum Orbis Terrarum inspired
714-678: A large part of the Cornwall National Landscape . The national landscape also includes Bodmin Moor , an upland outcrop of the Cornubian batholith granite formation. The county contains many short rivers; the longest is the Tamar , which forms the border with Devon. Cornwall had a minor Roman presence, and later formed part of the Brittonic kingdom of Dumnonia . From the 7th century, the Britons in
816-661: 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 and Swansea , across the Bristol Channel, have at some times in the past been connected to Cornwall by ferry, but these do not operate now. The Isles of Scilly are served by ferry (from Penzance) and by aeroplane, having its own airport: St Mary's Airport . There are regular flights between St Mary's and Land's End Airport , near St Just, and Newquay Airport ; during
918-547: A nation on a par with Wales and examples include the maps of Sebastian Münster , Abraham Ortelius , and Girolamo Ruscelli . After the 17th century, maps of Cornwall tended to no longer make the distinction between Anglia and Cornubia , the British Sea was renamed the English Channel and Cornwall as a separate entity was omitted from the maps. From 1889 to March 2009 Cornwall was administered by Cornwall County Council ;
1020-588: A number of botanical gardens, such as Trebah and the Lost Gardens of Heligan . The Isles of Scilly , for example, is the warmest place in the whole of Great Britain with an average temperature of 11.6 °C, where there are on average less than two days of air frost per year, are in the USDA Hardiness zone 10, which is thus the only area in the UK that is in this zone. However, compared to most other climates in zone 10, Scilly has cool summers. In Scilly there
1122-709: A raid from the Tamar to Land's End, and the end of Cornish independence. However, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle states that in 825 (adjusted date) a battle took place between the Wealas (Cornish) and the Defnas (men of Devon) at Gafulforda . The Cornish giving battle here, and the later battle at Hingston Down, casts doubt on any claims of control Wessex had at this stage. In 838, the Cornish and their Danish allies were defeated by Egbert in
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#17328449046391224-573: A result, in 2005 its promoters received limited government funding. Several words originating in Cornish are used in the mining terminology of English, such as costean , gossan , gunnies , kibbal, kieve and vug . 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
1326-409: A separate unitary authority though they are included in the ceremonial county. Natural resources include: granite , slate , tin , copper and kaolinite . Agricultural land: 73.64%; Woodland cover: 7.5%; Other types: 18.86%. The deposits of tin, copper and kaolinite were heavily exploited during the 19th and 20th centuries. Some species of fish are abundant in the coastal waters; the pilchard fishery
1428-488: A six-sheet map of Spain before the appearance of his atlas. In England Ortelius's contacts included William Camden , Richard Hakluyt , Thomas Penny , Puritan controversialist William Charke , and Humphrey Llwyd , who would contribute the map of England and Wales to Ortelius's 1573 edition of the Theatrum . In 1578, he laid the basis of a critical treatment of ancient geography by his Synonymia geographica (issued by
1530-695: A six-volume work titled Civitates orbis terrarum , edited by Georg Braun and illustrated by Frans Hogenberg with the assistance of Ortelius himself, who visited England to see his friend John Dee in Mortlake in 1577, and Braun tells of Ortelius putting pebbles in cracks in Temple Church, Bristol, being crushed by the vibration of the bells. In 1579, Ortelius brought out his Nomenclator Ptolemaicus and started his Parergon (a series of maps illustrating ancient history, sacred and secular). He also published Itinerarium per nonnullas Galliae Belgicae partes (at
1632-399: A trader named Jacob Cool Sr., whose son Jacob Cool Jr. (known as Ortelianus) would be the principal heir of Abraham Ortelius. Leonard Ortelius was well educated. He spoke Greek and Latin, and worked with his brother-in-law Jacob van Meteren on the translation of Miles Coverdale's English Bible. In 1535, they were both prosecuted for possessing suspicious books. Searches turned up nothing and
1734-539: 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 the Cornish Heath , which has been adopted as the county flower . Cornwall's only city, and the home of the council headquarters , is Truro. Nearby Falmouth is notable as a port. St Just in Penwith is the westernmost town in England, though the same claim has been made for Penzance , which
1836-518: Is also included in the world's largest commercially available jigsaw puzzle , which is of four world maps. This puzzle is made by Ravensburger , measures 6 feet (1.8 m) × 9 feet (2.7 m), and has over 18,000 pieces. Ortelius was the first to underline the geometrical similarity between the coasts of America and Europe-Africa and to propose continental drift as an explanation. Kious described Ortelius's thoughts in this way: Abraham Ortelius in his work Thesaurus Geographicus … suggested that
1938-466: Is also larger than Truro and was the centre of the china clay industry in Cornwall. Until four new parishes were created for the St Austell area on 1 April 2009 St Austell was the largest settlement in Cornwall. Cornwall has a temperate Oceanic climate ( Köppen climate classification : Cfb), with mild winters and cool summers, and hot weather is rare. Cornwall has the mildest and sunniest climate in
2040-403: Is by F. H. Davey Flora of Cornwall (1909). Davey was assisted by A. 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 a temperate Oceanic climate ( Köppen climate classification : Cfb ), with mild winters and cool summers. Cornwall has the mildest and one of
2142-526: Is documented in a dedicated online journal. Local television programmes are provided by BBC South West & ITV West Country . Radio programmes are produced by BBC Radio Cornwall in Truro for the entire county, Heart West , Source FM for the Falmouth and Penryn areas, Coast FM for west Cornwall, Radio St Austell Bay for the St Austell area, NCB Radio for north Cornwall & Pirate FM . Cornwall has
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#17328449046392244-624: Is initially very faulty in outline, but corrected in the 1587 French edition, and in Scotland , the Grampians lie between the Forth and the Clyde ; but, taken as a whole, this atlas with its accompanying text was a monument of rare erudition and industry. Its immediate precursor and prototype was a collection of thirty-eight maps of European lands, and of Asia , Africa , Tartary , and Egypt , gathered together by
2346-426: Is larger. St Ives and Padstow 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 is Bude 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
2448-500: Is not known for being prone to natural hazards, although they do happen. The county experiences droughts and heat waves with the rest of Europe as they happen, but its location close to the ocean dampens their severity. Also, European windstorms in the winter usually make landfall on the west coast of Europe, including Cornwall, resulting in severe gales and flooding. Cornwall's many valleys also make it prone to rapid flooding when an unusually heavy amount of rainfall occurs, as seen in
2550-416: 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, and an emblem of the Cornish people. The banner of Saint Piran is a white cross on a black background (in terms of heraldry 'sable,
2652-602: Is on average less than one day of air temperature exceeding 30 °C per year and it is in the AHS Heat Zone 1. Pendennis Point in Falmouth is the warmest place on mainland Great Britain, with an average temperature of 11.4 °C (52.5 °F). Extreme temperatures in Cornwall are particularly rare; however, extreme weather in the form of storms and floods is common. The Shipping Forecast areas bordering on Cornwall are Lundy (north coast) and Plymouth (south coast). Cornwall
2754-514: Is prevented from growing on the granite uplands because of the poor soil and the height giving them the full force of the wind and climate. The rest of the inland contains pastureland and arable farmland. The coastline, at 697 km (422 mi), is mostly occupied by high cliffs, but also featuring islets, stacks, coves and bays. Lowland stretches are also to be found, particularly along the south coast, sometimes backed by large expanses of towans or dunes such as near Par . The Isles of Scilly are
2856-557: Is recognised by Cornish and Celtic political groups as one of the Celtic nations , and is the homeland of the Cornish people . The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, Devon to the east, and the English Channel to the south. The largest urban area in the county is a conurbation that includes the former mining towns of Redruth and Camborne , and the county town
2958-616: Is specifically known to have traveled throughout the Habsburg Netherlands ; in southern, western, northern, and eastern Germany (e.g., 1560, 1575–1576); France (1559–1560); England and Ireland (1576); and Italy (1578, and perhaps two or three times between 1550 and 1558). Beginning as a map-engraver, in 1547 he entered the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke as an illuminator of maps . He supplemented his income trading in books, prints, and maps, and his journeys included annual visits to
3060-536: Is the 9th largest county by area, encompassing 3,563 km (1,376 mi). The length of the coast is large in proportion to the area of the county. Cornwall is exposed to the full force of the prevailing south-westerly winds that blow in from the Atlantic Ocean. To the north is the Celtic Sea , and to the south the English Channel . Cornwall is the location of Great Britain's most southerly point, The Lizard , and
3162-549: Is the city of Truro . The county is rural, with an area of 1,375 square miles (3,562 km ) and population of 568,210. Outside of the Redruth-Camborne conurbation the largest settlements are Falmouth , Penzance , Newquay , St Austell , and Truro. For local government purposes most of Cornwall is a unitary authority area, with the Isles of Scilly having a unique local authority . The Cornish nationalist movement disputes
Geography of Cornwall - Misplaced Pages Continue
3264-518: The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 891 as On Corn walum . In the Domesday Book it was referred to as Cornualia and in c. 1198 as Cornwal . Other names for the county include a latinisation of the name as Cornubia (first appears in a mid-9th-century deed purporting to be a copy of one dating from c. 705), and as Cornugallia in 1086. Cornwall forms the tip of the south-west peninsula of
3366-696: The Regio Patalis with Locach as a northward extension of the Terra Australis , reaching as far as New Guinea . This map subsequently appeared in reduced form in the Terrarum (the only extant copy is in now at Basel University Library ). He also published a two-sheet map of Egypt in 1565, a plan of the Brittenburg castle on the coast of the Netherlands in 1568, an eight-sheet map of Asia in 1567, and
3468-633: The A30 which connects Cornwall to the M5 motorway at Exeter , crosses the border south of Launceston , crosses Bodmin Moor and connects Bodmin, Truro, Redruth, Camborne, Hayle and Penzance. Torpoint Ferry links Plymouth with Torpoint on the opposite side of the Hamoaze . A rail bridge, the Royal Albert Bridge built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1859), provides the other main land transport link. The city of Plymouth,
3570-774: The Atlantic Bronze Age system, and which extended over most of the areas of present-day Ireland, England, Wales, France, Spain, and Portugal. During the British Iron Age , Cornwall, like all of Britain (modern England, Scotland, Wales, and the Isle of Man), was inhabited by a Celtic-speaking people known as the Britons with distinctive cultural relations to neighbouring Brittany . The Common Brittonic spoken at this time eventually developed into several distinct tongues, including Cornish , Welsh , Breton , Cumbric and Pictish . The first written account of Cornwall comes from
3672-783: The Aurei saeculi imago, sive Germanorum veterum vita, mores, ritus et religio. (Philippe Galle, Antwerp, 1596). He also aided Welser in his edition of the Peutinger Table in 1598. Contrary to popular belief, Abraham Ortelius, who had no children, never lived at the Mercator-Orteliushuis (Kloosterstraat 11–17, Antwerpen), but lived at his sister's house (Kloosterstraat 33–35, Antwerpen). Originals of Ortelius's maps are popular collectors' items and often sell for tens of thousands of dollars. Facsimiles of his maps are also available from many retailers. A map he made of North and South America
3774-503: The Battle of Hingston Down at Hengestesdune. In 875, the last recorded king of Cornwall, Dumgarth , is said to have drowned. Around the 880s, Anglo-Saxons from Wessex had established modest land holdings in the north eastern part of Cornwall; notably Alfred the Great who had acquired a few estates. William of Malmesbury , writing around 1120, says that King Athelstan of England (924–939) fixed
3876-720: The Bodmin Manumissions . One interpretation of the Domesday Book is that by this time the native Cornish landowning class had been almost completely dispossessed and replaced by English landowners, particularly Harold Godwinson himself. However, the Bodmin manumissions show that two leading Cornish figures nominally had Saxon names, but these were both glossed with native Cornish names. In 1068, Brian of Brittany may have been created Earl of Cornwall , and naming evidence cited by medievalist Edith Ditmas suggests that many other post-Conquest landowners in Cornwall were Breton allies of
3978-678: The Boscastle flood of 2004 . Although not lying on any plate boundary , Britain occasionally experiences intraplate tremors as a result of the Eurasian Plate 's motion, reactivating weak points in the rock. The west coast is more prone to these tremors than the east. The strongest tremor so far recorded in Cornwall was in 1815, measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale with its epicentre near Penzance . The 1755 earthquake in Lisbon, Portugal which measured 9.0 on
4080-420: The Celtic Sea , part of the Atlantic Ocean, is more exposed and therefore has a wilder nature. The High Cliff , between Boscastle and St Gennys , is the highest sheer-drop cliff in Cornwall at 223 metres (732 ft). Beaches, which form an important part of the tourist industry, include Bude , Polzeath , Watergate Bay , Perranporth , Porthtowan , Fistral Beach , Newquay , St Agnes , St Ives , and on
4182-552: The Cornish language , Cornwall is Kernow which stems from the same Proto-Celtic root. Humans reoccupied Britain after the last Ice Age . The area now known as Cornwall was first inhabited in the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic periods. It continued to be occupied by Neolithic and then by Bronze Age people. Cornwall in the Late Bronze Age formed part of a maritime trading-networked culture which researchers have dubbed
Geography of Cornwall - Misplaced Pages Continue
4284-574: The Dumnonii often came into conflict with the expanding English kingdom of Wessex . Centwine of Wessex "drove the Britons as far as the sea" in 682, and by 690 St Bonifice , then a Saxon boy, was attending an abbey in Exeter, which was in turn ruled by a Saxon abbot. The Carmen Rhythmicum written by Aldhelm contains the earliest literary reference to Cornwall as distinct from Devon. Religious tensions between
4386-504: The Dumnonii , three of which may have been in Cornwall. However, after 410 AD, Cornwall appears to have reverted to rule by Romano-Celtic chieftains of the Cornovii tribe as part of the Brittonic kingdom of Dumnonia (which also included present-day Devonshire and the Scilly Isles), including the territory of one Marcus Cunomorus , with at least one significant power base at Tintagel in
4488-527: The Frankfurt book and print fair , where he met Gerardus Mercator in 1554. In 1560, however, when travelling with Mercator to Trier , Lorraine , and Poitiers , he seems to have been attracted, largely by Mercator's influence, towards the career of a scientific geographer. He died in Antwerp. In 1564, he published his first map, Typus Orbis Terrarum , an eight-leaved wall map of the world, on which he identified
4590-523: The Industrial 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. The Cornish language became extinct as a living community language at the end of the 18th century , but is now being revived. The modern English name "Cornwall" is a compound of two terms coming from two different language groups: In
4692-484: The Plantin Press at Antwerp and republished in expanded form as Thesaurus geographicus in 1587 and again expanded in 1596; in the last edition, Ortelius considers the possibility of continental drift , a hypothesis that would be proved correct only centuries later). In 1596, he received a presentation from Antwerp, similar to that afterwards bestowed on Peter Paul Rubens . His death on 28 June 1598 and his burial in
4794-451: The River 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 of granite intrusions, such as Bodmin Moor , which contains the highest land within Cornwall. From east to west, and with approximately descending altitude, these are Bodmin Moor, Hensbarrow north of St Austell , Carnmenellis to
4896-561: The constitutional status of Cornwall and seeks greater autonomy within the United Kingdom. Cornwall is the westernmost part of the South West Peninsula , and the southernmost county within the United Kingdom. Its coastline is characterised by steep cliffs and, to the south, several rias , including those at the mouths of the rivers Fal and Fowey . It includes the southernmost point on Great Britain , Lizard Point , and forms
4998-474: The sub-Roman Westcountry , South Wales, Brittany, the Channel Islands, and Ireland through the fifth and sixth centuries. In Cornwall, the arrival of Celtic saints such as Nectan , Paul Aurelian, Petroc , Piran , Samson and numerous others reinforced the preexisting Roman Christianity. The Battle of Deorham in 577 saw the separation of Dumnonia (and therefore Cornwall) from Wales, following which
5100-455: The "Cornish Riviera", is more sheltered and there are several broad estuaries offering safe anchorages, such as at Falmouth and Fowey . Beaches on the south coast usually consist of coarser sand and shingle, interspersed with rocky sections of wave-cut platform . Also on the south coast, the picturesque fishing village of Polperro , at the mouth of the Pol River, and the fishing port of Looe on
5202-497: The 18th and 19th centuries (for example, Antonio Snider-Pellegrini ) and later by Alfred Wegener , who published his hypothesis of continental drift in 1912 and in following years. Because his publications were widely available in German and English and because he adduced geological support for the idea, Wegener is credited by most geologists as the first to recognize the possibility of continental drift. Frank Bursley Taylor (in 1908)
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#17328449046395304-424: The 1st-century BC Sicilian Greek historian Diodorus Siculus , supposedly quoting or paraphrasing the 4th-century BCE geographer Pytheas , who had sailed to Britain: The inhabitants of that part of Britain called Belerion (or Land's End) from their intercourse with foreign merchants, are civilized in their manner of life. They prepare the tin , working very carefully the earth in which it is produced ... Here then
5406-483: 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 to climate 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. Cornish, a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic language family , died out as
5508-479: The Americas were "torn away from Europe and Africa … by earthquakes and floods" and went on to say: "The vestiges of the rupture reveal themselves, if someone brings forward a map of the world and considers carefully the coasts of the three [continents]." Ortelius's observations of continental juxtaposition and his proposal of rupture and separation went unnoticed until the late 20th century. However, they were repeated in
5610-764: The Dartmoor area). The stannary courts administered equity 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
5712-770: The Dumnonians (who celebrated celtic Christian traditions) and Wessex (who were Roman Catholic ) are described in Aldhelm's letter to King Geraint . The Annales Cambriae report that in AD 722 the Britons of Cornwall won a battle at "Hehil" . It seems likely that the enemy the Cornish fought was a West Saxon force, as evidenced by the naming of King Ine of Wessex and his kinsman Nonna in reference to an earlier Battle of Llongborth in 710. The Anglo-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
5814-449: The Lizard peninsula is unusual, in that it is mainland Britain's only example of an ophiolite , a section of oceanic crust now found on land. Much of the peninsula consists of the dark green and red Precambrian serpentinite , which forms spectacular cliffs, notably at Kynance Cove , and carved and polished serpentine ornaments are sold in local gift shops. This ultramafic rock also forms
5916-428: The Normans, the Bretons being descended from Britons who had fled to what is today Brittany during the early years of the Anglo-Saxon conquest. She also proposed this period for the early composition of the Tristan and Iseult cycle by poets such as Béroul from a pre-existing shared Brittonic oral tradition. Soon after the Norman conquest most of the land was transferred to the new Breton–Norman aristocracy, with
6018-452: 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." Isotopic evidence suggests that tin ingots found off the coast of Haifa , Israel , may have been from Cornwall. Tin, required for
6120-423: The Plantin press in 1584, and reprinted in 1630, 1661 in Hegenitius, Itin. Frisio-Hoil., in 1667 by Verbiest, and finally in 1757 in Leuven), a record of a journey in Belgium and the Rhineland made in 1575. In 1589 he published Maris Pacifici , the first dedicated map of the Pacific to be printed. Among his last works were an edition of Caesar ( C. I. Caesaris omnia quae extant , Leiden, Raphelingen, 1593), and
6222-419: The Richter scale sent a tsunami towards the south coast of Cornwall. Historical accounts describe the waves of 3 metres (10 feet) in height and significant loss of life and property. Cornwall Cornwall ( / ˈ k ɔːr n w ɔː l , - w əl / ; Cornish : Kernow ; Cornish pronunciation: [ˈkɛrnɔʊ] ; or [ˈkɛrnɔ] ) is a ceremonial county in South West England . It
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#17328449046396324-440: The Roman road system extended into Cornwall with four significant Roman sites based on forts: Tregear near Nanstallon was discovered in the early 1970s, two others were found at Restormel Castle , Lostwithiel in 2007, and a third fort near Calstock was also discovered early in 2007. In addition, a Roman-style villa was found at Magor Farm , Illogan in 1935. Ptolemy 's Geographike Hyphegesis mentions four towns controlled by
6426-424: The South West increasingly came into conflict with the expanding Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex , eventually being pushed west of the Tamar; by the Norman Conquest Cornwall was administered as part of England, though it retained its own culture. The remainder of the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period were relatively settled, with Cornwall developing its tin mining industry and becoming a duchy in 1337. During
6528-419: The St Austell area on 1 April 2009 St Austell was the largest settlement in Cornwall. Cornwall borders the county of Devon at the River Tamar. Major roads between Cornwall and the rest of Great Britain are the A38 which crosses the Tamar at Plymouth via the Tamar Bridge and the town of Saltash , the A39 road (Atlantic Highway) from Barnstaple , passing through North Cornwall to end in Falmouth, and
6630-425: The United Kingdom, as a result of its oceanic setting and the influence of the Gulf Stream . The average annual temperature in Cornwall ranges from 11.6 °C (53 °F) on the Isles of Scilly to 9.8 °C (50 °F) in the central uplands. Winters are amongst 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
6732-471: The age of discovery. The publication of his atlas in 1570 is often considered as the official beginning of the Golden Age of Netherlandish cartography . He was the first person proposing that the continents were joined before drifting to their present positions. Abraham Ortelius was born on either 4 April or 14 April 1527 in the city of Antwerp , which was then in the Spanish Netherlands . The Ortels or Wortels (latinized as Orthellius and Ortelius) family
6834-496: The boundary between English and Cornish people at the east bank of the River Tamar . While elements of William's story, like the burning of Exeter , have been cast in doubt by recent writers Athelstan did re-establish a separate Cornish Bishop and relations between Wessex and the Cornish elite improved from the time of his rule. Eventually King Edgar was able to issue charters the width of Cornwall, and frequently sent emissaries or visited personally as seen by his appearances in
6936-508: The case was subsequently dismissed. Leonard Ortelius was a successful antique dealer. Following the death of his father, Abraham Ortelius' uncle Jacobus van Meteren returned from exile in England to take care of him. Abraham remained close to his cousin Emanuel van Meteren , who would later move to London . In 1575 Abraham was appointed geographer to the king of Spain, Philip II , on the recommendation of Arias Montanus , who vouched for his orthodoxy. He traveled extensively in Europe and
7038-403: The central upland areas. Summers are, however, not as warm as those of other areas in southern England. The surrounding sea and its southwesterly position mean that Cornwall's weather is relatively changeable. Cornwall is one of the sunniest areas in the UK, with over 1541 hours of sunshine per year, with the highest average of 7.6 hours of sunshine per day in July. The moist, mild air coming from
7140-405: The church of St. Michael's Abbey, Antwerp , were marked by public mourning. The inscription on his tombstone reads: Quietis cultor sine lite, uxore, prole ("served quietly, without accusation, wife, and offspring"). On 20 May 1570, Gilles Coppens de Diest at Antwerp issued Ortelius's Theatrum Orbis Terrarum , the "first modern atlas" (of 53 maps). Three Latin editions of this (besides
7242-442: The coast and are also rare in the central upland areas. Summers are, however, not as warm as in other parts of southern England. 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. The moist, mild air coming from
7344-424: The county town Truro. Together with the neighbouring town of Redruth , 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 the china clay industry in Cornwall. Until four new parishes were created for
7446-634: The early 6th century. King Mark of Cornwall is a semi-historical figure known from Welsh literature, from the Matter of Britain , and, in particular, from the later Norman-Breton medieval romance of Tristan and Yseult , where he appears as a close relative of King Arthur , himself usually considered to be born of the Cornish people in folklore traditions derived from Geoffrey of Monmouth 's 12th-century Historia Regum Britanniae . Archaeology supports ecclesiastical, literary and legendary evidence for some relative economic stability and close cultural ties between
7548-546: The island of Great Britain , and is therefore exposed to the full force of the prevailing winds that blow in from the Atlantic Ocean. The coastline is composed mainly of resistant 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 the River Tamar , and the remainder (to the north) by the Marsland Valley . The north and south coasts have different characteristics. The north coast on
7650-521: The largest archipelago in the British Isles outside Scotland. The largest other islands are off the south coast: Looe Island and St Michael's Mount . The sea to the north of Cornwall is the Celtic Sea ; before the usage of Celtic Sea it was part of the Bristol Channel . On Joel Gascoyne's map of 1699 this part of the Atlantic Ocean was named "The North Sea or Severn Channel". Cornwall was one of
7752-401: The lion's share going to Robert, Count of Mortain , half-brother of King William and the largest landholder in England after the king with his stronghold at Trematon Castle near the mouth of the Tamar. Subsequently, however, Norman absentee landlords became replaced by a new Cornish-Norman ruling class including scholars such as Richard Rufus of Cornwall . These families eventually became
7854-505: The merchants buy the tin from the natives and carry it over to Gaul , and after traveling overland for about thirty days, they finally bring their loads on horses to the mouth of the Rhône. The identity of these merchants is unknown. It has been theorized that they were Phoenicians , but there is no evidence for this. Professor Timothy Champion, discussing Diodorus Siculus's comments on the tin trade, states that "Diodorus never actually says that
7956-448: The most important mining areas in Europe until the 20th century, due to its intrusions of granite into surrounding sedimentary rocks which resulted in metamorphism and mineralisation. Bodmin Moor and Carn Brea are examples of such granite intrusion. The Lizard peninsula is an example of an ophiolite . The north coast is more exposed to the prevailing winds from the Atlantic Ocean than
8058-527: The most important mining areas in Europe until the early 20th century. It is thought tin was mined here as early as the Bronze Age , and copper, lead, zinc and silver have all been mined in Cornwall . Alteration of the granite also gave rise to extensive deposits of China 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, mainly pastoral farmland. Near
8160-606: The national UK Biodiversity Action Plan . The national character areas recognised by Natural England that lie wholly or partially on Cornish soil are: One of the oldest maps still in existence depicting Cornwall is the 1290 Hereford Mappa Mundi currently on display in Hereford Cathedral in the United Kingdom . Many maps of the British Isles prior to the 17th century showed Cornwall (Cornubia/Cornwallia/Kernow) as
8262-722: The new rulers of Cornwall, typically speaking Norman French , Breton-Cornish, Latin , and eventually English, with many becoming involved in the operation of the Stannary Parliament system, the Earldom and eventually the Duchy of Cornwall . The Cornish language continued to be spoken and acquired a number of characteristics establishing its identity as a separate language from Breton . The stannary parliaments and stannary courts were legislative and legal institutions in Cornwall and in Devon (in
8364-506: The production of bronze , 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 see the section on the economy below .) In the first four centuries AD, during the time of Roman dominance in Britain , Cornwall was rather remote from the main centres of Romanization – the nearest being Isca Dumnoniorum , modern-day Exeter . However,
8466-534: The publication in 1904 of Henry Jenner 's Handbook of the Cornish Language . It is a social networking community language rather than a social community group language. Cornwall Council encourages and facilitates language classes within the county, in schools and within the wider community. In 2002, Cornish was named as a UK regional language in the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages . As
8568-758: The sculptor Barbara Hepworth , at the outbreak of the Second World War . They were later joined by the Russian emigrant Naum Gabo , and other artists. These included Peter Lanyon , Terry Frost , Patrick Heron , Bryan Wynter and Roger Hilton . St Ives also houses the Leach Pottery, where Bernard Leach , and his followers championed Japanese inspired studio pottery. Much of this modernist work can be seen in Tate St Ives . The Newlyn Society and Penwith Society of Arts continue to be active, and contemporary visual art
8670-420: The second level of local government included municipal boroughs, urban districts and rural districts, and within each of these were a number of civil parishes. Cornwall consisted from April 1974 to March 2009 of six districts, which are, from west to east: Penwith , Kerrier , Carrick , Restormel , North Cornwall , and Caradon . While traditionally administered as part of Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly are now
8772-523: The south coast Gyllyngvase beach in Falmouth and the large beach at Praa Sands further to the south-west. There are two river estuaries on the north coast: Hayle Estuary and the estuary of the River Camel , which provides Padstow and Rock with a safe harbour. The seaside town of Newlyn 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
8874-461: The south coast and is more rugged, with many sheer cliffs and steep valleys. The south coast is more sheltered and is interrupted by several rias which provide deep water harbours such as Carrick Roads . Cornwall has varied habitats including terrestrial and marine ecosystems. One of the lower plant forms in decline locally is the Reindeer lichen , which has been made a priority for protection under
8976-486: The south coast, deep wooded valleys provide sheltered conditions for flora that like shade and a moist, mild climate. These areas lie mainly on Devonian sandstone and slate . The north east of Cornwall lies on Carboniferous rocks known as the Culm Measures . In places these have been subjected to severe folding, as can be seen on the north coast near Crackington Haven and in several other locations. The geology of
9078-563: The south of Camborne , and the Penwith or Land's End peninsula. These intrusions are the central part of the granite outcrops that form the exposed parts of the Cornubian batholith of south-west Britain, which also includes Dartmoor to the east in Devon and the Isles of Scilly to the west, the latter now being partially submerged. The intrusion of the granite into the surrounding sedimentary rocks gave rise to extensive metamorphism and mineralisation , and this led to Cornwall being one of
9180-412: The south west brings higher amounts of rainfall than in eastern Great Britain, at 1051 to 1290 mm (41.4 to 50.8 in) per year, though not as much as in more northern areas of the west coast. The Gulf Stream moderates the climate of Cornwall enough that Cornwall's weather is distinctly milder than other places in the world at the same latitude, such as Newfoundland . The mild climate has resulted in
9282-407: The southern mainland's most westerly point, Land's End . A few miles further west are the Isles of Scilly . Cornwall is located at 50°30′N 5°00′W / 50.5°N 5°W / 50.5; -5 . The highest point is Brown Willy at 420 m (1,378 ft), part of the granite Bodmin Moor , of which such intrusions are covered by rough grass, heather and bog flora. Woodland
9384-536: 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. 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 the Hardiness zone 10. The islands have, on average, less than one day of air temperature exceeding 30 °C per year and are in
9486-597: The stannary courts in all but the most exceptional circumstances. Cornish piracy was active during the Elizabethan era on the west coast of Britain. Cornwall is well known for its wreckers who preyed on ships passing Cornwall's rocky coastline. During the 17th and 18th centuries Cornwall was a major smuggling area. In later times, Cornwall was known to the Anglo-Saxons as "West Wales" to distinguish it from "North Wales" (the modern nation of Wales ). The name appears in
9588-445: The summer season, a service is also provided between St Mary's and Exeter Airport , in Devon. Cornwall has varied habitats including terrestrial and marine ecosystems. One noted species in decline locally is the Reindeer lichen , which species has been made a priority for protection under the national UK Biodiversity Action Plan . Botanists divide Cornwall and Scilly into two vice-counties: West (1) and East (2). The standard flora
9690-474: The sunniest climates of the United Kingdom, as a result of its oceanic setting and the influence of the Gulf Stream . The average annual temperature in Cornwall ranges from 11.6 °C (52.9 °F) on the Isles 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
9792-541: The wealth and enterprise, and through the agents, of Ortelius's friend and patron, Gillis Hooftman (1521–1581), lord of Cleydael and Aertselaar: most of these were printed in Rome , eight or nine only in the Southern Netherlands. In 1573, Ortelius published seventeen supplementary maps under the title Additamentum Theatri Orbis Terrarum . Four more Additamenta were to follow, the last one appearing in 1597. He also had
9894-739: Was a cartographer , geographer , and cosmographer from Antwerp in the Spanish Netherlands . He is recognized as the creator of the first modern atlas , the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum ( Theatre of the World ). Along with Gemma Frisius and Gerardus Mercator , Ortelius is generally considered one of the founders of the Netherlandish school of cartography and geography . He was a notable figure of this school in its golden age (approximately 1570s–1670s) and an important geographer of Spain during
9996-502: Was a Protestant and supervised the printing of English versions of the bible in England, Leonard (born in 1500 and father of Abraham Ortelius) and Josef. From his second marriage with Maria Antheard a son called Willem was born. The family lived in the Kipdorp street in Antwerp and was fairly well off. Leonard Ortelius married Anna Herwayers and they had three children, Abraham, Anna who would stay on her brother's side and Elisabeth who married
10098-451: Was also an early advocate of continental drift. During the 1960s geophysical and geological evidence for seafloor spreading at mid-oceanic ridges became increasingly compelling to geologists (e.g. Harry H. Hess , 1960) and finally established continental drift as an ongoing global mechanism (e.g. by the work of W. Jason Morgan by 1967 and Dan McKenzie in 1968). After more than three centuries, Ortelius's supposition of continental drift
10200-486: Was initially centred on the art-colony of Newlyn , most active at the turn of the 20th century. This Newlyn School is associated with the names of Stanhope Forbes , Elizabeth Forbes , Norman Garstin and Lamorna Birch . Modernist writers such as D. H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf lived in Cornwall between the wars, and Ben Nicholson , the painter, having visited in the 1920s came to live in St Ives with his then wife,
10302-426: Was of great importance from the late 18th to the early 20th century. Camborne is the county's largest town and more populous than the capital Truro. Together with the neighbouring town of Redruth , 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
10404-568: Was originally from Augsburg , a Free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire . Abraham's grandfather, Willem Ortels, was a pharmacist. He had moved in 1460 to Antwerp where he married Mathilde 's Jagers, alias Reynaerts. They had five children: Imbert who inherited his father's pharmacy, Anna, Odille (or Ottilia of Odilia), who married Nicolaes van der Voorden, a merchant in Brussels, and, in her second marriage, Jacobus van Meteren from Breda, who
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