132-469: The River Strat is a river in the northernmost part of Cornwall in southwest England . The Strat flows for 12.7 miles (20.4 km) to the sea at Bude , having risen to the south of Kilkhampton . It flows initially in a generally southwesterly direction through Stratton to a meeting with its major tributary, the River Neet at Helebridge. The river then turns abruptly to the north-northwest, parallel to
264-553: 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. Wessex The Kingdom of
396-589: A Roman officer in Britain, Constantine III declared himself Augustus of the West, and left for Gaul, taking with him Roman troops. Finally, in 410, when Romano-British officials requested military assistance from Emperor Honorius , he told them to manage their own defences. Economic decline occurred after these events: circulation of Roman coins ended and the importation of items from the Roman Empire stopped. Theories about
528-488: A cap badge featuring the heraldic beast, until the regiments took back up individual regimental badges in the late 1960s. The Territorial Army Wessex Regiment continued to wear the Wessex Brigade badge until the late 1980s when its individual companies too readopted their parent regular regimental cap badges. The now disbanded West Somerset Yeomanry adopted a Wessex Wyvern rampant as the centre piece for its cap badge, and
660-570: A certain unnamed ruler in Britain (called "a proud tyrant" by Gildas) requested assistance from the Saxons in exchange for land. There were no conflicts between the British and the Saxons for a time, but following "a dispute about the supply of provisions" the Saxons warred against the British and severely damaged parts of the country. In time, however, some Saxon troops left Britain; under Ambrosius Aurelianus ,
792-530: 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
924-517: 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
1056-725: 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
1188-661: 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
1320-618: A mere ealdorman , Aethelred , who acknowledged Alfred's overlordship and married his daughter Ethelfleda . The process by which this transformation of the status of Mercia took place is unknown, but it left Alfred as the only remaining English king. After the invasions of the 890s, Wessex and English Mercia continued to be attacked by the Danish settlers in England, and by small Danish raiding forces from overseas, but these incursions were usually defeated, while there were no further major invasions from
1452-544: A new law code and championed a revival of scholarship and education. He gathered scholars from around England and Europe to his court, and with their help translated a range of Latin texts into English, doing much of the work personally, and orchestrated the composition of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle . As a result of these literary efforts and the political dominance of Wessex, the West Saxon dialect of this period became
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#17328695233621584-573: A pilgrimage to Rome. The throne then passed to a series of other kings who claimed descent from Cerdic, but whose supposed genealogies and relationship to one another are unknown. During the 8th century Wessex was overshadowed by Mercia, whose power was then at its height, and the West Saxon kings may at times have acknowledged Mercian overlordship. They were, however, able to avoid the more substantial control which Mercia exerted over smaller kingdoms. During this period Wessex continued its gradual advance to
1716-646: 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
1848-573: 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
1980-561: A series of English offensives overwhelmed the Danes of Mercia and East Anglia, bringing all of England south of the Humber under Edward's power. In 918 Æthelflæd died and Edward took over direct control of Mercia, extinguishing what remained of its independence and ensuring that henceforth there would be only one Kingdom of the English . In 927 Edward's successor Æthelstan conquered Northumbria , bringing
2112-491: A system of burhs . Alfred's son, Edward , captured the eastern Midlands and East Anglia from the Danes and became ruler of Mercia in 918 upon the death of his sister, Æthelflæd . Edward's son, Æthelstan , conquered Northumbria in 927, and England became a unified kingdom for the first time. Cnut the Great , who conquered England in 1016, created the wealthy and powerful earldom of Wessex, but in 1066 Harold Godwinson reunited
2244-399: A time—that was previously unknown to historians", according to the report. A report by The Guardian adds that "The presence of both kings on the two emperor coins suggests some sort of pact between the pair. But the rarity of the coins also suggests that Alfred quickly dropped his ally, who was just about written out of history". Alfred also reformed the administration of justice, issued
2376-539: 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
2508-711: Is a ceremonial county in South West England . It 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
2640-403: 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
2772-579: 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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#17328695233622904-426: 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
3036-646: Is little archaeological evidence of human settlements. By the Iron Age , Celtic British tribes such as the Durotriges , Atrebates , Belgae and Dobunni occupied the future Wessex. Following the Roman conquest of Britain , from the 1st century AD, numerous country Roman villa with attached farms were established across Wessex, along with the important towns of Dorchester and Winchester (the ending -chester comes from Latin castra , "a military camp"). The Romans, or rather
3168-532: Is not regarded by historians as reliable due to duplication of Chronicle entries and evidence that the area was first occupied by Jutes . Although the entry mentions Cynric as Cerdic's son, a different source lists him as the son of Cerdic's son, Creoda of Wessex . The Chronicle continues, stating that "Port, and his two sons Bieda and Mægla", landed at Portsmouth in 501 and killed a high-ranking British nobleman. In 508, Cerdic and Cynric slew British king Natanleod along with five thousand of his men (though
3300-416: 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,
3432-400: Is variously given as Ceola, Ceolwulf, Ceol, Cuthwine, Cutha or Cuthwulf. The tradition embodied in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , and in the genealogies of the West Saxon dynasty, is open to considerable doubt. This is largely because the founder of the dynasty and a number of his alleged descendants had Brittonic Celtic, rather than Anglo-Saxon Germanic, names. The name Cerdic is derived from
3564-518: 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
3696-633: 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,
3828-774: 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
3960-455: 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
4092-720: 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
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4224-529: 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
4356-530: The Chronicle , the Saxons conquered the Isle of Wight in 530 at a battle near Carisbrooke . Cynric became the ruler of Wessex after Cerdic died in 534, and reigned for twenty-six years. The sources do agree that Ceawlin , who succeeded Cynric in about 581, is the son of Cynric; he usually is named as the father of Cuthwine. Ceawlin's reign is thought to be more reliably documented than those of his predecessors, though
4488-527: The Chronicle' s dates of 560 to 592 are different from the revised chronology. Ceawlin overcame pockets of resisting Britons to the northeast, in the Chilterns , Gloucestershire and Somerset . The capture of Cirencester , Gloucester and Bath in 577, after the pause caused by the battle of Mons Badonicus, opened the way to the southwest. Ceawlin is one of the seven kings named in Bede's Ecclesiastical History of
4620-552: 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
4752-574: 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
4884-504: 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
5016-604: The Great Summer Army arrived from Scandinavia , to reinforce the Great Heathen Army. The reinforced army invaded Wessex and, although Æthelred and Alfred won some victories and succeeded in preventing the conquest of their kingdom, a number of defeats and heavy losses of men compelled Alfred to pay the Danes to leave Wessex. The Danes spent the next few years subduing Mercia and some of them settled in Northumbria, but
5148-561: The Historia , Hengest and Horsa fought the invaders of Britain under the condition of gaining the Island of Thanet . The daughter of Hengest, Rowena, later arrived on a ship of reinforcements, and Vortigern married her. However, a war arose in Kent due to a dispute between Hengest and Vortigern's son. After losing several battles, the Saxons finally defeated the British by treacherously attacking them once
5280-523: 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
5412-403: The Isle of Wight , although Kent regained its independence almost immediately and Sussex followed some years later. His reign ended in 688 when he abdicated and went on pilgrimage to Rome, where he was baptised by Pope Sergius I but died soon afterwards. Bokerley Dyke appears to have been fortified around this period, and the former Roman Road at Ackling Dyke blocked by the Britons to prevent
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5544-451: 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
5676-503: The Romano-British , built another major road that integrated Wessex, running eastwards from Exeter through Dorchester to Winchester and Silchester and on to London . In the mid-4th century there were increasing raids on Roman Britain by peoples such as the Picts , Scottish people , Attacotti , and Franks , as well as the Saxons. In 367, these tribes simultaneously invaded Britain from
5808-580: The Thames and the (Bristol) Avon , encouraging the kingdom's reorientation southwards. Cenwealh married Penda 's daughter, and when he repudiated her, Penda again invaded and drove him into exile for some time, perhaps three years. The dates are uncertain but it was probably in the late 640s or early 650s. He spent his exile in East Anglia , and was converted to Christianity there. After his return, Cenwealh faced further attacks from Penda's successor Wulfhere , but
5940-556: The Thames and the Avon now probably formed the northern boundary of Wessex, while its heartland lay in Hampshire , Wiltshire , Berkshire , Dorset and Somerset . The system of shires which was later to form the basis of local administration throughout England (and eventually Ireland , Wales and Scotland as well) originated in Wessex, and had been established by the mid-8th century. In 802
6072-514: The Victorians . Nevertheless, the association with Wessex was only popularised in the 19th century, most notably through the writings of E. A. Freeman . By the time of the grant of armorial bearings by the College of Arms to Somerset County Council in 1911, a (red) dragon had become the accepted heraldic emblem of the former kingdom. This precedent was followed in 1937 when Wiltshire County Council
6204-565: The West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (the latter of which drew on and adapted an early version of the List), which sometimes conflict. Wessex became a Christian kingdom after Cenwalh ( r. 642–645, 648–672 ) was baptised and was expanded under his rule. Cædwalla later conquered Sussex , Kent and the Isle of Wight . His successor, Ine ( r. 689–726 ), issued one of
6336-541: The baptism of Cynegils by Birinus , at the end of the 630s, perhaps in 640. Birinus was then established as bishop of the West Saxons, with his seat at Dorchester-on-Thames . This was the first conversion to Christianity by a West Saxon king, but it was not accompanied by the immediate conversion of all the West Saxons: Cynegils' successor (and probably his son), Cenwealh , who came to the throne in about 642,
6468-561: 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
6600-567: The county town 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
6732-474: 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
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#17328695233626864-576: The "Arms of Edward the Confessor", and the design is based on an emblem historically used by King Edward the Confessor on the reverse side of pennies minted by him. The heraldic design continued to represent both Wessex and Edward in classical heraldry and is found on a number of church windows in derived shields such as the Arms of the Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster ( Westminster Abbey , which
6996-403: 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
7128-416: The 1970s William Crampton , the founder of the British Flag Institute , designed a flag for the Wessex region which depicts a gold wyvern on a red field. A white cross on a field of red, known as the Flag of Saint Aldhelm (whose feast day on 25 May is also celebrated as "Wessex Day") is sometimes flown by Wessex regionalists as an alternative to the Wyvern. The flag is effectively an inverted version of
7260-424: 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
7392-432: 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
7524-418: The British name Caraticos. This may indicate that Cerdic was a native Briton, and that his dynasty became anglicised over time. Other members of the dynasty possessing Celtic names include Ceawlin and Cædwalla . Cædwalla, who died as late as 689, was the last West Saxon king to possess a Celtic name. Cynegils ' reign saw the first event in West Saxon history that can be dated with reasonable certainty:
7656-403: The British subsequently defeated those who remained. A lengthy conflict ensued, in which neither side gained any decisive advantage until the Britons routed the Saxons at the Battle of Mons Badonicus . After this, there occurred a peaceful period for the Britons, under which Gildas was living at the time he wrote the De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae . One of the "English" traditions about
7788-447: The Cross of Saint George, although it is also thought to have been derived from the arms of Sherborne Abbey , Dorset. A coat of arms was attributed by medieval heralds to the Kings of Wessex. These arms appear in a manuscript of the 13th century, and are blazoned as Azure , a cross patoncé (alternatively a cross fleury or cross moline ) between four martlets Or . The attributed arms of Wessex are also known as
7920-559: 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
8052-623: 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
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#17328695233628184-460: The English People as holding "imperium" over the southern English: the Chronicle later repeated this claim, referring to Ceawlin as a bretwalda , or "Britain-ruler". Ceawlin was deposed, perhaps by his nephew, Ceol , and died a year later. Six years later, in about 594, Ceol was succeeded by a brother, Ceolwulf , who was succeeded in his turn in about 617 by Cynegils of Wessex . The genealogies do not agree on Cynegils' pedigree: his father
8316-431: The Great . This occurred because the first two brothers died in wars with the Danes without issue, while Æthelred's sons were too young to rule when their father died. In 865, several of the Danish commanders combined their respective forces into one large army and landed in England. Over the following years, what became known as the Great Heathen Army overwhelmed the kingdoms of Northumbria and East Anglia. Then in 871,
8448-400: 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
8580-428: 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
8712-452: 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
8844-436: The River Neet. Older forms of the name of Stratton include Straetneat , one of the meanings of which may be the 'valley of the (river known as) Neat'. 50°49′47″N 4°33′08″W / 50.8297°N 4.5523°W / 50.8297; -4.5523 Cornwall Cornwall ( / ˈ k ɔːr n w ɔː l , - w əl / ; Cornish : Kernow ; Cornish pronunciation: [ˈkɛrnɔʊ] ; or [ˈkɛrnɔ] )
8976-440: 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
9108-436: The Saxon arrival concerns Hengest and Horsa . When Bede wrote his Ecclesiastical History of the English People , he adapted Gildas' narrative and added details, such as the names of those involved. To the "proud tyrant" he gave the name Vortigern , and the Saxon commanders he named Hengest and Horsa. Further details were added to the story in the Historia Brittonum , which was partially written by Nennius . According to
9240-424: 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
9372-419: 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
9504-580: The Thames estuary. Having defeated King Beorhtwulf of Mercia in battle, the Danes moved on to invade Wessex, but were decisively crushed by Egbert's son and successor King Æthelwulf in the exceptionally bloody Battle of Aclea . This victory postponed Danish conquests in England for fifteen years, but raids on Wessex continued. In 855–856 Æthelwulf went on pilgrimage to Rome and his eldest surviving son Æthelbald took advantage of his absence to seize his father's throne. On his return, Æthelwulf agreed to divide
9636-570: The West Saxons , also known as the Kingdom of Wessex , was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom in the south of Great Britain , from around 519 until Alfred the Great declared himself as King of the Anglo-Saxons in 886. The Anglo-Saxons believed that Wessex was founded by Cerdic and Cynric of the Gewisse , though this is considered by some to be a legend . The two main sources for the history of Wessex are
9768-421: The West Saxons' advance into Dorset . Evidence suggests that Dorset, north Hampshire, eastern Devon and southern Wiltshire were substantially under West Saxon control by the beginning of the reign of Cædwalla of Wessex in 685, but details of their conquest are unclear. His successor was Ine , who also claimed to be a descendant of Cerdic through Ceawlin, but again through a long-separated line of descent. Ine
9900-409: The accession of his brother Centwine of Wessex . Centwine is known to have fought and won battles against the Britons , but the details have not survived. Centwine was succeeded by another supposed distant relative, Cædwalla , who claimed descent from Ceawlin. Cædwalla reigned for just two years, but achieved a dramatic expansion of the kingdom's power, conquering the kingdoms of Sussex , Kent and
10032-405: The battle and an apparent peace agreement with the Britons. The battle of Mons Badonicus is believed to have been fought around this time. Gildas states that the Saxons were completely defeated in the battle, in which King Arthur participated according to Nennius . This defeat is not recorded in the Chronicle . The thirty-year period of peace was temporarily interrupted when, according to
10164-549: 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
10296-489: 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
10428-448: The coast which it meets at Bude Haven. The Neet rises to the east of Week St Mary and flows north and northwest to its confluence with the Strat. Other tributaries rise to the west of Week St Mary. The section downstream from the vicinity of Helebridge is accompanied by the now disused Bude Canal . The rivers are home to trout , lamprey and eels . The Strat is sometimes also referred to as
10560-480: The continent encouraged Alfred to protect his Kingdom of Wessex. Over the following years Alfred carried out a dramatic reorganisation of the government and defences of Wessex, building warships, organising the army into two shifts which served alternately, and establishing a system of fortified burhs across the kingdom. This system is recorded in a 10th-century document known as the Burghal Hidage , which details
10692-461: The continent. The balance of power tipped steadily in favour of the English. In 911 Ealdorman Æthelred died, leaving his widow, Alfred's daughter Æthelflæd , in charge of Mercia. Alfred's son and successor Edward the Elder then annexed London, Oxford and the surrounding area, probably including Middlesex , Hertfordshire , Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire , from Mercia to Wessex. Between 913 and 918
10824-424: 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
10956-508: The current Royal Wessex Yeomanry adopted a similar device in 2014 when the Regiment moved from wearing individual squadron county yeomanry cap badges to a unified single Regimental cap badge. When Sophie, Countess of Wessex was granted arms, the sinister supporter assigned was a blue wyvern, described by the College of Arms as "an heraldic beast which has long been associated with Wessex" . In
11088-474: The death of King Harold II , who was previously Earl of Wessex . Dragon standards were in fairly wide use in Europe at the time, being derived from the draco standard employed by the later Roman army , and there is no evidence that it explicitly identified Wessex. A panel of 18th century stained glass at Exeter Cathedral indicates that an association with an image of a dragon in south west Britain pre-dated
11220-617: The earldom with the crown and Wessex ceased to exist. From the Neolithic onwards the chalk downland of the area that would become Wessex was traversed by the Harrow Way , which can still be traced from Marazion in Cornwall to the coast of the English Channel near Dover, and was probably connected with the ancient tin trade . In the Late Neolithic , the ceremonial sites of Avebury and Stonehenge were completed on Salisbury Plain , but
11352-634: 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
11484-638: The final phase of Stonehenge was erected by the so-called " Wessex culture " of the Middle Bronze Age ( c. 1600–1200 BC ). The area has many other earthworks and erected stone monuments from the Neolithic and Early Bronze periods, including the Dorset Cursus , an earthwork 10 km (6 mi) long and 100 m (110 yd) wide, which was oriented to the midwinter sunset. Although agriculture and hunting were pursued during this long period, there
11616-472: The final unification of the kingdom of England. When Eadred died in 955, he was succeeded by Edmund's elder son Eadred, whose incompetent rule may have led to the division of England between Wessex under Eadred and Mercia and Northumbria under his younger brother Edgar in 957, although some historians argue that it was intended from the start that the kingdom would be divided when Edgar came of age, which occurred in 957. Eadwig died in 959 and Edgar became king of
11748-436: The fortunes of Wessex were transformed by the accession of Egbert who came from a cadet branch of the ruling dynasty that claimed descent from Ine's brother Ingild . With his accession the throne became firmly established in the hands of a single lineage. Early in his reign he conducted two campaigns against the " West Welsh ", first in 813 and then again at Gafulford in 825. During the course of these campaigns he conquered
11880-616: The garrison from Britain to Gaul, where he was made Augustus of the West , ruling Britain, Gaul, Spain and Roman Africa. Following the death of Maximus in 388, Roman authority in Britain again declined. During the late 390s, Stilicho attempted to restore control, with a campaign against the Picti, but this was undermined in 401 when Stilicho transferred troops to the Continent to fight the Goths . Two subsequent Roman rulers of Britain were murdered. In 407,
12012-457: The great earldoms of the late Anglo-Saxon period, 1066 marks the extinction of Wessex as a political unit. Wessex is often symbolised by a wyvern or dragon . Both Henry of Huntingdon and Matthew of Westminster talk of a golden dragon being raised at the Battle of Burford in 752 by the West Saxons. The Bayeux Tapestry depicts a fallen golden dragon, as well as a red/golden/white dragon at
12144-468: The historicity of Natanleod has been disputed), and Cerdic became the first king of Wessex in 519. The Saxons attacked Cerdicesford in 519, intending to cross the River Avon and block a road which connected Old Sarum and Badbury Rings , a British stronghold. The battle appears to have ended as a draw, and the expansion of Wessex ended for about thirty years. This is likely due to losses suffered during
12276-546: 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
12408-518: The king of Northumbria . He thereby became the Bretwalda , or high king of Britain. This position of dominance was short-lived, as Wiglaf returned and restored Mercian independence in 830, but the expansion of Wessex across south-eastern England proved permanent. Egbert's later years saw the beginning of Danish Viking raids on Wessex, which occurred frequently from 835 onwards. In 851 a huge Danish army, said to have been carried on 350 ships, arrived in
12540-419: The kingdom with his son to avoid bloodshed, ruling the new territories in the east while Æthelbald held the old heartland in the west. Æthelwulf was succeeded by each of his four surviving sons ruling one after another: the rebellious Æthelbald, then Æthelbert , who had previously inherited the eastern territories from his father and who reunited the kingdom on Æthelbald's death, then Æthelred, and finally Alfred
12672-404: The latter date to around 879 CE. According to a news report, "experts believe it [the hoard] was buried by a Viking during a series of raids known to have taken place in the area at that time", while Wessex was ruled by Alfred the Great and Mercia by Ceolwulf II. Two imperial coins recovered from the treasure hunters depict the two kings, "indicating an alliance between the two kingdoms—at least, for
12804-401: 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
12936-468: The location and garrisoning requirements of thirty-three forts, whose positioning ensured that no one in Wessex was more than a long day's ride from a place of safety. In the 890s these reforms helped him to repel the invasion of another huge Danish army – which was aided by the Danes settled in England – with minimal losses. In 2015, two individuals found a large hoard near Leominster consisting primarily of Saxon jewellery and silver ingots but also coins;
13068-557: The marshes of the Somerset Levels , but after a few months he was able to gather an army and defeated the Danes at the Battle of Edington , bringing about their final withdrawal from Wessex to settle in East Anglia. There were simultaneous Danish raids on the north coast of France and Brittany in the 870s – prior to the establishment of Normandy in 911 – and recorded Danish alliances with both Bretons and Cornish may have resulted in
13200-505: 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
13332-527: 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
13464-722: 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
13596-477: The north, west and east. The invaders reportedly defeated or co-opted Roman forces in most parts of northern and western Britain. However, the Roman general Theodosius had recaptured most areas by the end of 368. In 380–1, Magnus Maximus defeated further raids. However, there was increasing internal conflict across the Roman Empire. During 383–4, in the context of the overthrow of Emperor Gratian , Maximus took most of
13728-468: The oldest surviving English law codes and established a second West Saxon bishopric . The throne subsequently passed to a series of kings with unknown genealogies. During the 8th century, as the hegemony of Mercia grew, Wessex largely retained its independence. It was during this period that the system of shires was established. Under Egbert , Surrey , Sussex, Kent, Essex , and Mercia, along with parts of Dumnonia , were conquered. He also obtained
13860-462: The overlordship of the Northumbrian king. However, Mercian independence was restored in 830. During the reign of his successor, Æthelwulf , a Danish army arrived in the Thames estuary, but was decisively defeated. When Æthelwulf's son, Æthelbald , usurped the throne, the kingdom was divided to avoid war. Æthelwulf was succeeded in turn by his four sons, the youngest being Alfred the Great . Wessex
13992-506: 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,
14124-534: 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
14256-453: The rest returned to Wessex in 876. Alfred responded effectively and was able with little fighting to bring about their withdrawal in 877. A portion of the Danish army settled in Mercia, but at the beginning of 878 the remaining Danes mounted a winter invasion of Wessex, taking Alfred by surprise and overrunning much of the kingdom. Alfred was reduced to taking refuge with a small band of followers in
14388-758: 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
14520-594: The settlement of Saxons, Jutes and Angles in Britain are divided into two categories by the historian Peter Hunter Blair (1956), namely "Welsh" and "English". The Welsh tradition is exemplified by Gildas , in De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae . In brief, it states that after the Romans left, the Celtic Britons managed to continue for a time without any major disruptions. However, when finally faced with northern invaders,
14652-573: 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
14784-486: 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
14916-563: 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
15048-536: 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
15180-497: The standard written form of Old English for the rest of the Anglo-Saxon period and beyond. The Danish conquests had destroyed the kingdoms of Northumbria and East Anglia and divided Mercia in half, with the Danes settling in the north-east while the south-west was left to the English king Ceolwulf , allegedly a Danish puppet. When Ceolwulf's rule came to an end he was succeeded as ruler of "English Mercia" not by another king but by
15312-597: 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
15444-495: 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
15576-474: 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
15708-555: The suppression of Cornish autonomy with the death by drowning of King Donyarth in 875 as recorded by the Annales Cambriae . No subsequent 'Kings' of Cornwall are recorded after this time, but Asser records Cornwall as a separate kingdom from Wessex in the 890s. In 879 a Viking fleet that had assembled in the Thames estuary sailed across the English Channel to start a new campaign on the continent. The rampaging Viking army on
15840-457: The two parties had convened for a meeting. Some additional details of the Hengest and Horsa legend are found in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle . The Chronicle then records subsequent Saxon arrivals, including that of Cerdic, the founder of Wessex, in 495. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , Cerdic of Wessex and his son Cynric of Wessex landed in southern Hampshire in 495, but this account
15972-448: The vastly wealthy holders of this earldom, first Godwin and then his son Harold Godwinson , were the most powerful men in English politics after the king. Finally, on the death of Edward the Confessor in 1066, Harold became king, reuniting the earldom of Wessex with the crown. No new earl was appointed before the ensuing Norman Conquest of England , and as the Norman kings soon did away with
16104-558: The west, overwhelming the British kingdom of Dumnonia ( Devon ). At this time Wessex took de facto control of much of Devon, although Britons retained a degree of independence in Devon until at least the 10th century. ( William of Malmesbury claimed that the Britons and Saxons inhabited Exeter "as equals" until 927.) As a result of the Mercian conquest of the northern portion of its early territories in Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire ,
16236-562: The western Britons still in Devon and reduced those beyond the River Tamar , now Cornwall , to the status of a vassal . In 825 or 826 he overturned the political order of England by decisively defeating King Beornwulf of Mercia at Ellendun and seizing control of Surrey , Sussex, Kent and Essex from the Mercians, while with his help East Anglia broke away from Mercian control. In 829 he conquered Mercia, driving its King Wiglaf into exile, and secured acknowledgement of his overlordship from
16368-516: The whole of England under one ruler for the first time. The Kingdom of Wessex had thus been transformed into the Kingdom of England . Æthelstan never married, and when he died in 939 he was succeeded by his half-brother Edmund . Edmund's sons were young children when he died in 946, so he was succeeded by his full brother Eadred . Edmund and Eadred both lost control of Northumbria at the beginning of their reigns but had regained it by their deaths. Northumbria's acceptance of West Saxon rule in 954 meant
16500-416: The whole of England. After the conquest of England by the Danish king Cnut in 1016, he established earldoms based on the former kingdoms of Northumbria, Mercia and East Anglia, but initially administered Wessex personally. Within a few years, however, he had created an earldom of Wessex, encompassing all of England south of the Thames, for his English henchman Godwin, Earl of Wessex . For almost fifty years
16632-487: Was a pagan at his accession. However, he too was baptised only a few years later and Wessex became firmly established as a Christian kingdom. Cynegils' godfather was King Oswald of Northumbria , and his conversion may have been connected with an alliance against King Penda of Mercia , who had previously attacked Wessex. These attacks marked the beginning of sustained pressure from the expanding kingdom of Mercia . In time this would deprive Wessex of its territories north of
16764-454: Was able to expand West Saxon territory in Somerset at the expense of the Britons . He established a second bishopric at Winchester , while the one at Dorchester was soon abandoned as Mercian power pushed southwards. After Cenwealh's death in 673, his widow, Seaxburh , held the throne for a year; she was followed by Æscwine , who was apparently descended from another brother of Ceawlin. This
16896-467: Was granted arms. Two gold Wessex dragons were later granted as supporters to the arms of Dorset County Council in 1950. In the British Army the wyvern has been used to represent Wessex: the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division , and postwar regional 43 (Wessex) Brigade adopted a formation sign consisting of a gold wyvern on a black or dark blue background. The regular Wessex Brigade of the 1960s adopted
17028-486: 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,
17160-461: Was invaded by the Danes in 871, and Alfred was compelled to pay them to leave. They returned in 876 , but were forced to withdraw. In 878 they forced Alfred to flee to the Somerset Levels , but were eventually defeated at the Battle of Edington . During his reign Alfred issued a new law code, gathered scholars to his court and was able to devote funds to building ships, organising an army and establishing
17292-402: Was one of several occasions when the kingship of Wessex is said to have passed to a remote branch of the royal family with an unbroken male line of descent from Cerdic; these claims may be genuine, or may reflect the spurious assertion of descent from Cerdic to legitimise a new dynasty. Æscwine's reign only lasted two years, and in 676 the throne passed back to the immediate family of Cenwealh with
17424-469: Was the most durable of the West Saxon kings, reigning for 38 years. He issued the oldest surviving English code of laws apart from those of the kingdom of Kent, and established a second West Saxon bishopric at Sherborne , covering the area west of Selwood Forest , which formed an important boundary between east and west Wessex. Near the end of his life he followed in Cædwalla's footsteps by abdicating and making
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