Historic Places in Cornwall

Set on headland 1 mile from Falmouth on the south west coast of England, Pendennis Castle's location ensures wonderful views over the Fal estuary out towards Falmouth itself. The stout well restored castle, built over two floors, consists of a round tower enclosed by a curtain wall with access via a small bridge and attached gatehouse. Facilities The castle was awarded a silver award in the category of small visitor attraction in the Cornwall Tourism Awards in 2009 and even though it is small there are lots of things to see and do on a visit here with interactive displays, exhibitions and guided tours. The castle's keep and artillery barracks house an interactive exhibition and introduction to the castle from Tudor times with the gun deck right up to the Second World War. There are also the guardhouse cells and the WWII observation post with its re-creation of an enemy attack, garrison barracks with its family friendly displays and the rock tunnels which lead to the 'Half Moon Gun Battery' and where the Noon Day Gun is fired in July and August. For a visit to the Half Moon Magazine, the storeroom which housed the shells and cartridges for the guns visitors need to take a guided tour; reservations required one month in advance. The tour includes audio re-enactment and entry into a very dark tunnel with an uneven tunnel floor, so is not suitable for children or those with limited mobility. The castle is open daily from 10am year round. As well as a tourist attraction the castle is also used as a wedding and reception venue for up to 160 guests; 100 for the ceremony itself. Ceremonies take place inside the keep where the wall are decorated with tapestries and candlelight adds to the atmosphere and afterwards guests stroll across the grounds to the barracks to enjoy dinner and dancing. The castle was built by Henry VIII in 1540 as one in a chain of castles along the coast to protect against the French and Spanish invasions. The castle was adapted many times firstly when a defensive rampart was added in 1598 and further strengthened prior the Civil War. The castle was under siege for five months and was one of the last Royalist garrisons to surrender. The final battles at the castle were during both the First and Second World Wars and now the castle is under the care of English Heritage.

St Michael's Mount is a tidal island in Mount's Bay off the Cornish coast near Marazion, a rocky granite outcrop crowned by a medieval castle and priory that is accessible on foot across a granite causeway at low tide and by boat when the tide covers the crossing. The combination of the dramatic island setting, the castle architecture rising above the harbour village at the base of the rock, and the extraordinary views across Mount's Bay toward the Penwith Peninsula and the open sea makes St Michael's Mount one of the most romantic and most visited historic sites in Cornwall. The island has been a place of Christian pilgrimage since at least the twelfth century when a Benedictine priory was established on the summit, a daughter house of the great Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy to which the island bears obvious geographical resemblance. The priory buildings were converted into a castle and residence after the Dissolution and the island passed through various hands before coming into the possession of the St Aubyn family in 1659, whose descendants still occupy part of the castle and have managed the island in partnership with the National Trust since 1954. The castle and its contents reflect five centuries of St Aubyn family occupation, the rooms containing furniture, portraits, armour and decorative objects accumulated across many generations in a setting of extraordinary character. The views from the castle's higher levels across the bay and toward the headlands of the Lizard and Penwith are exceptional, and the terraced subtropical gardens on the rock face below the castle are one of the most dramatically positioned gardens in Britain. The village of Marazion on the mainland shore provides the starting point for the causeway crossing and facilities for visitors, and the expanse of the bay visible from the causeway and the village front provides some of the finest views of the Mount.

Launceston Castle stands on a prominent hilltop in the centre of Launceston in north Cornwall, its circular keep and defensive walls providing sweeping views across the surrounding countryside and the Tamar Valley marking the boundary with Devon. For much of the medieval period Launceston served as the effective capital of Cornwall, and the castle was the administrative and judicial centre from which the Earldom and later the Duchy of Cornwall was governed. The castle began as an earth motte and bailey fortification built shortly after the Norman Conquest by Robert of Mortain, William the Conqueror's half-brother who was granted the Earldom of Cornwall. The distinctive round keep that rises from the top of the motte was added in the thirteenth century and is unusual in having a circular shell keep surrounding a further circular tower built within it, creating a double-cylindrical arrangement that is almost unique in English castle architecture. The resulting structure, though small in comparison to some of the great English castles, is exceptionally well preserved and retains most of its thirteenth-century fabric. The castle served as the main prison for Cornwall throughout the medieval and later periods, and its judicial history includes several grim episodes. George Fox, the founder of the Quaker movement, was imprisoned here in 1656 for blasphemy and later wrote a powerful account of the conditions he experienced. The castle continued as a gaol until the early nineteenth century when a new County Gaol was built in the town. The steep motte provides the principal attraction for most visitors: climbing to the keep allows the panoramic views that made this site so strategically valuable in the first place. On clear days the view extends north to Bodmin Moor, east across the Tamar to the Devon hills and south toward the Cornish coast. The town below preserves several other medieval features including the remarkable carved stonework of the town gate, considered some of the finest decorative Norman carving in southwest England. The castle is managed by English Heritage and a modest admission fee applies. Launceston town itself is worth exploring for its independent shops, Georgian architecture and the Launceston Steam Railway, a narrow-gauge heritage line that operates through the scenic Kensey Valley.

Tintagel Castle on the north Cornish coast clings to a dramatic promontory and island of dark Devonian slate connected to the mainland by a narrow rock bridge, its ruins combining the genuine historical interest of a thirteenth-century Cornish royal castle with the powerful legendary associations with King Arthur and the Matter of Britain that have made this one of the most evocative and most visited heritage sites in the southwest. The combination of the extraordinary coastal setting, the castle ruins and the Arthurian tradition creates an atmosphere unlike any other heritage site in England. The historical castle was built by Richard, Earl of Cornwall, in the 1230s and takes advantage of the extraordinary natural defensibility of the promontory that projects from the cliff face and is connected to the mainland by a rock bridge that can be crossed on foot at all states of the tide. The castle consists of two separate enclosures, one on the mainland and one on the island, connected by the narrow crossing, and the ruins on the island in particular retain considerable height and dramatic quality in their cliff-edge setting. The Arthurian associations of Tintagel were established by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his History of the Kings of Britain of approximately 1138, which identified Tintagel as the place of Arthur's conception by Uther Pendragon and Igraine. This literary association predates the historical castle by a century, suggesting that Geoffrey was drawing on an older tradition associating the promontory with legendary history. The discovery of a significant early medieval settlement on the site, including imported Mediterranean pottery indicating high-status occupation in the fifth and sixth centuries, has given archaeological support to the idea that Tintagel was a place of genuine importance in the period when Arthur is legendarily set. The footbridge installed in 2019 provides direct access between the mainland and island sections without the previous steep climb.

Restormel Castle is built on a spur; or lateral ridge projecting from the hillside, overlooking the River Fowey, one mile from the medieval town of Lostwithel The castle is a huge circular shell keep with walls 8 feet thick and 25 feet tall, surrounded by a deep ditch. Adjoining the walls are the remains of buildings including living quarters, a great hall and kitchens which are in a good state of repair. Facilities The castle is open to visitors daily between 10am and 5pm, April and September, until 6pm in July and August and until 4pm in October and November. Entry to the castle sit is through an area used to graze stock so appropriate footwear is advised. Visitors to the site can climb the cobbled battlements which are reached by a wooden staircase as well a visit the Restormel Castle shop or buy refreshments from a snack kiosk. If you bring a picnic there are some spots with breathtaking views in which to enjoy a leisurely summer's afternoon. The original motte and bailey castle was built in 1100 and owned by the Cardinham family; it was considered one of the finest military castles in England. The wooden elements of the castle were replaced by stone in the 13th century and in 1264 Richard of Cornwall; Henry III's brother; and afterwards his son Edmund, held the castle until 1300. In 1337 the keep was restored and made into a luxury residence and castle was given to the 1st Duke of Cornwall to became part of the Duchy of Cornwall's Estate, an thereafter property the Prince of Wales. Although a fine example of a military castle it saw very little fighting, it was only during the civil war that it saw action when the parliamentarian forces were driven out. Although part of the Duchy's estate, the castle fell into ruins and by the 18th century was covered in ivy and hidden by woodland. It was not until 1925 when English Heritage took over the running of the site that the castle was uncovered once more.

St Mawes Castle is situated in the small fishing village of the same name on a hillside overlooking the estuary of the River Fal, 16 miles from Falmouth by car, but only a short journey across the estuary by boat. The castle is a four storey coastal fortress surrounded by a curtain wall and ditch. Inside the wall is the main central circular tower connected to three lower semi circular bastions; viewed from above it has the appearance of a clover leaf. The interior is very well preserved; visitors access the castle via a bridge onto the third floor where it is still possible to see stone carvings in Latin praising Henry VIII and Edward VI. Facilities The castle is open to visitors daily between April and November from 10am and from Friday to Monday between November and March. As well as admiring the stone carvings inside the castle, visitors can see the original cannon ball that was fired from the castle during the Civil War; this was the only shot that was fired. The castle also has its own gift shop selling souvenir guides and for visitors who bring their own picnic there are spots with views across the estuary towards Falmouth and the boats in the harbor of St Mawes The castle is also a licensed venue for wedding ceremonies and receptions for up to 150 guests in the keep overlooking the sea and gardens. St Mawes Castle was built as one of a chain of fortresses along the Cornish coastline between 1539 and 1545 for Henry VIII as protection against French and Spanish invaders. The design was such that heavy cannon could be mounted on the roof of the tower and bastions to protect against attack from the sea, unfortunately the castles position on the side of the hill made it vulnerable to attack from above. During the Civil War in 1646 the castle was surrendered without being attacked as the governor knew that it was impossible to defend the castle from an attack. The castle still continued to be used as a gun placement to protect Falmouth harbor until the end of the Second World War and is now in the care of English Heritage.