Cornish History

Interim statement on the 1990s research excavations at Tintagel Castle and Tintagel Churchyard, Cornwall, UK. Significant new evidence of early burial  was found during a first season of excavation in the churchyard in 1990 which links the  mainland with the 5th and 6th century settlement on Tintagel headland.

In 1606, in the wake of the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot, England’s Attorney-General Sir Edward Coke got to his feet at the trial of the Jesuit priest Henry Garnet and spewed forth a tirade of loathing that harked back nearly twenty years to the Spanish Armada. “Observe here,” he commanded his audience, “that about the time of this invasion, there being in Spain met in consultation about that business, the Cardinal of Austria, the Duke of Medina, Count Fuentes, two Irish bishops, with sundry military men, and amongst others Winslade an Englishman…”.   
The man being referred to was Tristram Winslade who, just months before Coke’s outburst, had been recorded as having ‘piously finished with this life’ and been buried on 24 November 1605 in the chapel of the English College of Douai in Flanders.  Who was this Englishman and what had happened in his life to lead him to a meeting such as Coke described?  Why was he buried in a Catholic university chapel in Flanders? Was he a spy working in Flanders for England, or was he, as Coke believed, a traitor to his homeland?

Illustrated account of a second season of the research excavations at Tintagel Churchyard, North Cornwall, UK in 1991. Significiant new discoveries were made revealing an early cemetery and later burials as well as the foundation walls of an early pre-Norman church. The importance of the early graves indicate a site of major importance linked to the post-Roman setttlement on Tintagel headland and the implications of an early Christian site are discussed. The project was the 1990 Winner of a British Archaeological Award for Best Sponsorship of Archaeology and the educational outreach programme which took place during fieldwork.

Illustrated account of season one of a research excavation of Mound C in Tintagel Churchyard, North Cornwall, UK, in 1990. Preliminary results discovered an important early cemetery at this location with links to the 5th and 6th century settlement on Tintagel headland. A second season in 1991 is reported in a report published in 1992.

This paper investigates the relationship between the Cornish language and officialdom over the past thousand years. The social status of Cornish is examined along with attitudes towards the language held by monarchy, government and their agencies. During the middle-ages, Cornish was relatively stable and indeed enjoyed some prestige amongst the gentry who used Cornish as their preferred language for family mottoes. However, following the Tudor accession, the number of Cornish speakers was greatly reduced following the brutal repression of several popular uprisings when a significant proportion of the Cornish speaking population were exterminated. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Cornish continued to be used amongst the poor in Cornwall's fishing communities. The revival of Cornish began around 1900 and the number of speakers grew throughout the 20th century. Nevertheless, the government and state education system provided no support for Cornish language learners until 2002 when the European Union granted Cornish official “minority language” status under Part II of the 1992 Council of Europe Charter for Regional and Minority Languages. In 2005, the government confirmed modest funding support for the Cornish language. Local government in Cornwall are currently implementing a Cornish language strategy to determine a standard written form for Cornish that can be used for official purposes, such as signage, and for education in schools.

The cultures and stories of peripheral populations and conquered peoples, which have largely been drowned out by the accepted discourse of the nation states that colonised them, have begun to be recouped and re-told. The subaltern school of post-colonial theory provides the writer of fiction with a range of theories from which to devise the means of voicing the unvoiced. Among these, Ranajit Guha's work on the prose of counter-insurgency provides the author with the key to finding lost voices, in particular those of the vanquished peasant rebel.

Toward the end of the 1840s, significant emigration began from Cornwall. Caused by economic deprivation, crop failures, and the declining productivity of (and demand for) metal ores taken from the mines in Cornwall, skilled miners and their families began to look for better prospects abroad.

The saying goes “Wherever in the world there’s a hole in the ground, you’ll find a Cornishman at the bottom”. Cornish migrants could be found in Australia, South Africa, and throughout South America, as well as in certain important mining areas in North America. Shortly after the initial excitement of the California Gold Rush, the frontier town of Grass Valley, California saw a major influx of skilled Cornishmen in search of gold.

This dissertation aims to examine the essence of ‘Cornishness’ as it was believed to be at the time – customs, folklore and moral and religious outlook as well as other social factors that the Cornish took with them to Nevada County shortly after the Gold Rush until the mid-1950s, when the mines finally closed, and seeks to explore how instrumental these regional characteristics were in guiding the establishment of a local American culture.

""The Vocabularium Cornicum is a multilingual glossary that has since the eighteenth century been regarded as a Latin-Cornish glossary.It is shown here that this glossary is in fact multilingual and includes not only Cornish glosses but also Old Welsh, Old Breton, Old Norman French and Old English glosses.This is corroborated by what is known regarding the historical development of glossography. The Old Welsh and Old Breton glosses are identifiable from their phonological features. The Old Norman French and Old English glosses lack reflexes in Middle and Late Cornish and thus cannot be assumed to have ever been loanwords into Cornish.It is concluded that the Vocabularium Cornicum was compiled from a corpus of glossed Latin texts that include Old Cornish, Old Welsh, Old Breton, Old English and Old Norman French glosses.

Das Vocabularium Cornicum ist ein mehrsprachiges Glossar, seit dem achtzehnten Jahrhundert wurde es als ein lateinisch-kornisches Glossar angesehen. Hier wird gezeigt, dass dieses Glossar in der Tat mehrsprachig ist und nicht nur die kornischen Glossen, sondern auch altwalisische, altbretonische, altnormannisch-französische und altenglische Glossen beinhaltet. Dies wird bestätigt durch das, was über die historische Entwicklung der Glossographie bekannt ist. Die altwalisischen und altbretonischen Glossen sind an ihren phonologischen Merkmalen zu erkennen. Den altnormannisch-französischen sowie den altenglischen Glossen fehlen Reflexe im mittleren und späten Kornisch und können somit nicht Lehnwörter für das Kornisch gewesen sein. Abschließend kann gesagt werden, dass das Vocabularium Cornicum aus einem Korpus glossierter lateinischer Texte entstammt, der altkornische, altwalisische, altbretonische, altenglische und altnormannisch-französische Glossen beinhaltet.
"

This paper is a preliminary exploration of the social and economic situation in medieval Penzance leading to an examination what we know about Alice de Lisle and her family particularly their involvement in rebellion against Edward II, and finally presents Penzance's first and original market charter of 1332.

The translation of a 1595 Latin document, included in the Library of Congresses Hans P. Kraus collection, sheds light on the activities of an English Catholic exile living at the Court of the Spanish Archduke in Brussels. A soldier in William Stanley's English regiment, serving Spain, Tristram Winslade was deeply entrenched with the English exiles in Brussels, and this document reveals a plot to invade south-west England and turn it back to Catholicism. Translation by Michael Kelly and Judith Owen.

The purpose of this research was to locate and define Cornish identity in Australia at the turn of the 21 st Century, in the context of globalization and postmodernism. During the latter half of the 20 th Century, the processes of globalization and multiculturalism highlighted the position of 'normalcy' – even colourlessness-occupied by Anglo-Celtic Australians, and left many feeling cultureless. The condition of postmodernity that followed, characterized by a breaking down of traditional and institutional boundaries, added feelings of alienation and uncertainty. One of the antidotes to this condition was 'authenticity', and the search for it was manifested in a surging interest in genealogy as people tried to locate a distinctive 'ethnie' with which to identify.

Identification of a regional element to Edward IV’s governance – as accepted by numerous historians (D.A.L. Morgan, C.D. Ross, M.A. Hicks, and others) – was the inspiration for this interdisciplinary study which examines the crown's approach to government in South-West England: investigating Edward IV's policy towards the English regions, and exploring the feasibility of a regional approach to the politics, government, and elites of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, and Somerset (1450–1500).

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏 ◈ 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
Discussing historians’ views of Edward IV’s ‘regional policy’, its implications for governance (core-periphery relations, royal authority) and methodology (county studies, prosopography, South-West England as a ‘political region’) are extrapolated: by testing whether this regional model of governance is valid, this survey provides a synthesis and longer-term overview of the region’s shire societies – favouring a Britannicist perspective (emphasising regional differences and peripheries) – thereby offering an alternative view of late medieval English government.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐 ◈ 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡-𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝
Considering whether Edward IV’s scheme was based on existing expressions of regional identities, regions, identities, and their definitions are explored: examining how the south-western shires might be delineated by geography (geology, topography); economy (agriculture, commerce, settlement patterns); culture (ethnicities, counties, mythologies, laws); and political structures, both public (shrievalties, dioceses), and private (lordship); ultimately identifying the importance of the meso-scale regions of Somerset/Dorset and Devon/Cornwall.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟑 ◈ 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬
Political structures in general (council, parliament, royal household, crown estates, county administration), and with specific reference to the region, are explored: in particular, the prime role played by the Duchy of Cornwall (whose estates, regalities, and administration have remained largely unstudied). Consideration of lordship, with an exposition of the principles of patron-client ('bastard feudal'/clientelist) relationships and examination of the evidence (and limitations, subtleties, and uncertainties) relating to the (re-)construction of lordship/socio-political alliances, forms a basis for a methodological approach to the categorisation of clients into 'affinities' (a widely-accepted method in medieval Scottish historiography).

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟒 ◈ 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐬
The nature of elites and their definition is examined – suggesting the significance of counties’ administrative elites (sheriffs, escheators, knights of the shire and burgesses (MPs), and JPs). This definition is applied to the region (comprising local peerage and administrative elites; totalling 347 individuals: 82 peers and 265 gentry), and the extent to which they may have identified with their locality, county, or region is questioned by evaluating the degree to which their land- and office-holding, marriage alliances, testamentary dispositions, and interactions were regional. The degree to which their associations were regional is examined by means of three case studies (selectively chosen because of their importance): the Hungerfords, Arundells, and Edgcumbes (in which the clientelist principles outlined in Chapter 3 are demonstrated).

The crown's use of royal household servants in local government – increasingly the vital institution for exerting royal influence (a topic unduly neglected) – is examined alongside regional governance and the significance of the Duchy of Cornwall. These themes – in ensuing chapters – are silhouetted against a (chronological) analysis of government and local political alignments (utilising published (and unpublished) family and county studies, and Duchy of Cornwall archives), with each county analysed on an equal basis (thereby highlighting recurrences of major figures and themes between shires), and a regional evaluation offering a broader overview.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟓 ◈ 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬, 𝟏𝟒𝟓𝟎–𝟔𝟏
After consideration of pertinent personalities during previous decades, the influence of the Beaufort, Dukes of Somerset in Somerset and Dorset (involving associations with Lords Stourton and Hungerford) is examined, before outlining Bonville-Courtenay rivalry and the pre-eminence of William, Lord Bonville (through associations with Sir Philip Courtenay, and William, Lord FitzWaryn in Devon, and John Arundell in Cornwall). Later, the regional ascendancy of James, Earl of Ormond and Wiltshire during Queen Margaret’s direction of government is also explored.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟔 ◈ 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝟏𝟒𝟔𝟏–𝟕𝟏
There is a particular emphasis on Edward IV’s gubernatorial system and the regional ascendancy of Humphrey, Lord Stafford of Southwick (d.1469) who held estates and Duchy offices throughout the region and appears to have been associated with Stourton-Hungerford associates in Somerset/Dorset (through his uncle, Lord Stourton), former Bonville-FitzWaryn affiliates (Devon), and Arundell associates in Cornwall (through his stepfather, John Arundell).

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟕 ◈ 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝟏𝟒𝟕𝟏–𝟖𝟑
The re-structuring of regional politics during Edward IV's second reign is examined: from an initial focus upon George, Duke of Clarence, to the roles of William, Lord Hastings (through his son’s marriage to the Hungerford heiress) in Somerset/Dorset, John, Lord Dinham (Devon), and the potential regional significance of Thomas, Marquess of Dorset (through his marriage to the Bonville heiress).

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟖 ◈ 𝐔𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐔𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐥, 𝟏𝟒𝟖𝟑–𝟓
Contributing to ongoing discourses concerning the region’s contribution to the October Rebellion, Richard III’s ‘Northern Plantations’, and the uneasy aftermath, focus falls on the roles of Lords Audley and Zouche (Somerset/Dorset), and the importance of Lord Dinham (Devon) and Sir James Tyrell (through his Arundell marriage) in Cornwall.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟗 ◈ 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝟏𝟒𝟖𝟓–𝟏𝟓𝟎𝟎
Henry VII's governance – which remains largely unexplored with regard to local and regional politics – is examined: surveying a complex settlement and highlighting the relevance of Lord Cheyne (husband of Lord Stourton’s widow), and the prominence of Giles, Lord Daubeney (Somerset/Dorset). Similarly, whilst recognising the important roles of Lord Dinham and Edward, Earl of Devon (Devon), and the Edgcumbes, and John Arundell (Cornwall), the  significance of Robert, Lord Willoughby de Broke (Cornwall/Devon) is also examined.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟎 ◈ 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧
The themes of ‘regional governance’ and ‘household governance’ are evaluated within a wider historical context. Rather than stressing the role of magnate-led-affinities, leading-gentry-led associations may have provided a durable foundation beneath the evanescent manoeuvrings of local politics. In addition, elites’ interactions, alliances, and identities indicate the strength of the county-unit and meso-regional communities of Somerset/Dorset and Devon/Cornwall (as discerned in the region’s geography, economy, and culture), and the broader relevance of south-western elites and identities is discussed in relation to the study of meso- and macro-scale regions.

As an ancillary core, the Duchy of Cornwall projected royal authority thereby providing a regional ‘political centre’ whilst successive appointments of magnates (with region-wide interests) to Duchy offices ensured that regional ‘governors’ became political foci. However, these hegemonies may have failed, ultimately, because they ignored pre-existing county/meso-regional identities. Moreover, because of the inherently unstable nature of quasi-regal hegemonies, the regional trend in governance discernible during the period may have been a factor in the continuance of the Wars of the Roses: but these twin policies of regional and household governance ended with Henry VII's change in approach (and trend towards conciliarisation).

This survey integrates local, regional, and national perspectives, and aims at achieving a greater appreciation of royal authority, patronage, and government in late medieval south-western England, whilst offering a perspective placed within a broader context of longer-term trends in governance, institutional evolution, and state formation during the later Middle Ages.

𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐱 𝐈𝐈 ◈ 𝐃𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐬, 𝟏𝟒𝟓𝟎–𝟏𝟓𝟎𝟎
Table I: Directory of Peerage (including all Courtenay Earls of Devon: Thomas, Thomas, John, and Edward)
Table II: Directory of Gentry

Hardback: £29.95 (2009); £84.95 (30 Jun 2010).

This paper looks at how the New Woman is situated in Cornish Gothic fiction in the nineteenth century, using the specific example of 'The Phantom Hare', a short story published by an author known only as M. H. in The Argosy pulp fiction magazine in 1897, under the editorship of Mrs. Henry Wood. In looking at the way the Gothic story draws upon Cornish folklore, brought under popular scrutiny by the Victorian antiquarian revival, the tension between past and present is illuminated, and is emblematic of the tensions surrounding woman's progress in the period.

Using a core periphery approach to technological diffusion, this paper examines the social, cultural, and environmental factors in which local innovation and invention take place. Though not strictly adhering to a world-systems analysis approach, this paper accepts that the relationship between traditions of industrial practice developed in core areas and in peripheral, emerging locales is the central concern from which innovation and invention can be best understood. Technological innovation is rarely an act of inspiration, commonly imagined as a light bulb suddenly turning on, but instead is a product of tried-and-true methods adapting to a continuing series of new challenges. This is why we call the action of carrying out a technical process practice rather than proficiency. Through the activity of practice, adaptations (or innovations) can be tested, modified, and implemented successfully. The nature of that relationship, that is, the strength or weakness of core traditional practice impacting emerging peripheries, should be integral in the formation of new and innovative practice.
The spread of Cornish copper mining technology during the mid-nineteenth century is an excellent context within which questions regarding a core periphery’s relationship impacts innovation can be asked. Beginning in the eighteenth century and continuing into the 1860s, Cornwall led the world in copper production. Economic depression in Britain along with the discovery of new copper deposits in other parts of the world eventually spelled the end of Cornish copper mining dominance (Hyde 1998). Two of the new discovered deposits were first developed (to differing degrees) by Cornish technical and mechanical assistance, allowing for core Cornish practice—removed from its geographic borders—to continue within peripheral locations. These two locations: the Copper Country of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and the Little Cornwall of South Australia, became successful mining districts yet each followed a different path with regard to its dependence on Cornish expertise.
Illustrating these differing paths requires asking questions about aspects of social organization, capital formation and dispersal, environmental constraints, flow of material goods, and machinery. The answers to these questions provide contextualized, rather than inferred, understandings of practice based equally on technology and those who think about, use, and react to that technology.

This is an overview of efforts to collect and understand the folklore of Cornwall in the south west of Britain. Cornwall is one of the six Celtic nations (the others being Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man, and Brittany), recognized by pan-Celtic organizations at the beginning of the twentieth century. Cornish folklore collections were published in the second half of the nineteenth century, and what followed were numerous attempts to understand the material, addressing the subject from various perspectives. The Institute of Cornish Studies (University of Exeter) commissioned this article in early 2019, in response to the Publication of my book, The Folklore of Cornwall: The Oral Tradition of a Celtic Nation (Exeter 2018). This article is to be published by Cornish Studies, issued by the Institute in 2022.

The Morgawr is a sea monster that is reputed to swim along the southern coast of Cornwall, Britain's far south west peninsula. It draws on the belief held by many that prehistoric creatures survive, thriving in deep waters. Unlike many cryptids that derive from a foundation of folk tradition, the Morgawr began as a hoax. Originally part of a prank in 1976, stories of the cryptid have evolved, attracting enthusiasts in Cornwall, but also internationally thanks to the Internet. The creation of the Morgawr and then its subsequent development as an expression of folklore allows for a consideration of how it fits into the idea of the folkloresque, a term advanced by Foster and Tolbert to describe cultural expressions that draw on folklore for inspiration, mimicking tradition but representing something that is distinct. While folk traditions are the bedrock of the folkloresque, the two are distinct. In the case of the Morgawr, a faux tradition seems to have inspired genuine belief. This article is available online at https://www.shimajournal.org/article/10.21463/shima.123.pdf

Southern History is a peer reviewed academic year book published by the Southern History Society covering the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Gloucester, Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Oxford, Buckingham, Berkshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It contains articles and reviews. Prospective authors are requested to email the editor (aspicer@brookes.ac.uk) for copies of Notes for Contributors. Outlines of proposed submissions are welcome and articles should be submitted in electronic form.

A Level 3 analytical earthwork survey of Chysauster Ancient Village, Gulval, near Penzance, Cornwall was undertaken by Historic England on behalf of the English Heritage Trust in late January and early February 2016. The survey recorded a number of earthwork features predominantly of Iron Age and Romano-British date associated with the fogou and courtyard house settlement. Features included: a possible enclosure associated with the fogou; a series of lynchets of probable Iron Age date underlying the core of the courtyard house settlement; and a  eld system associated with the Romano-British courtyard house settlement. Evidence of post- medieval tin prospection, quarrying and agricultural improvement was also recorded, as were spoil heaps from twentieth century archaeological excavations. The survey has situated archaeological features inside the Chysauster Guardianship area within earlier surveys of its environs, enabling them to be discussed in their landscape context.

Avery Cornburgh (d.1487) of Bere Ferrers (Devon) and Dovers (Essex) – a Lancastrian, Yorkist, and Tudor household servant – was one of the appreciable numbers of crown servants utilised in local government during the fifteenth century. Serving in Cornwall and Essex as JP, MP, sheriff, and commissioner, he was prominent in Cornish affairs as a result of the positions he enjoyed in the Duchy of Cornwall.

This case study of his career in the royal household and Duchy of Cornwall and associations with magnates and gentry in South-West England – (re-)constructed from eclectic sources (including Duchy of Cornwall (and other) archives) – provides an insight into local and national politics in the later fifteenth century: Cornburgh's Duchy and royal service culminated with his appointments as Under-Treasurer of England (under Richard III), and Keeper of the Wardrobe (under Henry VII).

Focussing on the Duchy of Cornwall’s organisational structure during the Wars of the Roses, this survey examines the principal offices (which evolved around administration of its marine and terrene regalities) and personnel (administrative elite) in Cornwall and Devon. Utilising Duchy of Cornwall (and other) archives, this analysis explores the Duchy’s governance in terms of estate administration (stewards, constables, and keepers of castles and parks); Stannary administration (coinage, courts, and convocations); Havenary administration (ports, customs, and fisheries); and revenues and accounts.

Consideration of successive Princes’ Councils and counsellors (and Councils of Wales and the Marches) leads onto exploration of the roles of various courtiers, magnates, and royal household servants in the affairs of the Duchy and the wider implications – for south-western England – of Duchy service. The duchy with its political hinterland – as a subsidiary core – radiated royal authority throughout the region, hence the significance of Duchy office-holding in royal patronage and especially for assessing royal policy in terms of regional governance.

The Duchy’s singular structures ensured that Cornwall remained distinctly different from England and Wales yet reflected the realm as a whole – it was a microcosm of national politics and government. The Duchy’s role as a focus for Cornish loyalties and identities was more complex: Duchy office-holding provided an agency for advancement, careerism, and social mobility – encouraging participation whilst, simultaneously, feeding senses of solidarity and separation. However, Cornish appreciation of the Duchy depended on the Duchy’s appreciation of the Cornish, their customs, and liberties; thus when the crown was believed to reneged on its responsibilities (such as in 1497 and 1549), the Cornish rose in rebellion.

Four sources, two from the nineteenth and two from the early twentieth century, have supernatural soldiers fighting or parading on the Cornish hill-fort Castle-an-Dinas. Are these phantom warriors linked to one another and, if so, to what tradition do they belong: Arthurian, fairy-, or ghost-lore?

Southern History is a peer reviewed academic year book published by the Southern History Society covering the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Gloucester, Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Oxford, Buckingham, Berkshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It contains articles and reviews.
Some of the articles in this issue were initially delivered as papers at the Southern History Society's 'Anglicanism and Dissent in Southern England, c. 1662-1829' conference on 13 April 2013. As several other contributions were received relating to similar themes, it was decided to restrict this volume to articles on urban politics and religion in the late seventeenth- and early eighteenth centuries.

Prospective authors are requested to email the editor (aspicer@brookes.ac.uk) for copies of Notes for Contributors. Outlines of proposed submissions are welcome and articles should be submitted in electronic form.

Southern History is a peer reviewed academic year book published by the Southern History Society covering the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Gloucester, Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Oxford, Buckingham, Berkshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It contains articles and reviews.
Some of the articles in this issue were initially delivered as papers at the Southern History Society's 'Anglicanism and Dissent in Southern England, c. 1662-1829' conference on 13 April 2013. As several other contributions were received relating to similar themes, it was decided to restrict this volume to articles on urban politics and religion in the late seventeenth- and early eighteenth centuries.

Prospective authors are requested to email the editor (aspicer@brookes.ac.uk) for copies of Notes for Contributors. Outlines of proposed submissions are welcome and articles should be submitted in electronic form.

This is a 'mini-epic' poem--researched and set in Cornwall, England--that I wrote between 1974-1977, appended Endnotes and plot tags in 1997-1998, and composed a Headnote for this posting. The themes and subject of the poem, as well as its structure, are discussed in the Headnote (as well as the Endnotes).  This represents some of my earliest research in what I now know is a lifelong scholarly investigation of the relationship among  rhetoric, poetry, history, and religion in highly scientific and technological cultures. (An earlier version of this poem, without any of the apparatus, was published in 1977/1978 by a now long defunct literary and cultural journal, _The Center Design_, whose death was not caused by the length of this poem but also not unrelated to it. Here, that publication is now superseded and I hoped improved upon by the inclusion of Headnote, Endnotes, and running tagged lines later in the poem when the reader might need them the most.)

This survey of the Duchy of Cornwall’s landed and marine interests in South-West England (from Cornwall to Somerset) considers the relevance of office-holding in royal patronage policies (from Henry VI to Henry VII), and questions whether consolidation of such power – in the hands of royal favourites (such as regional governors) – might promote, rather than prevent, political instability.

Southern History is a peer reviewed academic year book published by the Southern History Society covering the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Gloucester, Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Oxford, Buckingham, Berkshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It contains articles and reviews.
Some of the articles in this issue were initially delivered as papers at the Southern History Society's 'Anglicanism and Dissent in Southern England, c. 1662-1829' conference on 13 April 2013. As several other contributions were received relating to similar themes, it was decided to restrict this volume to articles on urban politics and religion in the late seventeenth- and early eighteenth centuries.

Prospective authors are requested to email the editor (aspicer@brookes.ac.uk) for copies of Notes for Contributors. Outlines of proposed submissions are welcome and articles should be submitted in electronic form.

Consideration of the Duchy of Cornwall’s role in south-western England – and its wider importance in terms of royal patronage – is a precursor to examining the careers and connections of some of those individuals involved in Duchy of Cornwall administration from the 1450s onwards, such as the royal household servants John Trevelyan and Avery Cornburgh (d.1487).

‘Four Further South-Western Fairy Notes: (1) An Early Nineteenth-Century Irish Source for Devonshire Pixies; (2) A Lost Pixy Picture; (3) Robert Hunt’s First Published Fairy Writing; (4) The Couch Family and Cornish Fairies, c. 1847-1871’, Devon and Cornwall Notes and Queries 41, 69-78