|
Falmouth and
Penryn stand on the southern and western shores of a great natural
waterway. Founded by Bishop Simon de Apulia, Italian
Bishop of Exeter, in 1216, Penryn was granted its market charter
in 1236, before the creation in 1265 of the important Collegiate
Church of Glasney. In 1275 Penryn's earlier market charter of
1236 was confirmed, making it, not Falmouth, the most important
town in the area.
The first significant
reference to Falmouth was late in the 14th century when Jane,
Duchess of Burgundy, came here by sea to marry Henry IV. However,
the development of Penryn and Truro continued to stall that of
Falmouth until in Tudor times, when the Fal River saw more shipping
than any other port in the kingdom, Falmouth began to develop,
with its old names being Smithick and Penny-come-quick.
Pendennis Castle,
apart from the ruined Arwenack Manor, is probably the oldest
building in the area and was built in 1545. The prominent site,
good for defence, commands one of the finest views in Europe.
Henry VIII gave orders for the construction of a strong defensive
building matched by one on the opposite side at St Mawes. Pendennis
was also bolstered by Little Dennis, which provided firepower
at sea level. A plan to build a third castle in the inner harbour
at Trefusis Point, Flushing, and a fourth in the Gyllyngvase
area never came to fruition. (see extract from the great map
of the West).
|
Extract from the
great map of the West c. 1539 |
|
During the English
Civil War Falmouth became one of the strongholds of largely Royalist
Cornwall, with important munitions from Holland and France exchanged
for tin which was sent from the port.
The historic
siege of Pendennis began in 1646 when Parliamentary forces pressed
it from land and sea. They cut the castle off with trenches and
gun positions, running from Gyllyngvase across to what is now
the docks. The Roundheads established their headquarters at Arwenack
House, home to the Killigrew family, which had been destroyed
by fire. Some say it was destroyed by Parliamentarians and some
say by Sir John Killigrew's own hand to stop it falling into
enemy hands. Under the command of the 80 year old Sir John Arundel
and assisted by Sir Henry Killigrew ( Member of Parliament),
the castle held out for five months, with the garrison eventually
reduced to eating horse and dog meat. Pendennis had been the
penultimate stronghold in the country to hold out for the King,
after earlier giving sanctuary to Queen Henrietta Maria, and
the Prince of Wales (Charles II), before their escape to France.
|
Pendennis Castle |
Gun Brig, 'Nautilus'
Former Packet in Falmouth Bay, 1890's |
Despite being
affected by the Civil War and the creation of the Commonwealth,
both towns took advantage of increasing trade to gather back
fortunes lost. The spread of British sea power and trade highlighted
the advantages of Falmouth as a port, and in 1688 the Post Office
designated it the Packet station for foreign mail (with the harbour
coming in to what is now the Moor area of the town), followed
by the building of Custom House Quay in 1670 by Sir Peter Killigrew,
as well as the rise of the town itself.
The Falmouth
Packets were so successful that by 1827, the fast brigantines
were delivering precious cargo to Spain, the West Indies, New
York, Pensacola, St. Augustine, Charlestown, Lisbon, the Mediterranean,
Brazil, Jamaica, Carthagena, Halifax, Bermuda, the Leeward Islands,
Vera Cruz, Tampico and Buenos Aires.
The Packets,
which belonged to and were fitted out in Falmouth, were also
involved in some historic battles trying to save their cargoes,
often against privateers. They were built for speed, not combat
and often won against boats with superior weapons. From 1812
- 1814, during the Napoleonic Wars, the Packets were involved
in 32 conflicts and won 17 of them.
|
'Regina' at Custom
House Quay (1920's) |
Over 30 coastal
sailing vessels in the Inner Harbour,
sheltering after the 'Great Blizzard' of 1891 |
|
Falmouth Docks before
dry dock No. 4 was built (1926-28) |
Building of dry
dock No. 3 (1920) |
Wings for Victory
Week, World War 2 |
Falmouth's development
continued with the construction of the Docks, starting in 1860,
and the completion of the Truro to Falmouth railway line in 1863.
The Docks continued to develop and expand with further ship building
and repair services, excluding passenger services in the process.
During both World Wars the Docks and Falmouth played a key role.
In 1940 there were over 200 ships anchored in the bay after the
evacuation of Europe, and Allied troops filled the area. In 1944
the Docks, the Bay and the Helford River were the main points
from which troops left for the Normandy landings, with the 29th
US Army Division secretly leaving the Mawnan Smith area for Omaha
Beach.
Today the Docks
is still one of the main aspects of the town together with tourism
and service industries. Many major events have taken place here
over the last few years with Falmouth hosting start of The Tall
Ships Race in summer 1998 with over 200,000 people visiting the
area. The town was also on the line of Totality for The Eclipse
in August 1999. The new National Maritime Museum which will house
the small boat collection is being built in Falmouth and will
be completed and open to visitors in summer 2002, highlighting
the close link with the sea that has established Falmouth and
it's surrounding areas to what they are today.
|
'Sunderland'
on rocks in Falmouth Harbour,
World War 2 |
Fleet in Falmouth
Bay, World War 2 |
|
|
Photographs supplied
with the kind permission of Peter Gilson and The Royal Cornwall
Polytechnic Society. |
|
