Minions ( kw, Menyon) is a village in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the eastern flank of

Bodmin Moor Bodmin Moor ( kw, Goon Brenn) is a granite moorland in north-eastern Cornwall, England. It is in size, and dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. It includes Brown Willy, the highest point in Cornwall, and Rough Tor, a s ...

northwest of

Caradon Hill Caradon Hill ( kw, Bre Garn) is on Bodmin Moor in the former Caradon district of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The summit is above mean sea level. Caradon Hill is on the southeastern edge of the moor; it is between the villages of Minions ...

approximately four miles (6 km) north of

Liskeard Liskeard ( ; kw, Lyskerrys) is a small ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, South West England. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) eas ...

.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 201 ''Plymouth & Launceston'' Minions is first recorded in 1613 and its meaning is unknown. A stone circle known as the Hurlers is located on the west side of the village. Several other

tumuli A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones buil ...

are also in the area, including Rillaton round barrow, where a

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

gold beaker was discovered. The

Cheesewring The Cheesewring ( kw, Keuswask) is a granite tor in Cornwall, United Kingdom, situated on the eastern flank of Bodmin Moor on Stowe's Hill in the parish of Linkinhorne approximately one mile northwest of the village of Minions and four miles ...

, a distinctive rock formation, is a mile northwest. The village has embraced the coincidence that its name is now shared with the characters from the ''Despicable Me'' franchise.

Geography

Minions is in the former

Caradon Caradon was a local government district in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It contained five towns: Callington, Liskeard, Looe, Saltash and Torpoint, and over 80 villages and hamlets within 41 civil parishes. Its District Council was based in Liskear ...

administrative district and in the parish of

Linkinhorne Linkinhorne (in Cornish ''Lanngynhorn'') is a civil parish and village in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village itself is situated at and is approximately four miles (6.5 km) northwest of Callington and seven miles (1 ...

. At it is said to be the highest village in Cornwall. The village is dominated by Caradon Hill, standing at high, on which there is a TV transmission mast on the summit. As a result, there is a road leading up to the summit from Minions. On the western flank of the hill, a

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...

recently started up again, cutting granite boulders. As well as this working quarry, there are many other disused quarries and mine buildings in the area due to the village's mining heritage, including the Phoenix United Mine that closed in 1914. Unlike in the west of Cornwall, there are no plans to reopen the tin and copper mines in the area.

Climate

The climate of Minions is

Oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...

but, like the rest of Bodmin Moor, due to its higher altitude, it is often cooler, windier and wetter. However, there is a good balance of fair days too, which can get warm in the summer. In winter frosts are common and even though it snows most years, it is never prolonged or severe. Winter:6c/1c Spring:14c/6c Summer:20c/12c Autumn:12c/3c Rainy days:173 Snowfalls:2-4

Community facilities

The village has two main car parks, located on the western and eastern edges on the village. There are two tearooms, a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

with B&B, and a general store which also holds a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

, one of the tearooms and a B&B. A museum dedicated to the mining history of the local area is located to the north of the village in a disused engine house.

Popular culture

In May 2015, a road sign was erected outside the village in tribute to the then-forthcoming ''Minions'' movie. This sign was removed later the same year for safety reasons, due to families stopping on the narrow road to take photographs. Local residents fought for the "tourism-boosting" sign to stay, stating that it had "put Minions on the map." Calls for the colourful sign to be reinstated received strong support, with an anonymous member of the public placing stickers of the popular characters on the original sign. Filming for ''Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children'' took place in 2015.

Gallery

File:Engine House, Minions - geograph.org.uk - 232957.jpg, Engine house of a disused mine File:Bodmin Moor Quarry 01.jpg, Disused granite quarry on the moor

References

{{authority control Villages in Cornwall Bodmin Moor