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Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town,
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
and
port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...
in the
Penwith Penwith (; kw, Pennwydh) is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. The area is named after ...
district of
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...
,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...
and west-southwest of London. Situated in the shelter of
Mount's Bay Mount's Bay ( kw, Baya an Garrek) is a large, sweeping bay on the English Channel coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom, stretching from the Lizard Point to Gwennap Head. In the north of the bay, near Marazion, is St Michael's Mount; the origin ...
, the town faces south-east onto the
English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Ka ...
, is bordered to the west by the
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...
port of Newlyn, to the north by the civil parish of
Madron Madron ( kw, Eglos Madern) is a civil parish and village in west Cornwall, Great Britain. Madron is named after Saint Madern's Church. Its annual Trafalgar Service commemorating the death of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson was started on 27 Oc ...
and to the east by the civil parish of
Ludgvan Ludgvan ( ; kw, Lujuan) is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, UK, northeast of Penzance. Ludgvan village is split between Churchtown, on the hill, and Lower Quarter to the east, adjoining Crowlas. For the purposes of local g ...
. The civil parish includes the town of Newlyn and the villages of
Mousehole Mousehole (; kw, Porthenys) is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, England, UK. It is approximately south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay. The village is in the civil parish of Penzance. An islet called St Clement's Isle lies ...
,
Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
,
Gulval Gulval ( kw, Lannystli) is a village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Although historically a parish in its own right, Gulval was incorporated into the parishes of Ludgvan, Madron and Penzance in 1934, and is now considered to be a suburb ...
, and
Heamoor Heamoor (formerly Hea) ( kw, An Hay) is a village in Cornwall, England. Formerly a secondary settlement of the village of Madron, Heamoor is situated approximately one-and-a half kilometres (just over a mile) northwest of Penzance town centr ...
. Granted various
royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, b ...
s from 1512 onwards and incorporated on 9 May 1614, it has a population of 21,200 (2011 census). Penzance's former main street Chapel Street has a number of interesting features, including the Egyptian House, The Admiral Benbow
public house 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 wa ...
(home to a real life 1800s smuggling gang and allegedly the inspiration for ''
Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure no ...
''s "Admiral Benbow Inn"), the Union Hotel (including a Georgian
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...
which is no longer in use), and Branwell House, where the mother and aunt of the famous Brontë sisters once lived.
Regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
, and Georgian terraces and houses are common in some parts of the town. The nearby sub-tropical
Morrab Gardens Morrab Gardens are a municipal garden covering to the south of Penzance town centre, Cornwall. It is known for its Mediterranean and sub-tropical plants; and for housing the Morrab Library in the grounds. Morrab House with its walled garden ...
has a large collection of tender trees and shrubs, many of which cannot be grown outdoors anywhere else in the UK. Also of interest is the seafront with its
promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...
and the open-air seawater
Jubilee Pool Jubilee Pool ( Cornish: ) is an Art Deco lido in Penzance, Cornwall. It is Grade II listed, being recognised as the finest surviving example of its type with the exception of Saltdean Lido. With a capacity of 5 million litres and 600 swimmers a ...
(one of the oldest surviving
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...
swimming baths in the country). Penzance is the base of the
pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
s in
Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...
's
comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a n ...
, ''
The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...
''. At the time the
libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major li ...
was written, 1879, Penzance had become popular as a peaceful resort town, so the idea of it being overrun by pirates was amusing to contemporaries.


Toponymy

Penzance—''Pennsans''; "holy headland" in the
Cornish language Cornish (Standard Written Form: or ) , is a Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family. It is a revived language, having become extinct as a living community language in Cornwall at the end of the 18th century. However, ...
—refers to the location of a chapel nowadays called St Anthony's that is said to have stood over a thousand years ago on the headland to the west of what became Penzance Harbour. There are no early documents mentioning an actual dedication to St Anthony which seems to depend entirely on tradition and may be groundless. The only remaining object from this chapel is a carved figure, now largely eroded, known as "St Raffidy" which can be found in the churchyard of the parish church of St Mary's near the original site of the chapel. Until the 1930s this history was also reflected in the choice of
symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...
for the town, the severed "holy head" of
St John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
. It can still be seen on the civic
regalia Regalia is a Latin plurale tantum word that has different definitions. In one rare definition, it refers to the exclusive privileges of a sovereign. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and dress accessories of a sovereig ...
of the
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of Penzance and on several important
landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...
s in the town.


History


Prehistory to Early Medieval period

About 400 prehistoric stone axes, known as Group 1 axes and made from greenstone, have been found all over Britain, which from petrological analysis appear to come from west Cornwall. Although the quarry has not been identified, it has been suggested that the ''Gear'', a rock now submerged half a mile from the shore at Penzance, may be the site. A significant amount of trade is indicated as many have been found elsewhere in Britain.Pool, P. A. S. (1974) ''The History of the Town and Borough of Penzance.'' Penzance: The Corporation of Penzance. The earliest evidence of settlement in Penzance is from the
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 ...
. A number of bronze implements such as a palstave, a spear-head, a
knife A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evid ...
, and pins, along with much pottery and large quantities of charcoal were discovered when building a new housing estate, at Tredarvah, to the west of Alverton. The defensive earthwork known as Lescudjack Castle is not excavated, but almost certainly belongs to the
Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...
. A single rampart encloses three acres of hilltop, and would have dominated the approach to the area from the east. There are no signs of the additional ramparts reported by
William Hals William Hals (1655–1737) was a British historian who compiled a ''History of Cornwall'', the first work of any magnitude that was printed in Cornwall. He was born at Tresawsan, in the parish of Merther in Cornwall. Much of his work was never pub ...
in about 1730, and the site is now surrounded by housing with allotments. Excavations in 2008, to the west at
Penwith College Truro and Penwith College is a Tertiary College and Further Education College in Cornwall, United Kingdom. History Truro College was founded in 1993 as a new college in Gloweth near Threemilestone, Truro, Cornwall, to replace the Truro ...
found an enclosure ditch and pottery indicating a settlement, and an evolving field system with ditches and interconnecting pits suggesting water management. There are traces of a rampart and ditch to the west of Penzance at Mount Misery, and an oval rampart and ditch at Lesingey above the St Just road, which together with Lescudjack, overlook the coast of Penzance and Newlyn. Until recently, there was little evidence for anything but an early and short Roman occupation of Cornwall, and there have so far been only three finds in Penzance. In August 1899 two coins of
Vespasian Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Emp ...
(69–79 AD) were found in an ancient trench in Penzance Cemetery. The coins were eight feet below ground together with some cow bones, and are now in the Penlee House Museum. Another coin, found in 1934 in the Alverton area, depicts
Sol Sol or SOL may refer to: Astronomy * The Sun Currency * SOL Project, a currency project in France * French sol, or sou * Argentine sol * Bolivian sol, the currency of Bolivia from 1827 to 1864 * Peruvian sol, introduced in 1991 * Peruvian sol ...
, the Roman sun god. It is described as a ″''coin of the reign of Constantine the Great''″, and was also donated to the museum. A 30 mm (1 3/16 in)''
sestertius The ''sestertius'' (plural ''sestertii''), or sesterce (plural sesterces), was an ancient Roman coin. During the Roman Republic it was a small, silver coin issued only on rare occasions. During the Roman Empire it was a large brass coin. The ...
'' was found on a building site in or around Penzance about ten years previously, and was presented to the
Royal Institution of Cornwall The Royal Institution of Cornwall (RIC) is a Learned society in Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom. It was founded in Truro on 5 February 1818 as the Cornwall Literary and Philosophical Institution. The Institution was one of the earliest of seve ...
. Larger quantities of Roman coins have been found nearby, at
Marazion Marsh Marazion Marsh is a Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) reserve situated in a shallow river valley, half a kilometre to the west of Marazion, Cornwall, UK. It is separated from the coast by a shingle bar and small sand dune system a ...
and
Kerris Kerris ( kw, Kerys) is a settlement in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is three miles (5 km) south-west of Penzance in the civil parish of Paul. Kerris means "fort-place" in the Cornish language. Toponymy In 1302 a document spel ...
in Paul parish, but there is no evidence of any Roman settlement in the area, although nearby villages such as Chysauster were occupied at this time. The
Hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to des ...
of
Penwith Penwith (; kw, Pennwydh) is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. The area is named after ...
had its ancient centre at Connerton, now buried beneath the sands of Gwithian Towans at
Gwithian Gwithian ( kw, Godhyan) is a coastal village in west Cornwall, England. It is three miles (5 km) north-east of Hayle and four miles (6.5 km) east of St Ives, Cornwall across St Ives Bay. Gwithian is in the civil parish of Gwinear ...
. A Hundred was a
Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
administrative unit which was sub-divided into tithings. The
Manor of Alverton The Manor of Alverton was a former manorial estate located in the hundred of Penwith, west Cornwall, England, UK. History The first historical details of the manor were recorded in the Domesday book which stated that before the Norman conquest ...
, with an area of 64 Cornish acres, gave its name to the second largest tithing in Penwith. The manor included Penzance as well as parts of Madron, Paul, St Buryan and Sancreed. Although Penzance is not mentioned in the survey document the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
, it is likely that the area would have been included. Domesday records that in 1066 the Manor of Alwarton was owned by Alward who was dispossessed by
Robert, Count of Mortain Robert, Count of Mortain, 2nd Earl of Cornwall (–) was a Norman nobleman and the half-brother (on their mother's side) of King William the Conqueror. He was one of the very few proven companions of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hast ...
, a half-brother of
William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...
. The name Alward and ''tun'', a personal name combined with a town or settlement suffix, indicate Saxon land ownership. In Cornwall the ''tun'' indicates a manorial centre such as
Helston Helston ( kw, Hellys) is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map ...
or Connerton. The change of ownership in 1066 was a change from one alien landlord to another, and the name Alverton lives on as the western part of Penzance from St John's Hall, to the housing estate on the west side of the River Laregan.


High and Late Middle Ages

The first mention of the name Pensans is in the
Assize The courts of assize, or assizes (), were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes e ...
Roll of 1284, and the first mention of the actual church that gave Penzance its name is in a manuscript written by William Borlase in 1750: ″The ancient chapel belonging to the town of Penzance may be seen in a fish cellar, near the key; it is small and as I remember had the image of the Virgin Mary in it.″ The chapel was built of greenstone and about 30 ft in length and 15 ft in breadth of which only a fragment remained ''in situ''. In around 1800 the chapel was converted to a fish cellar. A carving in "Ludgvan granite" thought to be of St Anthony was removed in about 1830 and was used in the wall of a pig sty, which was further vandalised in 1850 when "a stranger ... taking fancy to the stony countenance and rough hands, they were broken off and carried away as relics ...". The remains of the vandalised relic were taken to St Mary's Churchyard by a mason who told Mr Millett that he "popped St Raffidy into a wheelbarrow and trundle him off to the chapel yard." The carving remains in St Mary's Churchyard and has been dated by Prof Charles Thomas as early 12th century. There are no early documents mentioning the dedication to St Anthony; this seems to depend entirely on tradition and may be groundless. A licence for Divine Service in the Chapel of St Gabriel and St Raphael was granted in 1429, but nothing more is known of this chapel except, possibly, for the mason who mentioned ″St Raffidy″ in 1850. Adjoining the chapel is St Anthony's Gardens, named in 1933 and containing an archway said to have been taken from the chapel site. Dominating the skyline above the harbour is the present church of St Mary's. A St Mary's Chapel is mentioned in a 1548 document which states that it was founded by Sir Henry Tyes, Knight, Lord of the Manor of Alverton, who gave a £4
stipend A stipend is a regular fixed sum of money paid for services or to defray expenses, such as for scholarship, internship, or apprenticeship. It is often distinct from an income or a salary because it does not necessarily represent payment for work p ...
for a priest. There is an earlier document from 1379, when Bishop Brantyngham licensed for services "the chapel of Blessed Mary of Pensande". At this date it was probably used as a
chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently. Often a chapel of ease is deliberately bu ...
, and not used for Sunday services, which would have affected the attendance at the Parish Church in Madron. Further evidence of historical settlement from this period is in the St Clare area of the town, where a chapel existed to St Clare or Cleer. The earliest reference is a lease of 1584: "...a certain chapel situate below the high road between Pensaunce and Madderne." In the early part of the 19th century the foundations of a building, said to be the chapel, was discovered, and enough was exposed to show the shape of the building. An episcopal licence cannot be traced for this chapel. The name, St Clare, lives on in the town as "St Clare Street", which is part of the road from Penzance to Madron, and the St Clare cricket ground at the top of the hill. ;Medieval economy Markets were held on a fixed day each week, and fairs on fixed date(s) each year. To obtain either, a manorial lord had to apply for a
royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, b ...
. The right to hold a market each Wednesday was granted by
King Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring r ...
to Alice de Lisle, sister of Lord Tyes and widow of Warin de Lisle, on 25 April 1332; a fair, lasting seven days at the Feast of St Peter ''ad Vincula'' on 1 August; and another fair of seven days on 24 August at Mousehole for the feast of St Bartholomew – later to be held in Penzance. The settlement was growing in importance as the weekly Wednesday market was confirmed by King Henry IV and three further fairs, each of two days, were granted on 8 April 1404. These were at the Feast of the Conception of Virgin Mary (8 December), St Peter ''in Cathedra'' (22 February) and the Nativity of the Virgin Mary (8 September). It is not known when a quay was built at Penzance as there is no grant or licence, but an Inquest as to the Manor of Alverton in 1322 records eight fishing boats each paying 2 shillings each, and an unspecified number at Mousehole each paying 12 shillings. There was also a payment of 8 shillings for the rent of ''logii'' (huts or sheds) of foreign fishermen, i.e. those outside the manor. At a second Inquest in 1327 the number had risen to 13 at Penzance; with 16 recorded at Mousehole and both now paying only 1 shilling each: the total rent for ''logii'' was 8s 6d (42p) with 17 tenants paying 6d (2p) each. Both Inquests record 29 burgesses at Penzance and 40 at Mousehole. A burgess paid his rent with money rather than with personal services, and this indicates that Penzance and Mousehole were considered to be towns. A comparison of the settlements in West Cornwall can be made with the annual payments, based on the number of fishing boats, made to the
Duchy of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall ( kw, Duketh Kernow) is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch obtains possession of the duchy and the title of 'Duke of Cornwall' at ...
in 1337: Porthia (St Ives) £6; Mosehole (Mousehole) £5; Marcasion (Marazion) £3; Pensanns (Penzance) 12s (60p); Londeseynde (Land's End), (Sennen Cove) 10s (50p); Nywelyn (Newlyn) 10s; and Portmynster (Porthminster, St Ives) 2s (10p). In 1425, 1432 and 1440 ships in Penzance were licensed to carry pilgrims to the shrine of St James of Compostella, in north-west
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...
. In medieval times and later, Penzance was subject to frequent raiding by "Turkish pirates", in fact
Barbary Corsairs The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli. This area was known in Europe a ...
. Throughout the period before Penzance gained borough status in 1614 the village and surrounding areas continued to be within the control of the Manor of Alverton and was subject to the taxation regime of that manor.


Early modern period


Tudor period

In the summer of 1578 Penzance was visited by the
plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...
. The burial registers of Madron (where all Penzance births, deaths and marriages were recorded) shows a massive increase in deaths for 1578, from 12 the previous year to 155. This is estimated to be about 10% of the population of the village at the time. The plague also returned in 1647 and the registers again show an increase of from 22 burials to 217 in one year. Being at the far west of Cornwall, Penzance and the surrounding villages have been sacked many times by foreign fleets. On 23 July 1595, several years after the
Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an ar ...
of 1588, a Spanish force of four galleys transporting 400 arquebusiers under Don
Carlos de Amesquita Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsewhere ...
, which had been patrolling the Channel, landed troops in
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...
. The local militias, which formed the cornerstone of their anti-invasion measures and numbered several hundred men, threw down their arms and fled in panic. Only Francis Godolphin, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall and commander of the militias along with 12 of his soldiers stood to offer some kind of resistance. Amesquita's force seized supplies, raided and burned Penzance and surrounding villages, held a mass, and sailed away to successfully engage and put to flee a Dutch squadron of 46 ships .


Penzance as a town since 1614

The reason for Penzance's relative success probably stems from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries when King Henry IV granted the town a royal market in 1404.
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
in 1512 granted the right to charge harbour dues, and
King James I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...
granted the town the status of a Borough in 1614. The Charter defined the bounds of the town by an artificial line formed by a half-mile circle, measured from the market cross in the Greenmarket. The granting of Borough status made the town independent of the County Courts, a right held until County Councils came into being in 1888. Other privileges included owning land and property; imposing fines for breaking
bylaws A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...
; holding a civil court with jurisdiction over cases not exceeding £50; and providing a prison. The Charter also confirmed the harbour rights given earlier in 1512 and granted two weekly markets to be held on Tuesdays and Thursday; which replaced a single market previously held on Wednesdays. Seven fairs were granted (or confirmed): * Corpus Christi, the Sunday after
Whitsun Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian High Holy Day of Pentecost. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the ...
– still held * The Thursday before St Andrew's Day (30 November) * St Peter's Day (1 August); first granted in 1332 * St Bartholomew's Day (24 August); originally granted to
Mousehole Mousehole (; kw, Porthenys) is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, England, UK. It is approximately south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay. The village is in the civil parish of Penzance. An islet called St Clement's Isle lies ...
but now obsolete probably due to the Spanish Raid of 1595 * St Mary the Virgin's Day (8 September); granted in 1404 * The Conception of St Mary the Virgin's Day (8 September); granted in 1404 * St Peter's Day in Cathedra (22 February); granted in 1404
The Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has differ ...
was paid a perpetual rent of five marks (£3 6s 8d / £3.33) in acknowledgment of the rights granted by the Charter, which was paid until 1832, but there was no grant of Parliamentary representation. The old arms of Penzance were the head of St John the Baptist on a charger, with the legend "Pensans anno Domini 1614". The arms of the borough are Arg. a Paschal lamb proper in base a Maltese cross Az. on a chief embattled of the last between two keys in saltire wards upwards Or and a saltire couped Arg. a plate charged with a dagger point downwards Gu. Within a year the new Borough bought a "substantial degree of freedom" from the
Manor of Alverton The Manor of Alverton was a former manorial estate located in the hundred of Penwith, west Cornwall, England, UK. History The first historical details of the manor were recorded in the Domesday book which stated that before the Norman conquest ...
then known as Alverton and Penzance for £34 plus a perpetual annuity of £1 which was last paid in 1936. A market-house and Guildhall was built, and together with the rights bought in 1615, provided almost all the borough income for more than two centuries. The southern arm of the pier was built in 1766 and extended in 1785, to add to the first pier of which was built prior to 1512. During the
English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I (" Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of r ...
Penzance was sacked by the Parliamentarian forces of
Sir Thomas Fairfax Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron (17 January 161212 November 1671), also known as Sir Thomas Fairfax, was an English politician, general and Parliamentary commander-in-chief during the English Civil War. An adept and talented comman ...
apparently for the kindness shown to Lord Goring and Lord Hopton's troops during the conflict. Further Civic improvements included the construction in 1759 of a reservoir which supplied water to public pumps in the streets. In 1768 a friendly society of Tradesmen was formed at Penzance with 101 members living within three miles of the town. The members met on the first Monday in each month at the King's Head, kept by Richard Runnals. The benefits of the Society were: a member being sick, lame or infirm would receive seven shillings a week. Madron_ Madron_(_kw,_Eglos_Madern)_is_a__civil_parish_and_village_in_west__Cornwall,_Great_Britain._Madron_is_named_after_Saint_Madern's_Church._Its_annual_Trafalgar_Service_commemorating_the_death_of__Vice_Admiral_Horatio_Nelson_was_started_on_27_Oc_...
._Madron_Church_was_in_fact_the_centre_of_most_religious_activity_in_the_town_until_1871,_when_St_Mary's_Church_(until_this_period_a_chapel_of_ease_ A_chapel_of_ease_(or_chapel-of-ease)_is_a_church_building_other_than_the_parish_church,_built_within_the_bounds_of_a_parish_for_the_attendance_of_those_who_cannot_reach_the_parish_church_conveniently. Often_a_chapel_of_ease_is_deliberately_bu_...
)_was_granted_parish_status_by_church_authorities_though_it_had_been_registered_since_the_new_church_was_built_in_1832.


_1755_seiche

On_1_November_1755_the_1755_Lisbon_earthquake.html" ;"title="out and rupture were common, and excepted from payment unless 'needful'. Aged and infirm members were allowed 3/6p per week. Three pounds was given toward the funeral of a member and 10 pounds to the widow or children. All members were to attend the funeral or be fined a shilling. How long this association lasted is not known. Penzance has a long-standing association with the local parish of
Madron Madron ( kw, Eglos Madern) is a civil parish and village in west Cornwall, Great Britain. Madron is named after Saint Madern's Church. Its annual Trafalgar Service commemorating the death of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson was started on 27 Oc ...
. Madron Church was in fact the centre of most religious activity in the town until 1871, when St Mary's Church (until this period a
chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently. Often a chapel of ease is deliberately bu ...
) was granted parish status by church authorities though it had been registered since the new church was built in 1832.


1755 seiche

On 1 November 1755 the Lisbon_earthquake_caused_ Lisbon_earthquake_caused_Seiche">seiching,_a_form_of_standing_wave.html" ;"title="Seiche.html" ;"title="1755 Lisbon earthquake">Lisbon earthquake caused Seiche">seiching, a form of standing wave">Seiche.html" ;"title="1755 Lisbon earthquake">Lisbon earthquake caused Seiche">seiching, a form of standing wave in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water, along the Cornish coast, and particularly in Mount's Bay, which is prone to seiching. At around 2:00 pm, the sea rose eight feet in Penzance, came in at great speed, and fell at the same rate. Little damage was recorded.


19th century


1801–1848

At the start of the 19th century (1801), the town had a population of 2,248. The census, which is taken every ten years, recorded a peak population in 1861 of 3,843, but it then declined, as in most of Cornwall, through the remainder of the century, being just 3,088 in 1901. By the time Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, Penzance had established itself as an important regional centre. The Royal Geological Society of Cornwall was founded in the town in 1814 and about 1817 was responsible for introducing a miner's safety tamping bar, which attracted the
Prince Regent A prince regent or princess regent is a prince or princess who, due to their position in the line of succession, rules a monarchy as regent in the stead of a monarch regnant, e.g., as a result of the sovereign's incapacity (minority or illne ...
to become its patron. The first lifeboat in Cornwall was bought by the people of Penzance in 1803 but it was sold in 1812 due to lack of funds to keep it in operation. The pier had been extended again in 1812 and John Matthews opened a small dry dock in 1814, the first in the
South West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...
. In 1840 Nicholas Holman of St Just opened a branch of his foundry business on the quayside. These facilities proved valuable in supporting the steamships that were soon calling at the harbour in increasing numbers. Gas lighting was introduced in 1830 and the old Market House was demolished in 1836. Its replacement, designed by W. Harris of
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...
, was completed at the top of Market Jew Street in 1838. (The name Market Jew comes from the
Cornish language Cornish (Standard Written Form: or ) , is a Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family. It is a revived language, having become extinct as a living community language in Cornwall at the end of the 18th century. However, ...
''Marghas Yow'', meaning ''Thursday Market'', the name of a nearby village now absorbed into
Marazion Marazion (; kw, Marhasyow) is a civil parish and town, on the shore of Mount's Bay in Cornwall, UK. It is east of Penzance and the tidal island of St Michael's Mount is half-a-mile offshore. At low water a causeway links it to the town and ...
, to which Market Jew Street leads.) St Mary's Church, another prominent feature of the Penzance skyline, was completed in 1836, while a
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
church was built in 1843. Another familiar building from this period is the eccentric Egyptian House in Chapel Street, built in 1830. The first part of the Promenade along the sea front dates from 1844.


1849–1900

After the passing of the Public Health Act (1848), Penzance was one of the first towns to petition to form a
local board of health Local boards or local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmenta ...
, doing so in September that year. Following a report by a government inspector in February, the Board was established in 1849 which led to many facilities to enhance public health. The report shows that most streets were
macadam Macadam is a type of road construction, pioneered by Scottish engineer John Loudon McAdam around 1820, in which crushed stone is placed in shallow, convex layers and compacted thoroughly. A binding layer of stone dust (crushed stone from the ...
ised or sometimes paved, and the town was lit by 121 gas lamps from October to March each year, although they were not lit when there was a full moon. Water was supplied from 6 public pumps, and there were a further 53 private wells. There were no sewage pipes at the time, waste being collected from the main streets by a refuse cart. ;Railway station Penzance railway station, the terminus of the West Cornwall Railway, opened on 11 March 1852 on the eastern side of the harbour, although trains only ran to
Redruth Redruth ( , kw, Resrudh) is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England. The population of Redruth was 14,018 at the 2011 census. In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, which also includes Carn Brea, Illogan ...
at first. From 25 August 1852 the line was extended to
Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its population was 18,766 in the 2011 census. People of Truro ...
, but the
Cornwall Railway The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
linking that place with
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...
was not opened until 4 May 1859. Passengers and goods had to change trains at Truro as the West Cornwall had been built using the
standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in E ...
, but the Cornwall Railway was built to the
broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union ( C ...
. The West Cornwall Railway Act included a clause that it would be converted to broad gauge once it had been connected to another broad gauge line, but the company could not raise the funds to do so. The line was sold to the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
and its "Associated Companies" (the
Bristol and Exeter Railway The Bristol & Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with t ...
and South Devon Railway) on 1 January 1866. The new owners quickly converted the line to
mixed gauge In railway engineering, "gauge" is the transverse distance between the inner surfaces of the heads of two rails, which for the vast majority of railway lines is the number of rails in place. However, it is sometimes necessary for track to c ...
using three rails so that both broad and "narrow" trains could operate. Broad gauge goods trains started running in November that year, with through passenger trains running to
London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great We ...
from 1 March 1867. The last broad gauge train arrived at 8.49pm on 20 May 1892, having left London Paddington at 10.15am that morning. The two locomotives, numbers
1256 Year 1256 ( MCCLVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Mongol Empire * Spring – Mongol forces (some 80,000 men) under Hulagu Khan cross the Oxus Ri ...
and 3557, took the carriages away to
Swindon Works Swindon railway works was opened by the Great Western Railway in 1843 in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It served as the principal west England maintenance centre until closed in 1986. History In 1835 Parliament approved the construction of the ...
at 9.57pm, and all trains since have been standard gauge. The ability of the railway to carry fresh produce to distant markets such as
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...
, London and
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...
enabled local farmers and fishermen to sell more produce and at better prices. The special "perishable" train soon became a feature of the railway, these being fast extra goods trains carrying
potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...
es,
broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large flowering head, stalk and small associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable. Broccoli is cla ...
or fish depending on the season. In August 1861, 1,787 tons of potatoes, 867 tons of broccoli, and 1,063 tons of fish were dispatched from the station. Fruit and flowers were also carried; the mild climate around Penzance and on the
Scilly Isles The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of the ...
meant that they were ready for market earlier and could command high prices. The completion of the railway through Cornwall made it easier for tourists and invalids to enjoy the mild climate of Penzance. Bathing machines had been advertised for hire on the beach as early as 1823, and the town was already "noted for the pleasantness of its situation, the salubrity of its air, and the beauty of its natives". The town's first official guide book was published in 1860, and the Queen's Hotel opened on the seafront the following year. It was so successful that it was extended in 1871 and 1908. ;Harbour At the same time as the railway was being built more improvements were being made to the harbour, with a second pier on the eastern side of the harbour, the Albert Pier, completed in 1853 to provide even better shelter for shipping. At the same time the Old Pier was also extended, and a
lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses m ...
was built on it (replacing an earlier light), commissioned in 1855. The lighthouse (which was originally lit by an oil lamp within a fifth-order Fresnel lens) was built by Sandys & co. of Hayle and displayed a fixed red or green light, depending on the height of the tide. It remains operational, displaying a flashing
sector light A sector light is a man-made pilotage and position fixing aid that consists of strictly delineated horizontal angle light beams to guide water-borne traffic through a safe channel at night in reasonable visibility. Sector lights are most often ...
, which is visible up to out to sea. The Scilly Isles Steam Navigation Company was founded in 1858 and placed in service the first steam ship on the route, ''SS Little Western''. In 1870 the new
West Cornwall Steam Ship Company The West Cornwall Steam Ship Company was established in 1870 to operate ferry services between Penzance, Cornwall, and the Isles of Scilly. It became the West Cornwall Steamship Company in 1907 and was wound up in 1917. History The company was ...
joined the route, taking over the Scilly Isles Company the following year. In 1853 the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...
stationed one of their boats in the town, the first since 1812, and maintained a station here until 1908 when the Watson Class ''Elizabeth Blanche'' was transferred to Newlyn as the first step towards setting up Penlee Lifeboat Station. The RNLI still use a boat house built on Jennings Street near the Promenade in 1884 to promote their activities. Penzance, with its dry dock and engineering facilities, was chosen as the western depot for
Trinity House "Three In One" , formation = , founding_location = Deptford, London, England , status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity , purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons , he ...
that serviced all the lighthouses and lightships from Start Point to
Trevose Head Trevose Head ( kw, Penn Trenfos, meaning ''farm of the wall's headland'') () is a headland on the Atlantic coast of north Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately west of Padstow. The South West Coast Path runs around the whole pr ...
. It was opened in October 1866 adjacent to the harbour and the
Buoy A buoy () is a floating device that can have many purposes. It can be anchored (stationary) or allowed to drift with ocean currents. Types Navigational buoys * Race course marker buoys are used for buoy racing, the most prevalent form of y ...
Store became the Trinity House National Lighthouse Museum until 2005 when
Trinity House "Three In One" , formation = , founding_location = Deptford, London, England , status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity , purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons , he ...
closed the museum. ;Improvements In 1875 a local newspaper described the railway station as ''a large dog's house of the nastiest and draughtiest kind'' but a series of works improved this part of the town during the 1880s. The original railway station was rebuilt with the present buildings and
train shed A train shed is a building adjacent to a station building where the tracks and platforms of a railway station are covered by a roof. It is also known as an overall roof. Its primary purpose is to store and protect from the elements train car ...
over the platforms (1880). The lower end of Market Jew Street was widened and a new road was built to link the station with the harbour over the Ross
Swing Bridge A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span (turning span) can then pi ...
(1881) (named after
Charles Campbell Ross Charles Campbell Ross (born London 1849; died 9 July 1920, Whitechapel) was a British politician and banker based in Penzance, Cornwall. The grandson of the banker Joseph Carne through his eldest daughter Mary (who married, 9 August 1836, Dr Ar ...
),P. A. S. Pool's ''History of the Borough and Town of Penzance'', 1974 allowing the construction of proper sewers beneath. A larger dry dock replaced Matthews' original facility (1880), and a floating harbour was made (1884) with
lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...
gates to keep in the water at low tide. Around the headland, public baths were opened on the Promenade in 1887 and the Morrab Gardens with its sub-tropical plants was opened two years later. A bandstand was added to the gardens in 1897.


20th century

In 1901 the town had a population of 3,088. The decennial census recorded a continuing decline in population until 1921, when just 2,616 people were recorded. The population then climbed to 4,888 (1931) then 5,545 (1951) – thus more than doubling in 30 years. It was now larger than at any time in the past. (The census boundaries changed in 1981 so these figures do not directly compare with those stated for the current population.) A proposed electric
tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...
way along the Promenade to Newlyn, which would have continued as a
light railway A light railway is a railway built at lower costs and to lower standards than typical "heavy rail": it uses lighter-weight track, and may have more steep gradients and tight curves to reduce civil engineering costs. These lighter standards all ...
to St Just, failed to gain authorisation in 1898. Instead
motor buses A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for c ...
were put into service on 31 October 1903. These linked Penzance with
Marazion Marazion (; kw, Marhasyow) is a civil parish and town, on the shore of Mount's Bay in Cornwall, UK. It is east of Penzance and the tidal island of St Michael's Mount is half-a-mile offshore. At low water a causeway links it to the town and ...
and were operated by the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
, being introduced only 11 weeks after the railway's pioneering service between
Helston Helston ( kw, Hellys) is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map ...
and
the Lizard The Lizard ( kw, An Lysardh) is a peninsula in southern Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The most southerly point of the British mainland is near Lizard Point at SW 701115; Lizard village, also known as The Lizard, is the most southerl ...
. They were considered a success, carrying 16,091 passengers by the end of the year, so were followed the next spring by further routes to
Land's End Land's End ( kw, Penn an Wlas or ''Pedn an Wlas'') is a headland and tourist and holiday complex in western Cornwall, England, on the Penwith peninsula about west-south-west of Penzance at the western end of the A30 road. To the east of it is ...
and St Just. These services developed into the
First Kernow Kernow (formerly known as First Kernow) is a bus company operating services in Cornwall, England. It is part of First South West, a subsidiary of FirstGroup. History Kernow is a division of First South West, which was formed from two previ ...
bus network that currently serves the area and is still centred on a terminus alongside Penzance railway station. In 1912, Penzance erected its first electric street lamps and the town's first cinema opened. The dry dock was sold on 25 August 1904 to N. Holman and Sons Limited, the engineering business that had been trading in Penzance since 1840. New workshops would be built during the 1930s, and the facility continued to be used by the Scilly ferries and other merchant ships, as well as Trinity House, the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
and
Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service The Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service (RMAS) was a British Government agency which ran a variety of auxiliary vessels for His Majesty's Naval Service (incl. Royal Navy, Royal Marines) and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. The service from 2009 has been ...
. In 1951 a new vessel for the King Harry Ferry on the
River Fal The River Fal ( kw, Dowr Fala) flows through Cornwall, England, rising at Pentevale on Goss Moor (between St. Columb and Roche) and reaching the English Channel at Falmouth. On or near the banks of the Fal are the castles of Pendennis and ...
was launched, built on the keel of an old
landing craft Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...
. A steam tug, the ''Primrose'', was built in 1963. Land was reclaimed beside the Albert Pier in the 1930s to allow the railway station to be enlarged at a cost of £134,000. The 1880 building was retained, but extra platforms and sidings were provided to handle more perishable goods, as well as the increasing numbers of tourists. In 1905 a new bandstand was built on the Promenade opposite the Queen's Hotel, and the Pavilion Theatre opened nearby in 1911, complete with a roof garden and café. Travel to Penzance was easier than ever, with the Great Western Railway introducing the ''
Cornish Riviera Express The ''Cornish Riviera Express'' is a British express passenger train that has run between London Paddington and Penzance in Cornwall since 1904. Introduced by the Great Western Railway, the name ''Cornish Riviera Express'' has been applied to ...
'' on 1 July 1904, which left
London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great We ...
at 10:10am and arrived in Penzance just 7 hours later, two hours faster than the previous quickest service. (In 2018 it left Paddington at 10:03am and took 5 hours and 8 minutes.) The railway promoted local tourism with postcards that were sold at its railway stations, and an annual guide book, '' The Cornish Riviera'', in which SPB Mais described the town as "a suburb of Covent Garden, and a great fishing centre ... there is always something going on in its harbour". 1923 saw a new road link the harbour area and the Promenade, and in 1933 the St. Anthony Gardens were built, followed two years later by the
Jubilee Pool Jubilee Pool ( Cornish: ) is an Art Deco lido in Penzance, Cornwall. It is Grade II listed, being recognised as the finest surviving example of its type with the exception of Saltdean Lido. With a capacity of 5 million litres and 600 swimmers a ...
opposite. Tourists could now make full use of the whole seafront between Penzance and Newlyn harbours.


Transport

The A30 from London to Land's End is a trunk road as far as the Chy-an-Mor roundabout, a mile (1.6 km) to the east of Penzance. After bypassing Penzance to the north the road continues to Land's End mainly as a rural A route. The A30 provides a fast connection to the
M5 motorway The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...
at
Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
to the northeast. The distance from Penzance to London is or about 5 hours by car. Penzance railway station is at the eastern end of Market Jew Street and close to the harbour. It is the southernmost station on the UK mainland rail network. It is the western terminus of the
Cornish Main Line The Cornish Main Line ( kw, Penn-hyns-horn Kernow) is a railway line in Cornwall and Devon in the United Kingdom. It runs from Penzance to Plymouth, crossing from Cornwall into Devon over the famous Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash. It directly ...
which runs above the beach to Marazion, affording passengers good views of St. Michael's Mount and Mount's Bay. Most services are operated by
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
, both local services to
St Erth St Erth ( kw, Lannudhno) is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England. St Erth takes its name from Saint Erc, one of the many Irish saints who brought Christianity to Cornwall during the Dark Ages, and is at the old crossing point of t ...
, St Ives, Hayle,
Camborne Camborne ( kw, Kammbronn) is a town in Cornwall, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 20,845. The northern edge of the parish includes a section of the South West Coast Path, Hell's Mouth and Deadman's Cove. Camborne was former ...
,
Redruth Redruth ( , kw, Resrudh) is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England. The population of Redruth was 14,018 at the 2011 census. In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, which also includes Carn Brea, Illogan ...
and
Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its population was 18,766 in the 2011 census. People of Truro ...
, and direct trains linking Penzance with
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...
, Exeter St Davids, Bristol Temple Meads,
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spell ...
and
London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great We ...
. The ''
Night Riviera The ''Night Riviera'' is a sleeper train operated by Great Western Railway (GWR). It is one of only two sleeper services on the railway in the United Kingdom (the other being the ''Caledonian Sleeper'' services between London and Scotland). ...
'' train offers an overnight
sleeping car The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway passenger car that can accommodate all passengers in beds of one kind or another, for the purpose of sleeping. George Pullman was the American innovator of the sleeper car. The first such cars ...
service to and from Reading and London. Journey time to Plymouth is typically under 2 hours; to Bristol around 4 hours, and London less than 5 hours.
CrossCountry CrossCountry (legal name XC Trains Limited) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Arriva UK Trains, operating the Cross Country franchise. The CrossCountry franchise was restructured by the Department for Transport (DfT ...
run a small number of services (departing in the morning, arriving in the evening) providing a service to destinations such as , , , , , , , and
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
. The bus and coach station is next to the railway station from where
National Express National Express Group is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Birmingham, England. It operates bus, coach, train and tram services in the United Kingdom, Ireland (National Express operates Eurolines in conjunction ...
operates coach services to
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
Victoria Coach Station Victoria Coach Station is the largest coach station in London, located in the central district of Victoria in the City of Westminster. It serves as a terminus for many medium- and long-distance coach services in the United Kingdom, and is al ...
(taking around 9 hours) via
Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
. Local bus services run by
First Kernow Kernow (formerly known as First Kernow) is a bus company operating services in Cornwall, England. It is part of First South West, a subsidiary of FirstGroup. History Kernow is a division of First South West, which was formed from two previ ...
connect Penzance with most major settlements in
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...
, including
Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its population was 18,766 in the 2011 census. People of Truro ...
, St Ives, St Just,
St Buryan St Buryan ( kw, Pluwveryan) is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of St Buryan, Lamorna and Paul in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village of St Buryan is situated approximately west of Penzance along the B3283 to ...
,
Land's End Land's End ( kw, Penn an Wlas or ''Pedn an Wlas'') is a headland and tourist and holiday complex in western Cornwall, England, on the Penwith peninsula about west-south-west of Penzance at the western end of the A30 road. To the east of it is ...
and also
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...
in
Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
. A ferry service operates between Penzance Harbour and the
Isles of Scilly The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of th ...
. ''The
Scillonian III RMV ''Scillonian III'' is a passenger ship based at Penzance in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, run by the Isles of Scilly Steamship Company. She operates the principal ferry service to the Isles of Scilly and is one of only three ships in the ...
'', carries both foot-passengers and cargo. Sailing time is about 2 hours and 40 minutes. From 1964 to 2012 and again since 2020, Penzance Heliport offers a helicopter route to the Isles of Scilly. Until 2012, the service was run by British International, but this ended on 1 November 2012 due to rising costs and falling passenger numbers. The heliport was subsequently demolished and replaced by a supermarket. In 2020, a new heliport opened not far from the location of the previous one and offers again services to the islands of Tresco and St Mary's (operated by Penzance Helicopters in conjunction with Sloane Helicopters). A bus service run by the Skybus Airline Service connects with Land's End Airport for fixed wing flights (15 minutes) to the Isles of Scilly. The buses leave from the railway station, near the
taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choic ...
rank, rather than the bus station.
Newquay Airport Cornwall Airport Newquay is the main commercial airport for Cornwall, United Kingdom, located at Mawgan in Pydar, northeast of the town of Newquay on Cornwall's north coast. Its runway was operated by RAF St Mawgan before 2008, and is now o ...
is 41 miles (66 km) away and offers flights to
Gatwick Gatwick Airport (), also known as London Gatwick , is a major international airport near Crawley, West Sussex, England, south of Central London. In 2021, Gatwick was the third-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after H ...
,
Heathrow Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...
,
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
,
Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
and many other places, including an increasing number of European destinations.


Governance

Penzance was an
ancient borough The ancient boroughs were a historic unit of lower-tier local government in England and Wales. The ancient boroughs covered only important towns and were established by charters granted at different times by the monarchy. Their history is larg ...
, which became a
municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
in 1835. Until 1934 the Municipal Borough of Penzance referred only to the town, but in 1934 the borough absorbed the nearby settlements of Newlyn, Paul and
Mousehole Mousehole (; kw, Porthenys) is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, England, UK. It is approximately south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay. The village is in the civil parish of Penzance. An islet called St Clement's Isle lies ...
(from ),
Gulval Gulval ( kw, Lannystli) is a village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Although historically a parish in its own right, Gulval was incorporated into the parishes of Ludgvan, Madron and Penzance in 1934, and is now considered to be a suburb ...
(from
West Penwith Rural District West Penwith Rural District was a rural district in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, from 1894 to 1974. It was enlarged in 1934 by the abolition of Hayle, Ludgvan, Madron, Paul, and Phillack urban districts, and also took in part of the d ...
) and
Heamoor Heamoor (formerly Hea) ( kw, An Hay) is a village in Cornwall, England. Formerly a secondary settlement of the village of Madron, Heamoor is situated approximately one-and-a half kilometres (just over a mile) northwest of Penzance town centr ...
(from
Madron Urban District Madron Urban District was an urban district in Cornwall, England, based on Madron. It was created in 1894 and abolished in 1934 when it was absorbed by the Municipal Borough of Penzance and West Penwith Rural District. References External link ...
). In 1974 the Penzance Borough was abolished and replaced by
Penwith Penwith (; kw, Pennwydh) is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. The area is named after ...
District Council. Initially the area of the former borough was unparished and
Charter Trustees In England and Wales, charter trustees are set up to maintain the continuity of a town charter or city charter after a district with the status of a borough or city has been abolished, until such time as a parish council is established. Duties ar ...
were appointed, but in 1980 the civil parish of Penzance was reformed in the unparished area, and the new parish council elected to be called Penzance
Town Council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland Town Councils in the Republic of Ireland were the second ti ...
. Penwith District Council was abolished in 2009, and the principal local authority in the area is now
Cornwall Council Cornwall Council ( kw, Konsel Kernow) is the unitary authority for Cornwall in the United Kingdom, not including the Isles of Scilly, which has its own unitary council. The council, and its predecessor Cornwall County Council, has a tradition ...
. For the purposes of election to Cornwall Council the civil parish of Penzance returns 6 members representing the Penzance East Division, Penzance Central Division, Penzance Promenade Division, Heamoor and Gulval and Newlyn and Mousehole Division. The
Civil Parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
of Penzance was further extended in 2004 under District of Penwith (Electoral Changes) Order 2002 to include Eastern Green, formerly part of the
Ludgvan Ludgvan ( ; kw, Lujuan) is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, UK, northeast of Penzance. Ludgvan village is split between Churchtown, on the hill, and Lower Quarter to the east, adjoining Crowlas. For the purposes of local g ...
civil parish area. Penzance Town Council does not have in place a system of political registration, so councillors do not form groups of any kind and technically act independently; however, the current political composition of the council (as of 4 May 2017) is as follows: Independent 10, Labour Party 5, Liberal Democrat 3, Green 1, Conservative 1. Penzance also elects a
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
every year in May from the members of Penzance town council. Although mayors can have a political affiliation, as chair of the council they seek to remain independent. Though much of their time is taken up with ceremonial duties, they work closely with the Town Clerk and Cornwall Council to deliver a wide range of services and amenities for the town. The current mayor is Cllr. Nicole Broadhurst.


Economy

The economy of Penzance has, like those of many Cornish communities, suffered from the decline of the traditional industries of fishing, mining and agriculture. Penzance now has a mixed economy consisting of light industrial, tourism and retail businesses. However, like the rest of
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...
, housing remains comparatively expensive, wages low and unemployment high. In 2007, house prices rose 274% from 10 years prior, the fastest rise in the UK. The fishing port of Newlyn, which falls within the parish boundaries, provides some employment in the area, but has also been greatly affected by the decline in the fishing industry over the last 30 years. In the 2004 index of deprivation Penzance is listed as having 3 wards within the top 10% for employment deprivation, Penzance East (125th most deprived in England) Penzance West (200th most deprived in England), and Penzance Central (712th most deprived in England). 18–31% of households in the parish are described as "poor households".Bristol University regional poverty files – West Cornwall Penzance East also has one of the highest unemployment rates in Cornwall, stated as 15.4%.


Mining

Following
Sir Humphry Davy Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, (17 December 177829 May 1829) was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He is also remembered for isolating, by using electricity, several elements for the ...
’s contribution to the mining industry, the Miners' Association began
mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the econom ...
classes in Penzance. As mining in the area became more complex, the Penzance Mining and Science School was founded in 1890. The school continued to teach mining until 1910, when it was amalgamated with Camborne and Redruth Mining School forming the
School of Metalliferous Mining The School of Metalliferous Mining was formed in 1910 by the amalgamation of all the mining schools in Cornwall, England. History In the 19th century mining schools under government patronage were being established all across the British Emp ...
in Camborne, which is now known as the
Camborne School of Mines The Camborne School of Mines ( kw, Scoll Balow Cambron), commonly abbreviated to CSM, was founded in 1888. Its research and teaching is related to the understanding and management of the Earth's natural processes, resources and the environment. ...
. This institution has now moved to the Combined Universities in Cornwall campus at
Tremough Penryn Campus (formerly Tremough Campus, Cornwall Campus and similar names) is a university campus in Penryn, Cornwall, England, UK. The campus is occupied by two university institutions: Falmouth University and the University of Exeter, with th ...
, Falmouth. From 1663, Penzance was a coinage town, responsible for the collection of tin taxation on behalf of the
Duchy of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall ( kw, Duketh Kernow) is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch obtains possession of the duchy and the title of 'Duke of Cornwall' at ...
; it held this status for 176 years. According to William Pryce in his 1778 book ''Mineralogia Cornubiensis'', Penzance coined more tin than the towns 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 ...
,
Lostwithiel Lostwithiel (; kw, Lostwydhyel) is a civil parishes in England, civil parish and small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom at the head of the estuary of the River Fowey. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,739, increas ...
and
Helston Helston ( kw, Hellys) is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map ...
put together. Penzance also had its own submarine mine situated off the coast of the town next to the area known as
Wherrytown Wherrytown is a small settlement in west Cornwall, United Kingdom, on the east side of the Laregan River, between Newlyn and Penzance. It was formerly in the civil parish of Madron and was incorporated into the Borough of Penzance in 1934 whe ...
. The mine, known as Wheal Wherry Mine, was worked from 1778 to 1798 and again from 1836 to 1840. Founded by "a poor 57 year old miner" named Thomas Curtis, the mine was said to be "very rich at depth" and was connected to the shore by a wooden bridge; the ore was transported by
wherry A wherry is a type of boat that was traditionally used for carrying cargo or passengers on rivers and canals in England, and is particularly associated with the River Thames and the River Cam. They were also used on the Broadland rivers of No ...
boat. The mine suffered considerable damage in 1798 when an American ship broke anchor off nearby Newlyn and smashed into the bridge and head gear. Later attempts at mining were not as profitable. During the 19th century and until 1912, Penzance had the largest tin
smelting Smelting is a process of applying heat to ore, to extract a base metal. It is a form of extractive metallurgy. It is used to extract many metals from their ores, including silver, iron, copper, and other base metals. Smelting uses heat and a c ...
house in Cornwall, operated by the Bolitho family. The smelting works were situated at
Chyandour Chyandour ( kw, Chi an Dowr, meaning "house of the water") is a small settlement within the town of Penzance in west Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is on the north-east edge of the town straddling the A30 trunk road. The Chyandour Brook rises ...
. As a consequence of this concentration of mining wealth, Penzance became a centre for commercial banking. The Bolitho Bank (now part of
Barclays Bank Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services. Barclays traces ...
) and the Penzance Bank were two of the largest, although the latter collapsed in 1896.


Main sights

Large sections of Penzance are classified as ″conservation areas″ under the Penwith local plan and are subject to special planning laws. The current
conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
forms most of the core of the town of Penzance and the historic harbour areas of Newlyn and Mousehole. A number of Georgian and Regency buildings are present in the town. However, the majority of developments in the town centre itself are of mixed date, including several 20th-century buildings – one of which, the former Pearl Assurance building (now the Tremenheere
Wetherspoon's J D Wetherspoon plc (branded variously as Wetherspoon or Wetherspoons, and colloquially known as Spoons) is a pub company operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company was founded in 1979 by Tim Martin and is based in Watford. It op ...
pub), was subject to comment by Sir John Betjeman who wrote, in 1963:
"Penzance has done much to destroy its attractive character. The older houses in the narrow centre round the market hall have been pulled down and third-rate commercial 'contemporary', of which the Pearl Assurance building is a nasty example, are turning it into
Slough Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the ...
".
The Market Building (1836–38) in Market Jew Street was designed by William Harris, District Surveyor for Bristol, in the Greek Revival style. It has a grand Ionic portico and is surmounted by a dome. Alterations for Lloyds Bank were carried out in 1922–25. Penzance's former main street Chapel Street has a number of interesting features, including the Egyptian House, the Union Hotel (including a Georgian
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...
which is no longer in use) and Branwell House, where the mother and aunt of the famous Brontë sisters once lived. The Georgian theatre was built in c. 1787, closed in 1831, and is said to be where the first public announcement of Nelson's victory at Trafalgar took place.
Regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
, and Georgian terraces and houses (such as Regents Square and Clarence Street) are common in some parts of the town. The nearby sub-tropical
Morrab Gardens Morrab Gardens are a municipal garden covering to the south of Penzance town centre, Cornwall. It is known for its Mediterranean and sub-tropical plants; and for housing the Morrab Library in the grounds. Morrab House with its walled garden ...
, has a large collection of tender trees and shrubs, many of which cannot be grown outdoors anywhere else in the UK. Also of interest is the seafront with its
promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...
and the open-air seawater
Jubilee Pool Jubilee Pool ( Cornish: ) is an Art Deco lido in Penzance, Cornwall. It is Grade II listed, being recognised as the finest surviving example of its type with the exception of Saltdean Lido. With a capacity of 5 million litres and 600 swimmers a ...
(one of the oldest surviving
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...
swimming baths in the country), built during Penzance's heyday as a fashionable
seaside resort A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germa ...
. The pool was designed by Captain F. Latham, the Penzance Borough Engineer, and opened in 1935, the year of
King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...
's Silver Jubilee. The
grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...
pool is triangular with graceful curves and is considered the best surviving example of its type, with the exception of the
Saltdean Lido Saltdean Lido at Saltdean Park Road, Saltdean, in the Brighton and Hove district, in the ceremonial county of East Sussex, England, is an Art Deco lido designed by architect R.W.H. Jones. Originally listed at Grade II by English Heritage for it ...
in Brighton. In early 2018, work began to add a Geothermal section to the pool, becoming the first of its kind in the United Kingdom to use this type of technology when it eventually opens Penzance promenade has been destroyed in parts several times by storms. The most recent example was on 7 March 1962 (Ash Wednesday), when large parts of the western end of the promenade, the nearby Bedford Bolitho Gardens (now a play park) and the village of
Wherrytown Wherrytown is a small settlement in west Cornwall, United Kingdom, on the east side of the Laregan River, between Newlyn and Penzance. It was formerly in the civil parish of Madron and was incorporated into the Borough of Penzance in 1934 whe ...
suffered severe damage. On the outskirts of town is Trereife House, a grade II listed Queen Anne style,
manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals ...
which now offers accommodation and hosts events.


Geography

Penlee Quarry which is within the boundaries of the Penzance parish is a geological SSSI.


Education

Penzance has two
comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is re ...
s,
Mounts Bay Academy Mounts Bay Academy (formerly Mounts Bay School) is an academy school in Heamoor, Penzance, Cornwall, England, UK. The school teaches 960 11- to 16-year-old students. It has specialist status as a Sports and Community College. Facilities Mounts ...
and
Humphry Davy School Humphry Davy School is a comprehensive school in Penzance, Cornwall, England. The school teaches 11 to 16-year-olds. History The oldest part of the main school building was completed in 1909. It was originally called the Penzance County School a ...
. Post 16 education is catered for by Penwith College, founded in 1981 from the sixth form departments of the former Penzance Girls'
Grammar School A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
and the
Humphry Davy Grammar School Humphry Davy School is a comprehensive school in Penzance, Cornwall, England. The school teaches 11 to 16-year-olds. History The oldest part of the main school building was completed in 1909. It was originally called the Penzance County School ...
. In the Penzance parish there are 8
primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...
s, including the newly created Pensans Primary School which was formed in 2006 from the former Penzance
Junior School A Junior school is a type of school which provides primary education to children, often in the age range from 8 and 13, following attendance at Infant school which covers the age range 5–7. (As both Infant and Junior schools are giving Primary ...
and the Lescudjack Infants School. There is also a special educational needs school within the parish boundary named Nancealverne. Various other schools have existed in past times, including St Erbyn's School, West Cornwall School for Girls and Bolitho School (formerly Penzance Church of England High School); the latter was an independent school (in later years a Woodard school) but closed in 2017 because too few pupils were available.


Culture

Every June since 1991 the Golowan Festival (which includes Mazey Day) has been held in the town. The name comes from the Cornish ''gool'' (meaning feast) and ''Jowan'' (a Cornish name equivalent to the English John) - loosely translating to 'Feast of St John' and marking the midsummer-eve as the vigil of
John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
. Before the 1930s Penzance was the scene of large May Day celebrations, which saw local children making and using tin 'May horns' and 'May whistles'; a small revival of these traditions took place on 4 May 2008. The
feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context do ...
of Corpus Christi was also celebrated in Penzance. The Corpus Christi fair has been a long-standing event in the town, and is currently undergoing attempts to revive it in a more traditional format. The
summer solstice The summer solstice, also called the estival solstice or midsummer, occurs when one of Earth's poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the summer ...
was, in 1882, described as a ''very old custom'' and celebrated ''with all the rude revelry of heathendom''. Bonfires were lit in the town centre and lines of tar barrels were swung along the streets by males and females. It was also accompanied by ''dancing of the roughest kind, uncouth dress and semi-disguise, sky and hand rockets, and all sorts of fireworks''.
Allantide Allantide ( kw, italic=yes, Kalan Gwav, meaning ''first day of winter'', or ''Nos Kalan Gwav'', meaning ''eve of the first day of winter'' and ''Dy' Halan Gwav'', meaning ''day of the first day of winter''), also known as Saint Allan's Day or th ...
, a Cornish version of Halloween, was also a popular activity in the town. Many of these customs were recorded by local antiquarian M. A. Courtney and have influenced historical views of traditional Cornish cultural activities. In October 2010 the first full festival of music and the arts – the Penzance Proms – was held (23–31 October). Every December Penzance holds the
Montol Festival The Montol Festival (often just Montol) is an annual festival in Penzance, Cornwall, United Kingdom, which has been held on 21 December each year since 2007. The festival is a revival or reinterpretation of many of the traditional Cornish midwinte ...
a community arts event reviving many of the Cornish customs of Christmas, including traditional costumes, masks and
guise dancing Guise dancing (sometimes known as goose, goosey or geese dancing) is a form of community mumming practiced during the Twelve Days of Christmas, twelve days of Christmastide, that is, between Christmas Day and Twelfth Night (holiday), Twelfth Night ...
.


Music and theatre

Penzance is the home of the
pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
s in
Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...
's
comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a n ...
, ''
The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...
''. At the time the libretto was written, 1879, Penzance had become popular as a peaceful resort town, so the idea of it being overrun by pirates was amusing to contemporaries. The Acorn Arts Centre, sited within a former Methodist chapel in Parade Street, provides a mixture of theatre, film, dance music and cabaret and is partially public funded. The Savoy is an independent cinema in Causewayhead which opened in 1912 and was originally named the Victoria Hall Music Hall. The Savoy is one of the locations of performances sponsored by the Penwith Film Society (an arts cinema society based in the Penwith area), it is reputedly the oldest continuously used cinema in Britain. Prior to the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, Penzance was also home to a further three cinemas and at least two theatres, one of which, the Pavilion Theatre, is now home to an amusement arcade. The 2016 pop single by indie group The Hit Parade "From Paddington to Penzance", takes as its subject a relationship that was formed on the railway line from London to Cornwall that terminates in Penzance.


Art galleries

Penzance is home to the new Newlyn Art Gallery establishment "The Exchange" which opened in 2007. Penlee House, an
art gallery An art gallery is a room or a building in which visual art is displayed. In Western cultures from the mid-15th century, a gallery was any long, narrow covered passage along a wall, first used in the sense of a place for art in the 1590s. The lon ...
and
museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make th ...
notable for its collection of
painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and a ...
s by members of the
Newlyn School The Newlyn School was an art colony of artists based in or near Newlyn, a fishing village adjacent to Penzance, on the south coast of Cornwall, from the 1880s until the early twentieth century. The establishment of the Newlyn School was reminis ...
. It was one of the former homes of the Branwell family. Within Penzance town centre there are a growing number of commercial art galleries.


Religion

As in other Cornish towns and villages
Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
was historically the predominant Christian denomination. Prior to the 1980s Penzance had six Methodist churches, but this number has now been reduced to two, Chapel Street and High Street. There are Methodist churches in most of the surrounding villages including Newlyn's Trinity Methodist which operates ''The Centre'', a busy multi-use church and community facility. Penzance is also home to a
Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its ...
citadel, a Roman Catholic church, two
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...
parish churches (formerly three), a
Christadelphian The Christadelphians () or Christadelphianism are a restorationist and millenarian Christian group who hold a view of biblical unitarianism. There are approximately 50,000 Christadelphians in around 120 countries. The movement developed in the ...
meeting hall, two
Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
independent churches, the Penwith
pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...
moot, an independent
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
church and a
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
meditation group. St Mary's Church was built in 1832–35, St Paul's (now closed) in 1843 and St John's in 1881. Penzance was formerly in the parish of
Madron Madron ( kw, Eglos Madern) is a civil parish and village in west Cornwall, Great Britain. Madron is named after Saint Madern's Church. Its annual Trafalgar Service commemorating the death of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson was started on 27 Oc ...
but St Mary's parish was established in 1871 and St Paul's in 1869. Two medieval chapels (''see above'', History) are known to have existed before the
Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
. St Mary's chapel was consecrated in 1680 but was in existence three hundred years earlier and the licensing of it in 1379 is recorded. The chaplain's stipend was £4 p.a. from the manor of Alverton. In 1549 its endowments were seized by the Crown though the burgesses made representations that they should not be.
Thomas Lamplugh Thomas Lamplugh (1615 – 5 May 1691) was an English churchman who became Archbishop of York. Life He was the son of Christopher Lamplugh of Thwing, East Riding of Yorkshire, Yorkshire and his wife Anne, daughter and coheir of Thomas Roper of ...
Bishop of Exeter by much cajolery induced the mayor and burgesses to consent to consecration of the chapel in 1680. The curate then had a stipend of £5 p.a. Arthur Langdon (1896) described a Cornish cross in front of the Market House. This cross stood in the Green Market until 1829 when it was removed to a house in North Street (Causewayhead) close to its original position. About 1868 it was moved again to the western end of the Market House. It is ornamented on the front and the sides. On the back there is said to be an inscription: PCMBUNT/QUICUMQ/VENIENT//COP/PIO/UM//O/+/X (described in 1850). It is now at Penlee House.


Sport

Penzance is the home of Cornwall's most successful rugby teams, the
Cornish Pirates The Cornish Pirates ( kw, An Vorladron Gernewek) are a professional rugby union team who play in the Championship, the second level of the English rugby union pyramid, and are the premier Cornish rugby club. Formerly known as Penzance & Newlyn ...
(Penzance & Newlyn RFC). The
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
side moved to
Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its population was 18,766 in the 2011 census. People of Truro ...
in 2005 and was renamed the Cornish Pirates in a bid to improve attendances and reach the Premiership. In 2006 the side moved again, this time to the home ground of
Camborne Camborne ( kw, Kammbronn) is a town in Cornwall, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 20,845. The northern edge of the parish includes a section of the South West Coast Path, Hell's Mouth and Deadman's Cove. Camborne was former ...
Rugby Club, before returning to Penzance in 2010 to play, once more, at the
Mennaye Field The Mennaye Field is a sports stadium located in Penzance, Cornwall, UK. The ground was provided by the Borough of Penzance for the Penzance and Newlyn RFC formed on Tuesday, 12 December 1944 with the amalgamation of Penzance RFC and Newlyn RFC ...
. The club has twice reached the play-off final for promotion to the top tier of English rugby in seasons
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...
and 2011–12. Penzance was the home of Mounts Bay RFC, founded in 1999, originally as a team for local players who could not play for the professional Cornish Pirates. They won promotion seven times in eight seasons to reach the third tier of English rugby before folding in 2009 due to financial problems. The Pirates Amateurs are part of the Cornish Pirates and play in the lower levels of the league system. They ended their first season in second place in the Tribute Cornwall One and won promotion to
Tribute Cornwall/Devon Cornwall/Devon League (known as Tribute Cornwall/Devon League for sponsorship reasons) was an English level eight, rugby union league for clubs principally based in Cornwall and Devon. Following the reorganisation of the English rugby union le ...
for 2011–12 season, where they continue to play. They also won the Cornwall Clubs Cup in 2010–11.
Penzance A.F.C. Penzance Association Football Club is a Charter Standard Football Club based in Penzance, Cornwall in the United Kingdom. They were established in 1888 and were founding members of the South Western League in 1951, and maintained membership o ...
were relegated from the South West Peninsula League Premier Division following the
2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
season and now play in Division One West. The club was one of the founding members of the
Cornwall County Football Association The Cornwall County Football Association, also known as the Cornwall FA, is the governing body of football in Cornwall. Formed in 1889, it is responsible for the administration, control, promotion and development of football at all levels through ...
and the first winners of the
Cornwall Senior Cup The Cornwall County Football Association Senior Cup, commonly known as the Cornwall Senior Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football for clubs based in Cornwall, run by and named after the Cornwall County Football Association. It i ...
in 1892–93. Penzance have won the Senior Cup on ten occasions, the last in the 1980–81 campaign. Former England and
Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...
cricketer Jack Richards (born Clifton James Richards) was born in Penzance. He played eight test matches and was the
wicket keeper The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being watchful of the batsman and ready to take a catch, stump the batsman out and run out a batsman when occasion arises. ...
during England's 1986 Ashes win in
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
. He learnt his cricket with the
Humphry Davy Grammar School Humphry Davy School is a comprehensive school in Penzance, Cornwall, England. The school teaches 11 to 16-year-olds. History The oldest part of the main school building was completed in 1909. It was originally called the Penzance County School ...
and
Penzance Cricket Club Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
. The cricket club was founded in 1829 and are Cornwall's most successful club having been champions on 23 occasions and have had more players play for Cornwall than any other club. The club currently plays in the top tier of the
Cornwall Cricket League The Bond Timber Cornwall Cricket League Premier Division is the top level of competition for recreational club cricket in Cornwall, United Kingdom and is a designated an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) ECB Premier Leagues, Premier League.< ...
. Penzance Wheelers, Britain's most south-westerly cycling club was founded in the 1930s. Their most famous member is
Tom Southam Tom Southam (born 28 May 1981) is a British former competitive cyclist from Penzance, Cornwall who competed professionally between 2003 and 2011. He represented Great Britain in five World Championships and rode in several UCI ProTour events. ...
who represented Great Britain in five
World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
. Penzance Wheelers predecessors was the Penzance Bicycle Club who were in existence in 1880 and, for example, on 30 April had a run to St Just, returning via Trewellard and
Pendeen Pendeen (from kw, Penn Din meaning "headland fort", previously known as kw, Boskaswal Wartha, meaning "Caswal's high dwelling") is a village and ecclesiastical parish on the Penwith peninsula in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is north-northe ...
. Mount's Bay Harriers, a
triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the ...
and
running Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This i ...
club founded in 2005 are based at Mount's Bay School,
Heamoor Heamoor (formerly Hea) ( kw, An Hay) is a village in Cornwall, England. Formerly a secondary settlement of the village of Madron, Heamoor is situated approximately one-and-a half kilometres (just over a mile) northwest of Penzance town centr ...
. Athletes from the club participate at most road races and triathlons in Cornwall as well as many further afield. Other sporting clubs and organisations include Penzance Hockey Club, with male and female teams, based at the Penzance Astro Park, Penzance Tennis Club at Penlee Park and lawn bowling at Penzance Bowling Club and Penlee (Newlyn) Bowling Club. The
Mini Transat 6.50 Mini Transat 6.50 also known by a number of alternatives Mini, Class Mini, Transat 650 is a development measurement controlled offshore sailing primarily used for racing in the Mini Transat Race hence the name. Background History The Classe Min ...
(now the Transit 6.50) transatlantic yacht race started from Penzance (hosted by
Penzance Sailing Club Penzance Sailing Club runs both dinghy and yacht sailing from its base in Penzance, Cornwall, UK. The club's clubhouse is located on the Albert Pier within Penzance harbour. The club was formed by seven individuals in 1939 who bought "West of E ...
) from its conception in 1977 to the fourth edition of the race in 1983.


Media

The local newspaper is ''
The Cornishman ''The Cornishman'' is a weekly newspaper based in Penzance, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom which was first published on 18 July 1878. Circulation for the first two editions was 4,000. An edition is currently printed every Thursday. In early Fe ...
'', published weekly. Both ITV
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
(
Westcountry Television ITV Westcountry, formerly known as Westcountry Television and Carlton Westcountry, was the ITV franchise holder for the south west of England, covering Cornwall, Devon, Isles of Scilly, southern and western Somerset and western Dorset. The co ...
) and BBC Radio Cornwall have small news studios in the town. The local
community radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial and public broadcasting. Community stations serve geographic communities and communities of interest. They broadcast content that is popu ...
station is Coast FM (formerly Penwith Radio), which is based in the town, and broadcasts on 96.5 and 97.2 MHz FM. There are two ILR stations for Cornwall:
Pirate FM Pirate FM is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer and based in Cornwall. The station forms part of the Hits Radio network, although its entire output and playlist is locally produced and takes no network programming. ...
can be received in Penzance on 102.8 MHz FM, and Heart West on 107.0 MHz FM.


Folklore

When the area between Marazion and Penzance was mainly marsh, people tended to avoid the Eastern Green because of the ''"White Lady"''. She would jump onto a horse (already with rider) and ride pillion as far as the Red River, Chyandour (not the Red River at Marazion). Her identity and reasons for haunting are unknown. Mr William Richards of Chapel Street is reputed to be the last person to have seen her.


Cornish language

Passengers using the station are greeted with a
bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all ...
sign in both Cornish and
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
.


Notable residents past and present

Penzance has been home to numerous persons of note, including actress
Thandie Newton Melanie Thandiwe Newton ( ; born 6 November 1972), formerly credited as Thandie Newton, is a British actress. Newton has received various awards, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for ...
, model
Jean Shrimpton Jean Rosemary Shrimpton (born 7 November 1942) is an English model and actress. She was an icon of Swinging London and is considered to be one of the world's first supermodels. She appeared on numerous magazine covers including ''Vogue,'' ''Har ...
and cricketer Jack Richards. Penzance was the birthplace of
Maria Branwell Maria Branwell (15 April 1783 – 15 September 1821) is best known as being the mother of British writers Emily Brontë, Anne Brontë, Charlotte Brontë and of their brother Branwell Brontë, who was a poet and painter. Maria married Patrick B ...
, mother of three famous novelists –
Charlotte Brontë Charlotte Brontë (, commonly ; 21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855) was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novels became classics of English literature. She enlisted i ...
,
Emily Brontë Emily Jane Brontë (, commonly ; 30 July 1818 – 19 December 1848) was an English novelist and poet who is best known for her only novel, '' Wuthering Heights'', now considered a classic of English literature. She also published a book of poe ...
and
Anne Brontë Anne Brontë (, commonly ; 17 January 1820 – 28 May 1849) was an English novelist and poet, and the youngest member of the Brontë literary family. Anne Brontë was the daughter of Maria (born Branwell) and Patrick Brontë, a poor Irish cl ...
.


Sir Humphry Davy

Penzance was the birthplace of the chemist Sir
Humphry Davy Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, (17 December 177829 May 1829) was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He is also remembered for isolating, by using electricity, several elements for ...
. Davy was President of the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
; inventor of the process of
electrolysis In chemistry and manufacturing, electrolysis is a technique that uses direct electric current (DC) to drive an otherwise non-spontaneous chemical reaction. Electrolysis is commercially important as a stage in the separation of elements from n ...
; the first person to isolate
sodium Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable ...
; the first to discover
nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or nos, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, and ha ...
; and joint discoverer, with
Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...
, that diamonds are made of pure carbon. Today he is possibly best known as the inventor of the Miner's Safety Lamp, or
Davy lamp The Davy lamp is a safety lamp for use in flammable atmospheres, invented in 1815 by Sir Humphry Davy.Robert Dunkin, a Penzance sadler and maker of scientific instruments, taught Davy the basis of practical science.


Twinning

Penzance is twinned with the following towns: *
Concarneau Concarneau (, meaning ''Bay of Cornouaille'') is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France. Concarneau is bordered to the west by the Baie de La Forêt. The town has two distinct areas: the modern town on the ...
,
Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
*
Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
,
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
* Nevada City,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
*
Cuxhaven Cuxhaven (; ) is an independent town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town includes the northernmost point of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the shore of the North Sea at the mouth of the Elbe River. Cuxhaven has ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. From 1967 to 1974 Penzance was twinned with Cuxhaven, though between 1974 and 2009 this twinning arrangement was passed to the now defunct
Penwith District Council Penwith (; kw, Pennwydh) is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. The area is named after o ...
. As of April 2009, the arrangement was reinstated.


Freedom of the Town

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Town of Penzance.


Individuals

* 25 April 1958: Sir Edward Bolitho ,
Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall. Since 1742, all the Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Cornwall. *John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford 1552–1554 *John Bourchier, 2nd Earl of Bath 1556–? ...
1936–1962.


See also

* HMS ''Penzance'' * ''
The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...
'' * Listed buildings in Penzance


References


External links

*
Penzance Town Council

Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for Penzance

Penzance tide times
{{authority control Towns in Cornwall Civil parishes in Cornwall Port cities and towns in South West England Ports and harbours of Cornwall Cornish Killas Populated coastal places in Cornwall 1614 establishments in England