St Gennys
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St Gennys ( kw, S. Gwynnas) is a coastal
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 authority ...
and small settlement in north
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
, England, United Kingdom. The hamlet of St Gennys is about seven miles (11.3 km) southwest of
Bude Bude (; kw, Porthbud) is a seaside town in north east Cornwall, England, in the civil parish of Bude-Stratton and at the mouth of the River Neet (also known locally as the River Strat). It was sometimes formerly known as Bude Haven.''Cornish ...
.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 190 ''Bude & Clovelly'' It is on high ground half-a-mile north of the coastal village of Crackington Haven, the major settlement in the parish. The only other settlements of any size in the parish are Middle Crackington and Higher Crackington both of which are southeast of Crackington Haven, half-a-mile and one mile distant respectively. The population of the parish at the 2011 census was 873.


History and geography

The name St Gennys is generally thought to derive from 4th Century Christian martyr Saint Genesius although it has been suggested that the commemoration is to the Welsh Saint Gwynws. In either case the name is old and several places in the parish are mentioned in 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 ...
including Crackington (as ''Crachemua''),
Dizzard Dizzard ( kw, Dyserth, meaning ''very steep'') is an area, in the civil parish of St Gennys, Cornwall, containing five farms (or former farms). On the coast is Dizzard Point (), and the unique, dwarf oak, Dizzard Wood, which is of international im ...
(as ''Disart'') and St Gennys itself (as ''Sainguinas'' or ''Sanwinas'') To the west St Gennys is bounded by the
Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
coast where Cornwall's highest cliff (appropriately named High Cliff) rises above the rocky foreshore.
Cambeak Crackington Haven ( kw, Porthkragen, meaning "sandstone cove") is a coastal village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the civil parish of St Gennys at at the head of a cove on the Atlantic coast. The village is seven miles (11 ...
is a prominent headland and the cliffs at the Strangles are a National Trust property. In one year in the 1820s it is believed 23 ships were wrecked on this part of the coast. The parish, which had a recorded population of 873 in the 2011
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
, is in Stratton Registration District and lies within the
Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty The Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers in Cornwall, England, UK; that is, about 27% of the total area of the county. It comprises 12 separate areas, designated under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 for s ...
(AONB); almost a third of Cornwall has AONB designation with the same status and protection as a National Park. Away from the coast St Gennys parish is entirely rural and is bordered to the north by
Poundstock Poundstock ( kw, Tregorlann) is a civil parish and a hamlet on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The hamlet is situated four miles (6.5 km) south of Bude half-a-mile west of the A39 trunk road about one mile from the coa ...
parish, to the east by
Jacobstow Jacobstow ( kw, Lannjago) is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is located east of the A39 road approximately seven miles (11 km) south of Bude.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 190 ''Bude ...
parish, and to the south by
Otterham Otterham ( kw, Prasotri) is a village and a civil parish in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately south of Bude and north of Camelford.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 190 ''Bude & Clovelly'' Ot ...
and St Juliot parishes. The manor of St Gennys was recorded in the Domesday Book (1086) when it was one of several manors held by Jovin from
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 Hastin ...
; before 1066 it had been held by Gytha who also held Poundstock. There was half a hide of land and land for 10 ploughs. There were 3 ploughs, 3 serfs, 2 villeins, 8 smallholders, 40 acres of pasture, 7 cattle, 40 sheep and 6 goats. The value of the manor was £1 sterling.


Parish church

The parish church is situated on a sloping site in St Gennys hamlet at . It is dedicated to Saint Genesius. The building is partly
Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...
with a short one-stage tower topped by a pyramidal roof. The tower houses a ring of four bells. The church was
restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian music musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004 by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard ...
in 1871.
GENUKI website: St Gennys. Retrieved May 2010
The arcades of the aisles are partly in
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
and partly in
Polyphant stone Elvan is a name used in Cornwall and Devon for the native varieties of quartz-porphyry. They are dispersed irregularly in the Devonian series of rocks and some of them make very fine building stones (e.g. Pentewan stone, Polyphant stone and Cat ...
. In 1727 it was recorded that St Gennys vicarage was built of stone and cob; this building was replaced in 1734. George Thomson was vicar of St Gennys for 50 years, from 1732 to 1782. Early in his ministry at St Gennys he experienced dreams which deepened his religious faith. He became acquainted with
George Whitefield George Whitefield (; 30 September 1770), also known as George Whitfield, was an Anglican cleric and evangelist who was one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement. Born in Gloucester, he matriculated at Pembroke College at th ...
who came to preach at St Gennys more than once. Thomson did not restrict his ministry to his own parish but also preached in nearby parishes until he was admonished by the bishop for doing so.


Notable residents

Laurence Braddon (died 1724), was an English politician and writer, the second son of William Braddon of Treworgy in St Gennys.


References


Further reading

* Berry, Christopher (2002). ''The Church in St Gennys''. * The St Gennys Gazette


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Gennys Villages in Cornwall Civil parishes in Cornwall Manors in Cornwall