The Tamar (; kw, Dowr Tamar) is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
in south west
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, that forms most of the border between
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. Devon is ...
(to the east) and
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 ...
(to the west). A part of the
Tamar Valley is a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
due to its historic mining activities.
The Tamar's
source
Source may refer to:
Research
* Historical document
* Historical source
* Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence
* Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...
is less than from the north Cornish coast, but it flows southward and its course runs across the
peninsula
A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...
to the south coast. The total length of the river is . At its mouth, the Tamar flows into the
Hamoaze
The Hamoaze (; ) is an estuarine stretch of the tidal River Tamar, between its confluence with the River Lynher and Plymouth Sound, England.
The name first appears as ''ryver of Hamose'' in 1588 and it originally most likely applied just to a ...
before entering
Plymouth Sound
Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a deep inlet or sound in the English Channel near Plymouth in England.
Description
Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point in Devon, a distance of abo ...
, a bay of 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 Kana ...
. Tributaries of the river include the rivers
Inny,
Ottery,
Kensey and
Lynher (or ''St Germans River'') on the Cornish side, and the
Deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
and
Tavy on the Devon side.
The name Tamar (or Tamare) was mentioned by
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
in the second century in his
''Geography''. The name is said to mean "great water."
[Furneaux, Robert. The Tamar: A Great Little River. Ex Libris Press. 1992.][ Foot, Sarah. ''The River Tamar''. Bossiney Books. 1989.][Neale, John. Discovering the River Tamar. Amberley. 2010.] The Tamar is one of several British rivers whose ancient name is assumed by some to be derived from a prehistoric river word apparently meaning "dark flowing" and which it shares with the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
.
The seventh century ''
Ravenna Cosmography
The ''Ravenna Cosmography'' ( la, Ravennatis Anonymi Cosmographia, "The Cosmography of the Unknown Ravennese") is a list of place-names covering the world from India to Ireland, compiled by an anonymous cleric in Ravenna around 700 AD. Text ...
'' mentions a Roman settlement named Tamaris, but it is unclear to which of those towns along the Tamar this refers.
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port 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 the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
,
Launceston, and the Roman fort at
Calstock
Calstock ( kw, Kalstok) is a civil parish and a large village in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, on the border with Devon. The village is situated on the River Tamar south west of Tavistock and north of Plymouth.
The parish had ...
have been variously suggested.
Environment
The river (and/or land on its banks) is designated as a
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
(SSSI), a European Special Area of Conservation, and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. A part of it is also designated as a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
as part of the
Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape
The Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape is a World Heritage Site which includes select mining landscapes in Cornwall and West Devon in the south west of England. The site was added to the World Heritage List during the 30th Session of the UN ...
.
In November 2013,
South West Water
South West Water provides drinking water and waste water services throughout Devon and Cornwall and in small areas of Dorset and Somerset. South West Water was created in 1989 with the privatisation of the water industry. It was preceded by the ...
was fined £50,000 after it admitted permitting the discharge of sewage from its Camels Head treatment plant into a tributary of the River Tamar for eight years.
Tamar Valley AONB
Together, the Tamar, Tavy and Lynher form the Tamar Valley, a designated
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of thei ...
. The Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers around around the lower Tamar (below
Launceston) and its tributaries the
Tavy and the
Lynher. It was first proposed in 1963, but was not designated until 1995.
The highest point in the AONB is
Kit Hill
Kit Hill ( kw, Bre Skowl), at 334 metres high, dominates the area between Callington and the River Tamar in southeast Cornwall, England, UK. The word 'Kit' comes from Old English for kite, a reference to birds of prey (and not specifically the r ...
, 334 metres above sea level. The Tamar Discovery Trail is a 35-mile hiking route following the course of the Tamar through the valley.
Special Area of Conservation
![River Tamar - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/River_Tamar_-_geograph.org.uk_-_326342.jpg)
The
Plymouth Sound
Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a deep inlet or sound in the English Channel near Plymouth in England.
Description
Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point in Devon, a distance of abo ...
and Estuaries are a
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...
. Rocky reefs in low salinity estuarine conditions far inland on the Tamar are very unusual and support species such as the hydroid ''Cordylophora caspia''. The Tamar is one of a few estuaries where zonation of rocky habitats (intertidal and subtidal) can be observed along an estuarine gradient.
Site of Special Scientific Interest
The
Tamar–Tavy Estuary
The Tamar–Tavy Estuary is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) covering the tidal estuaries of the River Tamar and the River Tavy on the border between Cornwall and Devon in England, UK. Part of the Tamar estuary also forms the Tamar Es ...
is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) covering the tidal
estuaries
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
of the River Tamar and the
River Tavy
The Tavy () is a river on Dartmoor, Devon, England. The name derives from the Brythonic root "Tam", once thought to mean 'dark' but now generally understood to mean 'to flow'. It has given its name to the town of Tavistock and the villages o ...
. Part of the Tamar estuary also forms the Tamar Estuary Nature Reserve, owned by the
Cornwall Wildlife Trust
The Cornwall Wildlife Trust is a charitable organisation founded in 1962 that is concerned solely with Cornwall, England.
It deals with the conservation and preservation of Cornwall's wildlife, geology and habitats managing over 50 nature reser ...
. The site was designated in 1991 for its biodiversity and varying habitats that support a large number of
wader
245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots
Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflat ...
and
wildfowl
The Anatidae are the biological family of water birds that includes ducks, geese, and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica. These birds are adapted for swimming, floating on ...
species, as well as the special interest of its marine biology. The site supports a nationally important wintering population of
avocet
The four species of avocets are a genus, ''Recurvirostra'', of waders in the same avian family as the stilts. The genus name comes from Latin , 'curved backwards' and , 'bill'. The common name is thought to derive from the Italian ( Ferrarese) w ...
and supports species such as
black-tailed godwit
The black-tailed godwit (''Limosa limosa'') is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the godwit genus, ''Limosa''. There are four subspecies, all with orange head, neck and chest ...
,
Eurasian whimbrel
The Eurasian whimbrel or common whimbrel (''Numenius phaeopus'') is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across much of subarctic Asia and Europe as far south as Scotland. This specie ...
,
greenshank
The common greenshank (''Tringa nebularia'') is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae, the typical waders. The genus name ''Tringa'' is the New Latin name given to the green sandpiper by Aldrovandus in 1599 based on Ancient Greek ''trungas'' ...
,
spotted redshank
The spotted redshank (''Tringa erythropus'') is a wader (shorebird) in the large bird family Scolopacidae. The genus name ''Tringa'' is the New Latin name given to the green sandpiper by Aldrovandus in 1599 based on Ancient Greek ''trungas'', a ...
,
green sandpiper
The green sandpiper (''Tringa ochropus'') is a small wader (shorebird) of the Old World.
The green sandpiper represents an ancient lineage of the genus ''Tringa''; its only close living relative is the solitary sandpiper (''T. solitaria''). They ...
and
golden plover
'' Pluvialis '' is a genus of plovers, a group of wading birds comprising four species that breed in the temperate or Arctic Northern Hemisphere.
In breeding plumage, they all have largely black underparts, and golden or silvery upperparts. The ...
.
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Throughout human history the valley has been almost continuously exploited for its rich mineral and metal deposits including silver, tin, lead and arsenic leaving a unique archaeological landscape which forms a significant part of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape. Remains include wheal or engine houses, deep and open cast mines dating from the Bronze Age through to the medieval and modern era, the export docks at
Morwellham Quay
Morwellham Quay is an historic river port in Devon, England that developed to support the local mines. The port had its peak in the Victorian era and is now run as a tourist attraction and museum. It is the terminus of the Tavistock Canal, and ...
were once an international centre of trade in copper, lead and arsenic. The valley, with the
stannary
A stannary was an administrative division established under stannary law in the English counties of Cornwall and Devon to manage the collection of tin coinage, which was the duty payable on the metal tin smelted from the ore cassiterite mined i ...
town of
Tavistock
Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...
was added to the World Heritage List during the 30th Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Vilnius, July 2006.
Water quality
The Environment Agency measures the water quality of the river systems in England. Each is given an overall ecological status, which may be one of five levels: high, good, moderate, poor and bad. There are several components that are used to determine this, including biological status, which looks at the quantity and varieties of
invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
s,
angiosperm
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
s and fish. Chemical status, which compares the concentrations of various chemicals against known safe concentrations, is rated good or fail.
Water quality of the River Tamar in 2019:
Geography
Sources
![Entering Kernow - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/Entering_Kernow_-_geograph.org.uk_-_698176.jpg)
According to
Ordnance Survey
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, di ...
mapping, the source of the Tamar is at Woolley Moor, approximately from the north Cornish coast, at . The location of the spring is a "high windswept plateau largely devoid of farmland, and inhabited by stunted trees and wiry undergrowth."
The exact source of the river is difficult to pinpoint, because it arises "from a boggy morass . . . behind a hedge near some willow trees at Woolley Barrows . . . A small square stone culvert drains the first tentative trickle of water away from the bog, through a hedge and into a ditch. From here a pipe carries the water under the highway and the infant river Tamar is on its way to the sea at Plymouth."
Reservoirs
The
Upper Tamar Lake
Upper Tamar lake is a reservoir on the border of Cornwall and Devon in south-west England. It is owned by South West Water and managed by the South West Lakes Trust. The reservoir serves the water supply in the Bude area of Cornwall and surroundin ...
and
Lower Tamar Lake
Lower Tamar Lake is located on the Devon-Cornwall border, in England, near Thurdon.Ordnance Survey mapping
It was constructed in the 1820s to supply water to the Bude Canal. It is now a nature reserve. It is also a popular fishing lake.
The re ...
are two small reservoirs on the Tamar's upper course. The Lower Lake was constructed in the 1820s to feed the
Bude Canal
The Bude Canal was a canal built to serve the hilly hinterland in the Cornwall and Devon border territory in the United Kingdom, chiefly to bring lime-bearing sand for agricultural fertiliser. The Bude Canal system was one of the most unusual ...
; it is now a nature reserve. The Upper Lake was constructed in the 1970s and supplies fresh water to the
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 ...
area, as well as having some recreational use.
Border
The east
bank
A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets.
Because ...
of the Tamar was fixed as the border of Cornwall by
King Athelstan
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
in the year 936. Several villages north of
Launceston, to the west of the Tamar, were transferred to Devon at some point in the eleventh century when the border was changed to follow the
River Ottery
The River Ottery ( kw, Otri) is a small river in northeast Cornwall, United Kingdom. The river is about long from its source southeast of Otterham to its confluence with the River Tamar at Nether Bridge, northeast of Launceston.
The headw ...
westward, rather than the Tamar. The county boundary was restored to the Tamar in 1966, when the civil parishes of
North Petherwin
North Petherwin ( kw, Paderwynn Gledh) is a civil parish and village in the historic county of Devon and the ceremonial county of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is situated five miles (8 km) northwest of Launceston on a ridg ...
and
Werrington were transferred from Devon to Cornwall. The
Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
The Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844 (7 & 8 Vict. c. 61), which came into effect on 20 October 1844, was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which eliminated many outliers or exclaves of counties in England and Wales for civil purposes. ...
ensured parishes were entirely within one county. It transferred a part of the
Rame Peninsula
The Rame Peninsula ( kw, Gorenys an Ros) is a peninsula in south-east Cornwall. The peninsula is surrounded by the English Channel to the south, Plymouth Sound to the east, the Hamoaze to the northeast and the estuary of the River Lynher to th ...
(on the west side of the
Hamoaze
The Hamoaze (; ) is an estuarine stretch of the tidal River Tamar, between its confluence with the River Lynher and Plymouth Sound, England.
The name first appears as ''ryver of Hamose'' in 1588 and it originally most likely applied just to a ...
) from Devon to Cornwall (namely, parts of the parishes of
Maker and
St John). The Act also transferred part of the parish of
Bridgerule
Bridgerule ( kw, Ponsrowald) is a village and civil parish in Devon, England, a mile from the border with Cornwall. The parish is divided by the River Tamar, which no longer forms the border between Devon and Cornwall there. The river often floo ...
to Devon and part of the parish of
North Tamerton to Cornwall — these latter transfers created two of the present-day 'exceptions' to the river boundary.
The modern
administrative border between Devon and Cornwall more closely follows the Tamar and Hamoaze than the
'historic' county border (of the 11th to 19th centuries). Only three 'exceptions' to the rule that the border follows the river (from source to sea) currently exist, all of which are upstream of the confluence of the
River Deer, in the upper course of the Tamar. Part of the Cornish
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 ...
of North Tamerton extends east across the river, whilst parts of the Devon civil parishes of Bridgerule and
Pancrasweek
Pancrasweek is a civil parish and hamlet in the far west of Devon, England forming part of the local government district of Torridge and lying about three miles north west of the town of Holsworthy.Ordnance Survey mapping
It is bordered clockwise ...
extend west across the Tamar. Where the border does follow the Tamar, it is defined as being along a line running at the
centre of the river — where the river is tidal, it is the centre of the low water channel. This "centre of river" arrangement ends just upstream of the Tamar Bridge at
Saltash
Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Corn ...
, downstream of which the counties officially extend only to their respective (tidal) bank's
low water
Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another.
Tide tables ca ...
mark. The river is dammed at two points of its upper course, forming two reservoirs in place of the natural river: at
Upper Tamar Lake
Upper Tamar lake is a reservoir on the border of Cornwall and Devon in south-west England. It is owned by South West Water and managed by the South West Lakes Trust. The reservoir serves the water supply in the Bude area of Cornwall and surroundin ...
the border follows the line of the river as it was prior to the construction of the reservoir (therefore now within the lake), whilst at the older
Lower Tamar Lake
Lower Tamar Lake is located on the Devon-Cornwall border, in England, near Thurdon.Ordnance Survey mapping
It was constructed in the 1820s to supply water to the Bude Canal. It is now a nature reserve. It is also a popular fishing lake.
The re ...
the border was re-aligned along a (now disused) re-routing of the river to the reservoir's west side, placing the lake in Devon.
Ordnance Survey
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mapping
Crossings
![St Stephens by Launceston, Higher New Bridge - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/St_Stephens_by_Launceston%2C_Higher_New_Bridge_-_geograph.org.uk_-_37541.jpg)
The river has 22 road crossings, including some medieval stone bridges. The oldest bridge still extant is at Horsebridge (1437), and the next oldest is Greystone Bridge near Lawhitton — this arched stone bridge was built in 1439. Gunnislake New Bridge was built in 1520 by Sir Piers Edgcumbe, the owner of Cotehele and Mount Edgcumbe. The
Gunnislake
Gunnislake ( kw, Dowrgonna) is a large village in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated in the Tamar Valley approximately ten miles (16 km) north of Plymouth
Gunnislake is in the civil parish of Calstock and is close to C ...
bridge was a main route into south east Cornwall and the lowest bridge over the Tamar until the
Tamar Bridge
The Tamar Bridge is a suspension bridge over the River Tamar between Saltash, Cornwall and Plymouth, Devon in southwest England. It is long, running adjacent to the Royal Albert Bridge, and part of the A38, a main road between the two counti ...
at Saltash was opened in 1962.
The lower Tamar is spanned also by the
Royal Albert Bridge
The Royal Albert Bridge is a railway bridge which spans the River Tamar in England between Plymouth, Devon and Saltash, Cornwall. Its unique design consists of two lenticular iron trusses above the water, with conventional plate-girder app ...
(built 1859), a rail bridge now adjacent to the newer Tamar Bridge. Both of these bridges are between
Saltash
Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Corn ...
(known as the 'Gateway to Cornwall') and Plymouth. Further downstream, crossing the
Hamoaze
The Hamoaze (; ) is an estuarine stretch of the tidal River Tamar, between its confluence with the River Lynher and Plymouth Sound, England.
The name first appears as ''ryver of Hamose'' in 1588 and it originally most likely applied just to a ...
, is the
Torpoint Ferry
The Torpoint Ferry is a car and pedestrian chain ferry connecting the A374 which crosses the Hamoaze, a stretch of water at the mouth of the River Tamar, between Devonport in Plymouth and Torpoint in Cornwall. The service was established in 17 ...
— a
chain ferry
A cable ferry (including the terms chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...
connecting Torpoint to Devonport — and at the most downstream part of the Hamoaze there is also the
Cremyll Ferry
The Cremyll ferry is a foot passenger ferry across the Hamoaze (the estuary of the River Tamar) from Admirals Hard in Stonehouse, Plymouth, Devon to Cremyll in Cornwall. It is operated by Plymouth boat Trips, and runs approximately every 30 minut ...
.
The
Calstock Viaduct
Calstock railway station is an unstaffed railway station on the Tamar Valley Line serving the village of Calstock in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated at the north end of Calstock Viaduct which carries the railway at high level over t ...
is another notable structure on the Tamar, being 120 feet (37 m) high with twelve 60-foot (18 m) wide arches, of which three of the piers stand in the river, and was built between 1904 and 1907.
Table of crossings
Listed below are all crossings of the River Tamar, in order heading downstream. All cross the county boundary between Devon and Cornwall, except for four that are noted.
Navigation
![Morwellham Quay - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Morwellham_Quay_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6096.jpg)
The total length of the
tidal river
A tidal river is a river whose flow and level are influenced by tides. A section of a larger river affected by the tides is a tidal reach, but it may sometimes be considered a tidal river if it has been given a separate name.
Generally, tidal ri ...
(which, like other tidal waters in England, has public right of navigation) is .
[Inland Waterways Association]
Waterways: T (''note: the tidal river is generally regarded as navigable from Plymouth Sound to Weir Head, a length of 19.0 miles.'') The
normal tidal limit
Head of tide, tidal limit or tidehead is the farthest point upstream where a river is affected by tidal fluctuations, or where the fluctuations are less than a certain amount. This applies to rivers which flow into tidal bodies such as oceans, b ...
(noted on
Ordnance Survey
, nativename_a =
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, logo_width = 240px
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maps as 'NTL') is a
weir
A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...
just downstream of the village of
Gunnislake
Gunnislake ( kw, Dowrgonna) is a large village in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated in the Tamar Valley approximately ten miles (16 km) north of Plymouth
Gunnislake is in the civil parish of Calstock and is close to C ...
. Waterborne traffic through the
Hamoaze
The Hamoaze (; ) is an estuarine stretch of the tidal River Tamar, between its confluence with the River Lynher and Plymouth Sound, England.
The name first appears as ''ryver of Hamose'' in 1588 and it originally most likely applied just to a ...
is controlled by the
Queen's Harbour Master
A King's Harbour Master (abbreviated as KHM, also known as Queen's Harbour Master or QHM during the reign of a female monarch) is a harbourmaster and public official in Canada and the United Kingdom. Their official responsibilities includes enfor ...
for Plymouth, who is responsible for managing navigation along the entire tidal Tamar. 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 F ...
has one of its three main naval bases at
Devonport, situated on the Hamoaze, upstream of which the river is now used largely by recreational craft. Excursions operate (April to October only) on the river between Plymouth and
Calstock
Calstock ( kw, Kalstok) is a civil parish and a large village in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, on the border with Devon. The village is situated on the River Tamar south west of Tavistock and north of Plymouth.
The parish had ...
; excursions used to operate as far as
Morwellham Quay
Morwellham Quay is an historic river port in Devon, England that developed to support the local mines. The port had its peak in the Victorian era and is now run as a tourist attraction and museum. It is the terminus of the Tavistock Canal, and ...
, but were suspended indefinitely in 2016. A passenger ferry also operates April to October between
Cotehele
Cotehele ( kw, Kosheyl) is a medieval house with Tudor additions, situated in the parish of Calstock in the east of Cornwall, England, and now belonging to the National Trust. It is a rambling granite and slate-stone manor house on the banks ...
Quay and Calstock.
A typical Tamar vessel was a sailing
barge
Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...
, built on the open river bank, of up to 60 tons, with a peaked,
gaff-rigged mainsail and a fore
staysail
A staysail ("stays'l") is a fore-and-aft rigged sail whose Sail components#Edges, luff can be affixed to a stays (nautical), stay running forward (and most often but not always downwards) from a mast (sailing), mast to the deck (ship), deck, the b ...
. The Tamar was navigable by seagoing ships of up to 400
register tons as far inland as
Weir Quay
Weir Quay is a place on the banks of the River Tamar in Devon, England. It lies south west of the village of Bere Alston.
Weir Quay is where the Tamar estuary
Tamar may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* ''Tamar'' (album), by Tama ...
,
[Booker (1971: 62)] near
Bere Alston
Bere Alston is a village in West Devon in the county of Devon in England. It forms part of the civil parish of Bere Ferrers.
History and geography
With a population of about 2,000, the village lies in the Bere peninsula, between the rivers ...
, where the
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
narrows into the tidal river, some upstream from Plymouth Sound. Vessels of 300 tons sailed as far inland as Morwellham,
[Barton (1964: 75–6)] along the river from the sea. A further stretch of upstream to Weir Head, near Gunnislake, is accessible to smaller boats. Weir Head is just downstream of the
weir
A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...
at Gunnislake (the tidal limit) and is the final place to turn boats;
it was from here that smaller craft could begin their journey on the Tamar Manure Canal.
Tamar Manure Navigation
![Paddle Steamer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Paddle_Steamer_%22Alexandra%22_Gunnislake.jpg)
In 1794 the Tamar Manure Navigation Company was formed to extend
navigation
Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...
inland for a further 30 miles, to Tamerton Bridge in
North Tamerton. An
Act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
of 1796 authorised the works, with the company empowered to improve and manage navigation on the Tamar from Morwellham Quay upstream to Boat Pool, at Blanchdown (just upstream of Gunnislake), and to construct a canal from there. The project however advanced no further than
Gunnislake
Gunnislake ( kw, Dowrgonna) is a large village in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated in the Tamar Valley approximately ten miles (16 km) north of Plymouth
Gunnislake is in the civil parish of Calstock and is close to C ...
, with work ceasing in 1808. Barges of up to 30 tons could then proceed as far as Gunnislake New Bridge,
[Booker (1971: 126–128)] bypassing the weir (above Weir Head) via a 500-yard canal to the west of the river. As the only completed work of the original project, this short canal became known as the Tamar Manure (Navigation) Canal. It had one
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 ...
allowing vessels to rise from the tidal Tamar to the water level above the weir.
[Canal Routes]
– Tamar Manure Navigation A
salmon ladder bypassed the lock.
The navigable route along the Tamar and the Manure Canal that was managed by the company (from Morwellham Quay upstream to Blanchdown) was known as the Tamar Manure Navigation and was in length.
The import of fertilizer (at the time of the construction of the canal all types of which were typically referred to as "manure") and coal and the export of bricks and granite along this short navigation proved profitable for many years.
The navigation from Launceston to Tamerton was completed in 1826 as part of a separate project, the
Bude Canal
The Bude Canal was a canal built to serve the hilly hinterland in the Cornwall and Devon border territory in the United Kingdom, chiefly to bring lime-bearing sand for agricultural fertiliser. The Bude Canal system was one of the most unusual ...
. The Tamar Manure Navigation ceased functioning in 1929 and the company was wound up in 1942.
History
In 997 according to the ''
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...
'', raiding Vikings travelled up the Tamar and then the Tavy river as far as
Lydford
Lydford, sometimes spelled Lidford, is a village, once an important town, in Devon, north of Tavistock on the western fringe of Dartmoor in the West Devon district. There is an electoral ward with the same name which includes Princetown. The p ...
, and burned
Ordwulf
Ordwulf (died after 1005) was the son of Ordgar, Ealdorman of Devon (died 971). His sister was Queen Ælfthryth, third wife of King Edgar (born 943, died 975; ruled 959-975)'' The Peaceful'' and mother of King Æthelred II (c. 968-1016) ''The Un ...
's monastery at
Tavistock
Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...
.
During the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
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 ...
was a devoted county of
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, entirely loyal to
King Charles I and the
Royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...
cause. However,
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. Devon is ...
was primarily
Parliamentarian, forcing the River Tamar into the site of many battles, such as the
Battle of Gunnislake New Bridge
The Battle of Gunnislake New Bridge was a battle that took place on 20 July 1644 on and around Gunnislake New Bridge, a bridge over the River Tamar between Cornwall and Devon, during the First English Civil War.
Background
During the Englis ...
on the 20th July 1664. Each side of the Tamar understood that if they were to either invade or defend themselves they had to have control of the Tamar's crossings.
The old ferry crossings were later to develop into the busy river quays of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In mediaeval times the transport of goods to supply the Benedictine abbey at
Tavistock
Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...
, four miles by
track
Track or Tracks may refer to:
Routes or imprints
* Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity
* Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across
* Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...
from the river port of Morwellham, was significant.
[Booker (1971: 28–29)] Sea sand from the coast was imported to spread on farmland, until in the eighteenth century a dressing of
lime
Lime commonly refers to:
* Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit
* Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide
* Lime (color), a color between yellow and green
Lime may also refer to:
Botany ...
was found to be more beneficial. Large quantities of limestone and coal were then imported to burn in the numerous
limekilns
Limekilns is a village in Fife, Scotland. It lies on the shore of the Firth of Forth, around south of Dunfermline.
History and economy
Unlike the neighbouring village of Charlestown, Limekilns is an old settlement dating back to the 14th cen ...
on the river quays; the lime had to be made locally as it was not
slaked before application and was too reactive for transport by water after burning. Later, street sweepings and other refuse from
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port 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 the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
and
Devonport, together with bones for the newly discovered
bone fertiliser, were carried inland to manure the fields. Other regular imports were timber from
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
and the
Baltic
Baltic may refer to:
Peoples and languages
* Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian
*Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...
, in large
baulks for use as
supports in the mines, and coal from Wales to supply the mine pumping engines.
Tavistock
Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...
was one of the three
stannary towns of Devon and large quantities of
refined tin ore were exported through Morwellham from twelfth century until 1838, when the requirement to pay duty on the metal at one of the specified towns was relaxed.
The opening of the
Tavistock Canal
The Tavistock Canal is a canal in the county of Devon in England. It was constructed early in the 19th century to link the town of Tavistock to Morwellham Quay on the River Tamar, where cargo could be loaded into ships. The canal is still in use ...
, between Tavistock and Morwellham, in 1817 facilitated traffic. Later, the
East Cornwall Mineral Railway
The East Cornwall Mineral Railway was a gauge railway line, opened in 1872 to connect mines and quarries in the Callington and Gunnislake areas in east Cornwall with shipping at Calstock on the River Tamar. The line included a rope-worked inc ...
provided an outlet through the quays of
Calstock
Calstock ( kw, Kalstok) is a civil parish and a large village in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, on the border with Devon. The village is situated on the River Tamar south west of Tavistock and north of Plymouth.
The parish had ...
from the Cornish side of the valley. Other significant cargoes exported were quarried granite and, later, copper, lead and manganese ores, with their important by-product of
arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, but ...
. Arsenic was extracted from
mispickel, once regarded as a waste product but later offering an important source of revenue as copper and tin extraction declined in profitability. The refined product was exported worldwide, in particular to the southern United States, where it was used as an insecticide in the cotton fields.
In the thirteenth century lead and silver output from the royal mines on the
Bere peninsula (between the Tamar and the
Tavy) was significant, and production continued intermittently until the nineteenth century. The
Johnson Matthey
Johnson Matthey is a British multinational speciality chemicals and sustainable technologies company headquartered in London, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
History Early years
...
smelting works at Weir Quay extracted silver and lead not only from local ore, but from ore imported by sea from Europe and as far away as
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
.
Fluorspar
Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon.
The Mohs scal ...
from the lead mine
tailings
In mining, tailings are the materials left over after the process of separating the valuable fraction from the uneconomic fraction (gangue) of an ore. Tailings are different to overburden, which is the waste rock or other material that overlie ...
was exported to France for use in the manufacture of glassware.
![The Tamar downstream from Calstock - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/The_Tamar_downstream_from_Calstock_-_geograph.org.uk_-_673402.jpg)
The development of the "
Three Towns
Three Towns is a term used to refer to several groups of towns.
United Kingdom
There are several groups of towns in the United Kingdom referred to as the Three Towns, many of which form contiguous settlements, or are in close proximity to each ...
" (Plymouth, Devonport and
Stonehouse) at the mouth of the river offered an important market for the valley's agricultural produce, needed in particular to serve the victualling requirements of the
royal dockyard
Royal Navy Dockyards (more usually termed Royal Dockyards) were state-owned harbour facilities where ships of the Royal Navy were built, based, repaired and refitted. Until the mid-19th century the Royal Dockyards were the largest industrial ...
, and this was always carried by boat. In 1820 or 1821 the first paddle steamer on the Tamar inaugurated a service between Calstock and Devonport to deliver foodstuffs.
In 1859 a rail connection from Plymouth to London was opened, and fresh produce could be landed at the Devonport steamer quays in the evening and be on sale in London by the next morning.
[Booker (1971: 233)] The growing city population created a large demand for sightseeing cruises on the river and this was a significant source of traffic from 1823, with the launch of the
Cornish steam packet ''Sir Francis Drake'', until the outbreak of 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 opposin ...
.
[Booker (1971: 83–84)][Kitteridge (1984: 13; 75)]
Mineral traffic on the river diminished towards the latter end of the nineteenth century, after the
Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway
The Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway (PD&SWJR) was an English railway company. It constructed a main line railway between Lydford and Devonport, in Devon, England, enabling the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to reac ...
reached Tavistock in 1859 (so making the Tavistock Canal to Morwellham redundant for transport, although it remains in use as a source of
hydropower
Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, converting the Pot ...
) and as the copper and tin mines became exhausted.
[Booker (1971: 30–31)] The decline accelerated from 1894 when the East Cornwall Mineral Railway, until then linked to the outside world only through the port of Calstock, was extended to the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway at
Bere Alston
Bere Alston is a village in West Devon in the county of Devon in England. It forms part of the civil parish of Bere Ferrers.
History and geography
With a population of about 2,000, the village lies in the Bere peninsula, between the rivers ...
. Tourist and market traffic on the river, using purpose-built or converted steamers, remained substantial until the Devonport piers were closed and the ships requisitioned on the outbreak of war in 1939.
Economy
![Brunel's Bridge and the road bridge - Saltash - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Brunel%27s_Bridge_and_the_road_bridge_-_Saltash_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1399327.jpg)
Rocks around the edge of
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers .
The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous ...
were mineralised by fluids driven by the heat of the earth's core, which gave rise to ores containing
tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal.
Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
,
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
,
tungsten
Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolat ...
,
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
and other minerals in the Valley. The medieval estate of
Cotehele
Cotehele ( kw, Kosheyl) is a medieval house with Tudor additions, situated in the parish of Calstock in the east of Cornwall, England, and now belonging to the National Trust. It is a rambling granite and slate-stone manor house on the banks ...
, owned by the
Edgcumbe family, was a significant producer of
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
for the
Royal Mint
The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins.
Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclus ...
. During the industrial revolution, there was significant mining activity near the river, between Gunnislake and Weir Quay. During this period, the Tamar was an important river for shipping copper from ports such as
Morwellham Quay
Morwellham Quay is an historic river port in Devon, England that developed to support the local mines. The port had its peak in the Victorian era and is now run as a tourist attraction and museum. It is the terminus of the Tavistock Canal, and ...
,
Calstock
Calstock ( kw, Kalstok) is a civil parish and a large village in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, on the border with Devon. The village is situated on the River Tamar south west of Tavistock and north of Plymouth.
The parish had ...
and
New Quay (Devon) to south Wales where it would be smelted. The valley forms district A10i of the
Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape
The Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape is a World Heritage Site which includes select mining landscapes in Cornwall and West Devon in the south west of England. The site was added to the World Heritage List during the 30th Session of the UN ...
. The river has long been famous for the quality of its
salmon
Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...
whilst the valley was known nationally for the high quality, and early, soft fruit and market gardens sheltered by its steeply winding slopes.
Folklore
The
Alliterative ''Morte Arthure'' states that the mortal combat of
King Arthur
King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain.
In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...
and
Mordred
Mordred or Modred (; Welsh: ''Medraut'' or ''Medrawt'') is a figure who is variously portrayed in the legend of King Arthur. The earliest known mention of a possibly historical Medraut is in the Welsh chronicle ''Annales Cambriae'', wherein he ...
took place close to the banks of the river.
A traditional Cornish tale claims that the devil would never dare to cross the River Tamar into Cornwall for fear of ending up as a
pasty
A pasty () is a British baked pastry, a traditional variety of which is particularly associated with Cornwall, South West England, but has spread all over the British Isles. It is made by placing an uncooked filling, typically meat and vegetab ...
filling.
Though unusual landscape features are often named after the devil (e.g. devil's frying pan) it used to be said that the devil never came to Cornwall: he once reached Torpoint and immediately noticed that various kinds of pie were customary; he feared that devilly pie might be the next kind so returned to Devon.
[Canner, A. C. (1982) ''The Parish of Tintagel''. Camelford; p. 54] This legend is set to music in the traditional Cornish folk song
Fish and Tin and Copper.
Legend of Tamara
The legend behind the name involves a nymph by the name of Tamara, who lived in the underworld. Tamara wanted to wander freely in the mortal world, against the advice of her parents. One day, wandering in
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers .
The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous ...
, she happened to meet two giants called Tavy and Torridge (or Tawradge). Both giants became smitten with Tamara and vied for her affections. Tamara led the giants on a dance, but never let them touch her, instead darting out of reach whenever they came too close. Tamara's father, who had been out looking for her, located her just as the giants finally caught up with her near
Morwenstow
Morwenstow ( kw, Logmorwenna) is a civil parish in north Cornwall, UK. The parish abuts the west coast, about six miles (10 km) north of Bude and within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
Morwenstow is the most norther ...
. He flew into a rage and used a spell to put Tavy and Tawradge into a deep sleep. This infuriated Tamara, who subsequently refused to return to the underworld with her father. He became even more enraged and cast a spell on Tamara, turning her into a bubbling spring, which produced the Tamar river and flowed all the way to the sea. Tawradge awoke to find his beloved had become a river; in despair, he sought the advice of a magician, who turned him into a river (the
River Torridge
The River Torridge is a river in Devon in England; it rises near Meddon. The river describes a long loop through Devon farming country where its tributaries the Lew and Okement join before meeting the Taw at Appledore and flowing into the Bristo ...
and the
River Taw
The River Taw () rises at Taw Head, a spring on the central northern flanks of Dartmoor, crosses North Devon and at the town of Barnstaple, formerly a significant port, empties into Bideford Bay in the Bristol Channel, having formed a large ...
) so that he could hope to reunite with Tamara. Tawradge was never able to find and merge with his beloved Tamara, instead turning north toward
Bideford
Bideford ( ) is a historic port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, south-west England. It is the main town of the Torridge local government district.
Toponymy
In ancient records Bideford is recorded as ''Bedeford'', ''By ...
and the
Bristol Channel
The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Seve ...
and is still said to mourn his love, the Tamar. This legend explains why the River Torridge, which rises only 500 metres from the Tamar, veers away from the Tamar and forms a huge arc, eventually flowing to the North Devon coast. The other giant, Tavy, also awoke in despair and sought the aid of his own father, also a powerful magician. His father turned Tavy into a river as well, and the
Tavy set off in search of the Tamar, eventually finding her and merging with her into a
wide and beautiful estuary.
See also
*
List of rivers of England
This is a list of rivers of England, organised geographically and taken anti-clockwise around the English coast where the various rivers discharge into the surrounding seas, from the Solway Firth on the Scottish border to the Welsh Dee on the Wel ...
*
HMS ''Tamar'', 6 RN vessels and a shore base have been named after the river
*
Tamar Site
Tamar ( ) is the administrative centre of Hong Kong located in Admiralty. The headquarters of Hong Kong's Legislative Council and Central Government are located in Tamar. Adjacent to the island's financial heart at the Central harbourfront ...
, an area in Hong Kong named after the fourth
*
RM Tamar A Royal Marine shore base.
References
Further reading
*
* Carrington, N. T. (1820) ''The Banks of Tamar, a poem, with other pieces''. Plymouth Dock: Printed for the Author (another ed.: London: John Murray, 1828)
External links
Royal Albert Bridge at SaltashTamar Crossings – Tamar Bridge & Torpoint FerryRYA(tidal) Tamar navigation guide
Tamar Valley AONBTamar Valley Tourism Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tamar, River
Cornish Killas
Protected areas established in 1995
River navigations in the United Kingdom
Rivers of Cornwall
Rivers of Devon
Rivers with fish ladders