Lezant ( kw, Lannsant) is a

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 village in east

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. Lezant village is about five miles (8 kilometres) south of Launceston. The population of the parish in the 2001 census was 751, increasing slightly to 765 in the 2011 census.GENUKI website
Lezant; retrieved 10 February 2015

Geography

The parish of Lezant is in the Launceston registration district. The county border with

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 ...

forms the parish's eastern boundary. It is bounded on the north by

South Petherwin South Petherwin ( kw, Paderwynn Dheghow) is a village and civil parish in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the Registration District of Launceston. The civil parish is bounded to the north by the Launceston parishes of St Thoma ...

and

Lawhitton Lawhitton ( kw, Nansgwydhenn) is a village in the civil parish of Lawhitton Rural, in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is situated two miles (3 km) southwest of Launceston and half-a-mile west of Cornwall's border with Dev ...

Greystone Quarry and Bridge

A historically important road crossing of the

River Tamar The Tamar (; kw, Dowr Tamar) is a river in south west England, that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A part of the Tamar Valley is a World Heritage Site due to its historic mining activities. T ...

is from the village at

Greystone Bridge Greystone Bridge is a four-arch Grade I listed bridge over the River Tamar south-east of Launceston, Cornwall. It was built in 1439 and repaired in November 2007. Description Greystone Bridge is south-east of Launceston, Cornwall and carries ...

; the arched stone bridge was built in 1439. Greystone Bridge is the site of a large aggregate quarry operated by Bardon Aggregates. The quarry walls are designated as the ''Greystone Quarry SSSI'' (

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 ...

), for its

geological Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Eart ...

characteristics.

Churches

Lezant parish church is dedicated to St Briochus and was considerably restored in 1869. There was formerly an ancient chapel at Trecarrel (or Trecarrell) (''see below'') dedicated to St Mary Magdalene but it no longer exists. The parish of Lezant lay within the bishop's peculiar manor and deanery of

. The high altar of the church was rededicated in 1336; part of the chancel dates from slightly earlier than that. The rest of the spacious building is of the 15th century and there is a fine tower. In medieval times there was a chapel of St Lawrence (mentioned in 1447) and at Landue a chapel of St Bridget. There was an oratory of the Wyse family at Greystone in 1329.

Trecarrel

At Trecarrel is the hall built by Sir Henry Trecarrel (now used as a barn) very early in the 16th century. The carved stones intended to embellish the hall were afterwards used in the building of the Parish Church of St Mary Magdalene at Launceston. The hall is impressive with fine Perpendicular windows and oak wagon roof; the chapel was still in existence in 1925. King Charles I arrived in Cornwall and spent the night at the house of

Ambrose Manaton Ambrose Manaton (1589 – 1 June 1651) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons of England in 1624 and 1640. He supported the Royalist side in the English Civil War. Manaton was the second son of Peter Manaton of Trecarrell in ...

at Trecarrel on 1 August 1644.'Parishes: Lawhitton - Luxulion'
Magna Britannia: volume 3: Cornwall (1814), pp. 193-206.

Notable people

Peter of Cornwall Peter of Cornwall (1139/1140– July 7, 1221) was a medieval scholar and prior of Holy Trinity Priory, Aldgate. He was born near Launceston, Cornwall, the son of Jordan of Trecarrel (died c. 1180). He studied in London under Master Henry of Northa ...

, a medieval scholar and prior of Holy Trinity,

Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...

, was born near

Launceston, Cornwall Launceston ( or , locally or , kw, Lannstevan; rarely spelled Lanson as a local abbreviation) is a town, ancient borough, and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is west of the middle stage of the River Tamar, which c ...

, the son of Jordan of Trecarrel (died c. 1180). *

Matthew Sutcliffe Matthew Sutcliffe (1550? – 1629) was an English clergyman, academic and lawyer. He became Dean of Exeter, and wrote extensively on religious matters as a controversialist. He served as chaplain to His Majesty King James I of England. He ...

Dean of Exeter The Dean of Exeter is the head of the Chapter of Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, England. The chapter was established by William Briwere, Bishop of Exeter (1224–44) who set up the offices of dean and chancellor of Exeter Cathedral ...

for over 40 years from 1588 was also Rector of Lezant from 1594. *

John Woolton John Woolton (or Wolton) (1535? – 13 March 1594) served as Bishop of Exeter in Devon, England, from 1579 to 1594. Origins He was born at Whalley, Lancashire in about 1535, the son of John Woolton of Wigan, by his wife Isabella Nowell, a daught ...

(1535?-1594) was Bishop of Exeter, and from 1584 held the rectory of Lezant in plurality.

References

External links

{{authority control Civil parishes in Cornwall Villages in Cornwall Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cornwall