The Church of Saint Winwaloe is the
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
of
Gunwalloe
Gunwalloe ( ) is a coastal civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the Lizard Peninsula south of Helston and partly contains The Loe, the largest natural freshwater lake in Cornwall. The parish population includin ...
in
Cornwall
Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, England.
History
The church is in the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...
Diocese of Truro
The Diocese of Truro (established 1876) is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury which covers Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and a small part of Devon. The bishop's seat is at Truro Cathedral.
Geography and history
The d ...
and is dedicated to
Saint Winwaloe
Winwaloe (; ; or ; – 3 March 532) was the founder and first abbot of Landévennec Abbey (literally " Lann of Venec"), also known as the Monastery of Winwaloe. It was just south of Brest in Brittany, now part of France.
Life
Winwaloe was the ...
. It is likely to have been standing since at least the 15th century due to its characteristic
three hall church design,
although some parts can be dated back to the 13th century, and one of the fonts is believed to be Norman.
The small cross in the churchyard was found in the 19th century and taken to
Penrose. At a later date it was placed in the churchyard.
The church was used to film a wedding scene in ''
The Lady of Pendower'' in 1934.
As part of the preparations, a track long was built to move the film camera along as the characters exited the church to achieve a
tracking shot
In cinematography, a tracking shot is any shot where the camera follows backward, forward or moves alongside the subject being recorded. Mostly the camera’s position is parallel to the character, creating a sideway motion, tracking the chara ...
.
Bell tower
The church has a detached bell tower, similar to those at
Feock and
Gwennap
Gwennap () is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is about five miles (8 km) southeast of Redruth. Hamlets of Burncoose, Comford, Coombe, Gwennap, Coombe, Crofthandy, Cusgarne, Fernsplatt, Frogpool, Hick's M ...
, which may date from before the 15th century.
The bell tower uses a set of six batons laid out similar to
piano key
A key is a component of a musical instrument, the purpose and function of which depends on the instrument. However, the term is most often used in the context of keyboard instruments, in which case it refers to the exterior part of the instrume ...
s, and three medieval bells. These were recast in 1926.
Parish status
The church is in a joint parish with
St Corentine's Church, Cury
St Corentine's Church, Cury is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England in Cury, Cornwall, England, UK.
History
The parish church is dedicated to St Corentin. The building is cruciform and of the Norman period, but a north aisle ...
. The Rev.
Sandys Wason
Cury () is a civil parish and village in southwest Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately four miles (6 km) south of Helston on The Lizard peninsula. The parish is named for St Corentin and is recorded in the ...
was perpetual curate of both Cury and Gunwalloe from 1905 to 1920.
[Brown, H. M. (1976) ''A Century for Cornwall''. Truro: Blackford; pp. 66-67, 79-81]
Gallery
File:GunwalloeChurch-Font-by-Door.jpg, The Norman font
File:GunwalloeChurchCelticCross.jpg, A Cornish cross in the churchyard
References
External links
Photograph of the interior(gettyimages).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunwalloe, Church of St Winwaloe
Grade I listed churches in Cornwall
Gunwalloe
Gunwalloe ( ) is a coastal civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the Lizard Peninsula south of Helston and partly contains The Loe, the largest natural freshwater lake in Cornwall. The parish population includin ...