Penryn, Cornwall
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Penryn (; , meaning 'promontory') 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
and town in west
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, United Kingdom. It is on the Penryn River about northwest of Falmouth. The population was 7,166 in the 2001 census and had been reduced to 6,812 in the 2011 census, a drop of more than 300 people across the ten-year time gap. There are two electoral wards covering Penryn: 'Penryn East and Mylor' and 'Penryn West'. The total population of both wards in the 2011 census was 9,790. Though now the town is overshadowed by the larger nearby town of Falmouth, Penryn was once an important
harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...
in its own right, lading
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, 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 coo ...
and
tin Tin is a chemical element; it has symbol Sn () and atomic number 50. A silvery-colored 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, a bar of tin makes a sound, the ...
to be shipped to other parts of the country and world during the
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
period.


History


Early history

The ancient town first appears 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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
under the name of "Trelivel", and was since founded and named Penryn in 1216 by the
Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. The current bishop is Mike Harrison (bishop), Mike Harrison, since 2024. From the first bishop until the sixteent ...
. The borough was enfranchised and its Charter of Incorporation was made in 1236. The contents of this Charter were embodied in a confirmation by Bishop Walter Bronescombe in the year 1259. In 1265, a religious college, called Glasney College, was built in Penryn for the Bishop of Exeter to develop the church's influence in the far west of the diocese. In 1374, the chapel of St Thomas (sometimes called St Mary's) was opened. Standing at the head of the Penryn River, Penryn occupies a sheltered position and was a port of some significance in the 15th century. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
and the disestablishing of the
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church, Glasney College was dissolved and demolished in 1548 during the brief reign of
Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his thi ...
, the first Protestant
Duke of Cornwall Duke of Cornwall () is a title in the Peerage of England, traditionally held by the eldest son of the reigning Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarch, previously the English monarch. The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created i ...
and afterwards King of England. The dissolution of Glasney College helped trigger the
Prayer Book Rebellion The Prayer Book Rebellion or Western Rising was a popular revolt in Cornwall and Devon in 1549. In that year, the Book of Common Prayer (1549), first ''Book of Common Prayer'', presenting the theology of the English Reformation, was introduce ...
of 1549.


Later history

From 1554, Penryn held a
parliamentary constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...
, which became Penryn and Falmouth in 1832. The constituency was abolished in 1950, Penryn becoming part of the Falmouth and Camborne constituency. It received a royal charter as a borough in 1621, mainly in a bid by the crown to cure the town of piracy. At least three mayors of Penryn were convicted of piracy between 1550 and 1650. The arms of the borough of Penryn were a Saracen's head Or in a bordure of eight bezants. The merchant traveller and writer
Peter Mundy Peter Mundy (born-1597 ~ 1667) was a seventeenth-century English factor, merchant trader, traveller and writer. He was the first Englishman to record, in his ''Itinerarium Mundi'' ('Itinerary of the World'), tasting ''Tea, Chaa'' (tea) in China ...
(c.1600–67) was the son of a Penryn
pilchard Sardine and pilchard are common names for various species of small, oily forage fish in the herring suborder Clupeoidei. The term "sardine" was first used in English during the early 15th century; a somewhat dubious etymology says it comes ...
trader and travelled extensively throughout his life in Asia (where he was one of the first Europeans to taste '' Chaa''), Russia and Europe before returning to Penryn to write his ''Itinerarium Mundi'' ('World Itinerary'); one of the earliest travel guides in English. By the mid-17th century, the port was thriving from trade in Cornish fish,
tin Tin is a chemical element; it has symbol Sn () and atomic number 50. A silvery-colored 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, a bar of tin makes a sound, the ...
and
copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) 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 pinkish-orang ...
. However, Penryn lost its custom house and market rights to the new town of Falmouth as a direct result of supporting the Parliamentary side in the
English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
(1642–48). In the early 19th century, granite works were established by the river and large quantities of the stone were shipped from its quays for construction projects both within the UK and abroad. The population was 3,337 in 1841. The A39 road, which begins in
Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...
and is about long, once passed through Penryn towards the end of its route in nearby Falmouth, but in 1994 was diverted around the town when the Penryn Bypass was opened, incorporating a stretch of new road along with upgrading to an existing road. The town is the setting of the play ''The Penryn Tragedy'', which tells of a young man unwittingly murdered by his parents after disguising himself as a rich stranger.


Present-day Penryn

Today, Penryn is a quiet town and has retained a large amount of its heritage. A large proportion of its buildings date from Tudor, Jacobean and Georgian times; the town has therefore been designated as an important conservation area. The local museum is housed in Penryn Town Hall. The town hall building is partly 17th century and partly 19th century in date; its clock tower is dated 1839. Penryn has seen some redevelopment in the early 21st century, with the construction of mixed-use development Jubilee Wharf in 2007, and the renovation of former storage unit Jubilee Warehouse as a workspace. In 2022, a public consultation was held at The Fish Factory on a proposed regeneration scheme for Commercial Road. The scheme aims to prioritise pedestrian traffic, through widened pavements and development of new public space.


Education


Higher education

In 2004, the Penryn Campus was completed, creating the hub of the
Combined Universities in Cornwall The Combined Universities in Cornwall (CUC) is a project to provide higher education in Cornwall, England, which is one of the poorest areas of the United Kingdom in terms of GVA per capita. History Developed in the early 2000s, following the ...
(CUC) project. It includes the
University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...
housing the 6th best Ecology Department in the world and
Camborne School of Mines Camborne School of Mines (), 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. It has undergraduate, postg ...
, which has moved from
Camborne Camborne (from Cornish language, Cornish ''Cambron'', "crooked hill") 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, C ...
, where it has been for over a century, among other departments of the University of Exeter. The Campus also houses departments of
Falmouth University Falmouth University is a specialist public university for the creative industries based in Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth and Penryn, Cornwall, Penryn, Cornwall, England. Founded as Falmouth School of Art in 1902, it was later known as Falmouth C ...
, which is based in the centre of Falmouth. In 2007, phase two was completed, which includes increased student accommodation and new teaching areas.


Schools

There are currently two schools in Penryn: * Penryn Primary Academy (a merging of Penryn Infants and Junior Schools) * Penryn College


Transport

Penryn railway station was opened by the
Cornwall Railway The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construct ...
on 24 August 1863. It is towards the northwest end of the town and is served by regular trains from
Truro Truro (; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. It is Cornwall's county town, s ...
to Falmouth on the
Maritime Line The Maritime Line is a branch line railway in Cornwall that runs from the city of Truro to Falmouth. Since 2009, the line has run half-hourly trains in both directions between Truro railway station and Falmouth Docks railway station via the v ...
. There are several bus routes that connect the town to Falmouth, Helston and Penzance.


Media

Local TV coverage is provided by BBC South West and
ITV West Country ITV West Country is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the South West England franchise area on the ITV network. Previously, between 2009 and 2013, the area was a non-franchise region, branded with the same ...
. Television signals are received from the
Redruth Redruth ( , ) is a town and civil parishes in Cornwall, civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. According to the 2011 census, the population of Redruth was 14,018 In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, ...
and local relay TV transmitters. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Cornwall on 103.9 FM, Heart West on 107.0 FM, and Source FM, a community based station which broadcast to the town on 96.1 FM. The town is served by the local newspaper, Falmouth Packet.


Sport and leisure

Penryn RFC Penyrn RFC is a Cornish rugby union club based in the town of Penryn, and is the oldest club side in the county having been formed in 1872. The club currently has two senior men's teams (the seconds are known as the Saracens) as well as a lad ...
, founded in 1872, is a
rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
club which plays in the
Tribute Western Counties West Counties 1 Western West (known as Counties 1 Tribute Western West for sponsorship reasons) is an English rugby union league. Originally a single division called Western Counties, in 1996 the division split into two regional leagues called Wes ...
league, the seventh tier of the English rugby union league system. They are nicknamed "The Borough" and are the oldest rugby club in Cornwall. Penryn Athletic (founded 1963; also known as "The Borough") is a
non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...
club who play at the 1,500-capacity Kernick Road ground. The club is a member of the South West Peninsula League Division One West, which is a step 7 league in the
national league system The National League System comprises the six levels of the English football league system immediately below the level of the English Football League. It comes under the jurisdiction of the Football Association. The National League System has a ...
. In 2021, Penryn-based Cornwall R.L.F.C. joined the third tier of professional
Rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...
,
RFL League 1 The Rugby Football League's League One (known as the Betfred League One) is the third-highest division of rugby league in Britain. It is also the lowest level of professional rugby league in Britain. Introduced in 2003 as National League 2 i ...
. The English Shinty Association is based in Penryn.


Cornish wrestling

Penryn hosted
Cornish wrestling Cornish wrestling () is a form of wrestling that has been established in Cornwall for many centuries and possibly longer. It is similar to the Breton people, Breton Gouren wrestling style. It is colloquially known as "wrasslin’"Phillipps, K C: ...
tournaments over the centuries.Royal Cornwall Gazette, 1 June 1822.Lake's Falmouth Packet and Cornwall Advertiser, 22 September 1911.West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser, 27 June 1996. Places where tournaments were held include the Bowling Green, ParkengueRoyal Cornwall Gazette, 4 July 1912. and the Glasney playing field.West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser, 20 June 1996.


Policing

The policing of the area is the responsibility of
Devon and Cornwall Police Devon and Cornwall Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the ceremonial counties of Devon and Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly) in South West England. The force serves approximately 1.8 million people over an ...
who have a dedicated team to cover the area known as the Penryn & Mylor Local Policing Team.


Notable residents

* John Coode, Reverend, Colonel, Captain, revolutionary, and Governor of Maryland 1689–1691 * Thomas Pellow, author and former slave. *
Jonathan Hornblower Jonathan Hornblower (5 July 1753 – 23 February 1815) was an English pioneer of steam power. Personal life The son of Jonathan Hornblower the Elder and the brother of Jabez Carter Hornblower, two fellow pioneers, the young Hornblower was ...
, English pioneer of steam power. * Emma Hosken, novelist, born in Penryn. * Vic Roberts, British Lion and England rugby union international, born in and played for Penryn RFC. * William Harris Rule, Methodist missionary, was born in Penryn 1802. * John Tucker Williams, Canadian soldier and politician, was born in Penryn. * Violetta Thurstan, World War I nurse, died in Penryn in 1978 aged 99.


See also

* Kernick


Footnotes


References

* Roddis, Roland, ''Penryn, The History of an Ancient Cornish Borough'', 1964 * Warmington, Ernie, ''Penryn: People, Places, Postcards, Photographs'', 1998, Published by the author, reprinted 2007 * Warmington, Ernie, ''Around Penryn'' (Images of England series), Stroud: Tempus Publishing, 2000, * Warmington, Ernie, ''Penryn Revisited'', Stroud: Tempus Publishing, 2007, * Warmington, Ernie, ''Penryn Through Time'', Amberley Publishing, 2010, * Hallett, Christine E., ‘Nurses of Passchendaele: Caring for the Wounded of the Ypres Campaigns 1914-1918’, Pen & Sword History, 2017,


External links


Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for Penryn
{{Authority control Towns in Cornwall Civil parishes in Cornwall Populated coastal places in Cornwall