An Gof
Encyclopedia
An Gof is a militant Cornish nationalist group. The organisation takes its name from the trade of Michael Joseph
(Cornish name Myghal Josef), An Gof , being Cornish
for 'The Smith', a leader of the Cornish Rebellion of 1497
.
The extent to which this organisation was exaggerated by media or police is unknown. In one attack, a politician's letterbox was blown up with a bomb. It is uncertain whether other attacks were carried out by the same organisation.
In December 1980, a group calling itself An Gof 1980 exploded a bomb at the courthouse in St Austell
. In January 1981, they claimed responsibility for a fire at a Penzance
hairdressers (the business was mistaken for the Bristol and West
Building Society). Later in the decade, An Gof claimed responsibility for a number of fires, including one at the Zodiac Bingo Hall in Redruth
. They also claimed responsibility for an attempted explosion at Beacon Village Hall in Camborne
and placing broken glass under the sand at Portreath
Beach in 1984.
A group claiming to be An Gof stated on March 12, 2007 that it wanted to destroy all English
flags in Cornwall
. A statement made by a spokesman for the group was faxed to the Cornish Branch of the Celtic League
by an unknown person who withheld his or her telephone number and reads as follows:
In March 2007 a group claiming to be the resurrected "An Gof" committed several acts of vandalism. This was followed on June 13, 2007 with a declaration by a previously unheard of group called the Cornish National Liberation Army
which declared the restaurants owned by Jamie Oliver
and Rick Stein
to be enemies of the people and examples of the English cultural and fiscal invasion of Cornwall which had caused financial hardship and a feeling of alienation for the Cornish people within their own country.
Michael An Gof
Michael Joseph and Thomas Flamank were the leaders of the Cornish Rebellion of 1497....
(Cornish name Myghal Josef), An Gof , being Cornish
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
for 'The Smith', a leader of the Cornish Rebellion of 1497
Cornish Rebellion of 1497
The Cornish Rebellion of 1497 was a popular uprising by the people of Cornwall in the far southwest of Britain. Its primary cause was a response of people to the raising of war taxes by King Henry VII on the impoverished Cornish, to raise money for a campaign against Scotland motivated by brief...
.
The extent to which this organisation was exaggerated by media or police is unknown. In one attack, a politician's letterbox was blown up with a bomb. It is uncertain whether other attacks were carried out by the same organisation.
In December 1980, a group calling itself An Gof 1980 exploded a bomb at the courthouse in St Austell
St Austell
St Austell is a civil parish and a major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the south coast approximately ten miles south of Bodmin and 30 miles west of the border with Devon at Saltash...
. In January 1981, they claimed responsibility for a fire at a Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
hairdressers (the business was mistaken for the Bristol and West
Bristol and West
Bristol & West is a former commercial bank in the United Kingdom which is a division of the Bank of Ireland. Bristol & West has its headquarters in Bristol, England. It was previously a building society known as the Bristol and West Building Society...
Building Society). Later in the decade, An Gof claimed responsibility for a number of fires, including one at the Zodiac Bingo Hall in Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
. They also claimed responsibility for an attempted explosion at Beacon Village Hall in Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....
and placing broken glass under the sand at Portreath
Portreath
Portreath is a civil parish, village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately three miles northwest of Redruth....
Beach in 1984.
A group claiming to be An Gof stated on March 12, 2007 that it wanted to destroy all English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
flags in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
. A statement made by a spokesman for the group was faxed to the Cornish Branch of the Celtic League
Celtic League (political organisation)
The Celtic League is a non-governmental organisation that promotes self-determination and Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man, known as the Celtic nations. It places particular emphasis on the indigenous Celtic languages...
by an unknown person who withheld his or her telephone number and reads as follows:
Out of respect for many of the decent and honourable Cornish peopleCornish peopleThe Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
present today, we have asked our membership to remain inactive. We are aware that reputations were placed on the line by moderate Cornish Nationals who have been subject of death threats from the far right as well as threats of action by the police. However, we wish to make this point very clear: any attempts from hereon to fly the hated and oppressive Flag of St. George of England which we know as the blood banner in this our Country will result in direct action by our organization. For those who question our motives, we refer them to the events of 1497 and 1549 and the years of English Imperialistic repression which has followed. We shall not show the tolerance of those standing Vigil today and our action will be to remove and burn the flags of the English which may cause peripheral damage. An Gof 1497.
In March 2007 a group claiming to be the resurrected "An Gof" committed several acts of vandalism. This was followed on June 13, 2007 with a declaration by a previously unheard of group called the Cornish National Liberation Army
Cornish National Liberation Army
The Cornish National Liberation Army, abbreviated to CNLA, was a terrorist Cornish nationalist organisation that has threatened to carry out acts of vandalism and arson against commercial targets that it considers to be English....
which declared the restaurants owned by Jamie Oliver
Jamie Oliver
James "Jamie" Trevor Oliver, MBE , sometimes known as The Naked Chef, is an English chef, restaurateur and media personality, known for his food-focused television shows, cookbooks and more recently his campaign against the use of processed foods in national schools...
and Rick Stein
Rick Stein
Christopher Richard "Rick" Stein OBE is an English chef, restaurateur and television presenter. He is currently the head chef and co-owner of "Rick Stein at Bannisters" at Mollymook, New South Wales, Australia, owns four restaurants in Padstow, a fish and chip shop in Falmouth, Cornwall and has...
to be enemies of the people and examples of the English cultural and fiscal invasion of Cornwall which had caused financial hardship and a feeling of alienation for the Cornish people within their own country.
See also
- List of topics related to Cornwall
- List of terrorist organisations
- Cornish self-government movementCornish self-government movementCornish nationalism is an umbrella term that refers to a cultural, political and social movement based in Cornwall, the most southwestern part of the island of Great Britain, which has for centuries been administered as part of England, within the United Kingdom...