Crantock
Encyclopedia
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...
, England, United Kingdom. The village is approximately two miles (3 km) southwest of Newquay
Newquay
Newquay is a town, civil parish, seaside resort and fishing port in Cornwall, England. It is situated on the North Atlantic coast of Cornwall approximately west of Bodmin and north of Truro....
.
Crantock dates back to 460 AD when a group of Irish hermits founded an oratory there. The village lies to the south of the River Gannel
River Gannel
The River Gannel rises in the village of Indian Queens in central Cornwall, United Kingdom. It flows north and becomes a tidal estuary that divides the town of Newquay from the village of Crantock and joins the Celtic Sea...
which forms a natural boundary between the parishes of Newquay
Newquay
Newquay is a town, civil parish, seaside resort and fishing port in Cornwall, England. It is situated on the North Atlantic coast of Cornwall approximately west of Bodmin and north of Truro....
and Crantock. The River Gannel is tidal and ferries operate on a seasonal basis from Fern Pit to Crantock Beach. The River Gannel runs along Crantock Beach and joins the Atlantic Ocean. The village can be reached from the A3075 road via the junction at Trevemper.
Large parts of the parish are now in the ownership of the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
, including West Pentire headland which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
noted for its wild flowers and rare plants.
History
The older part of the village is situated around its church which is dedicated to St Carantoc, founder of the village. At one time the village was known as Langurroc which translates as – The Dwelling of Monks. There is a Langurroc Road in the village. Langurroc was infamously (among locals) covered up in a sandstorm and may well lie beneath the sand dunes which back Crantock Beach.The church
St Carantoc's Church, Crantock
St Carantoc's Church, Crantock is in the village of Crantock, Cornwall, England. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Truro, the archdeaconry of Cornwall and the deanery of Pydar...
was founded in Norman times
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
and was originally cruciform but it was reconstructed in the 14th and 15th centuries: restoration
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
was carried out by E. H. Sedding in 1899–1902. The font is Norman and the rood screen
Rood screen
The rood screen is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, or wrought iron...
is much restored. The church was collegiate from ca. 1236 to the Reformation
English Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
.
The local village hall has recently undergone a transformation, with money from the National Lottery
National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
, the awarding of which was featured on ITV's Westcountry Live programme. The playing field on which the hall is situated was also given a new lease of life, and now includes a basketball hoop, numerous climbing facilities, and cricket and football pitches.
The village hall is now three times bigger in size and was the centrepiece in 2007's annual "Jazz in the Park". The village also hosts a street fair known as the "Crantock Summer Fiesta" which has a coconut shy, tombola, raffle and many other stalls.
In 2006, the village held its second annual "big bale push" involving locals pushing tightly packed straw cylinders around the roads of the village, which are of course, closed for the event. They now hold the Guinness record for bale pushing.
Beaches
ile:Crantock Beach Newquay Cornwall.jpg|thumb|Crantock Beach]Like several other sandy beaches in the Newquay area, Crantock Beach is popular for surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
. There are car parks at Crantock Beach and West Pentire. The beach is backed by sand dunes.
At the left hand side of the beach, low tide reveals a carving into a rock, featuring a picture of a woman's face, and the inscription ‘Mar not my face but let me be, Secure in this lone cave by the sea, Let the wild waves around me roar, Kissing my lips for evermore’
The story goes... In the early 20th century a woman was horse riding along Crantock Beach. She and her horse got cut off as the tide came in and the rough seas swept them away drowning them both. Her distraught lover carved a poem into a rock, in a cave on the beach, along with a portrait of his lost love and her horse. The carvings are said to be the work of a local man Joseph Prater.
The coastal footpath
South West Coast Path
The South West Coast Path is Britain's longest waymarked long-distance footpath and a National Trail. It stretches for , running from Minehead in Somerset, along the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, to Poole Harbour in Dorset. Since it rises and falls with every river mouth, it is also one of the more...
skirts all along the west side of the parish. Walking from Crantock the path leads to a sandy cove called Porth Joke known locally as Polly Joke. Its name comes from the old 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...
words for 'Jackdaw Cove' ....'Pol-Lejouack'. This cove is entirely surrounded by National Trust land and virtually unchanged over the centuries. Further along the coast path is the village of Holywell
Holywell, Cornwall
Holywell is a coastal village in north Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated about three miles west-southwest of Newquay.Holywell beach adjoins the settlement to the northwest and Penhale Camp, an army training establishment regularly used by cadets, is half-a-mile to the southwest...
, with a larger sandy beach at Holywell Bay.
See also
Places also associated with St Carantoc include:- St Carantoc's Church, CrantockSt Carantoc's Church, CrantockSt Carantoc's Church, Crantock is in the village of Crantock, Cornwall, England. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Truro, the archdeaconry of Cornwall and the deanery of Pydar...
- Carhampton, SomersetCarhampton, SomersetCarhampton is a village and civil parish in West Somerset, England, to the east of Minehead.Carhampton civil parish stretches from the Bristol Channel coast inland to Exmoor. The parish has a population of 992 .-History:...
- LlangrannogLlangrannogLlangrannog is a small, coastal village and seaside resort in Ceredigion, Wales, seven miles south of New Quay. According to the United Kingdom Census 2001, the population of Llangrannog was then 796 people...
, CeredigionCeredigionCeredigion is a county and former kingdom in mid-west Wales. As Cardiganshire , it was created in 1282, and was reconstituted as a county under that name in 1996, reverting to Ceredigion a day later...
, Wales - CarantecCarantecCarantec is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.Carantec is located on the coast of the English Channel, and contains a small island within its boundaries, the Île Callot...
, Finistère, Brittany, France
External links
Category:Villages in Cornwall
Category:Civil parishes in Cornwall
Category:Populated coastal places in Cornwall
Category:Beaches of Cornwall
Category:Surfing locations in Cornwall
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fr:Carantec