What springs to mind
when you think
of Cornwall?
Poldark?
Mining?
Nice
beaches?
The Eden
Project?
King
Arthur?
Cornwall
has a long and interesting history with regards to Arthurian Legend. It was the
kingdom of King Mark — the cuckolded king in the legend of Tristan and Isolde.
Cornwall is also home to Tintagel Castle, which is where Geoffrey Monmouth and
his great work The History of the Kings Britain, gave as Arthur's birthplace.
If you are
a reader of The Du Lac Chronicles series, then you will be familiar with my
interpretation of what Cornwall was like back in the year 495 AD. I think Cornwall is a
very special place with a remarkable history and one that is often overlooked.
Let's go back in time and take a look at Cornwall during the Roman occupation...
The Roman
occupation of Cornwall is very intriguing. It has been suggested that the
Roman's stopped at Devon. There are a few milestone and evidence of Roman
occupation in Cornwall, but not on the scale of the rest of the country. The
stories of Hadrian's Wall and Scottish rebellion against the Romans is
renowned, but nothing is said about Cornwall. Why didn't the Roman's colonise
Cornwall like they did to the rest of England?
Let's take
a closer look at Cornwall's history. Cornwall was very much its own kingdom, separated
from the rest of Britain, not only by her language — Cornish — but by an
independent spirit that refused to bow down to imposed authority. Was this why
the Roman's overlooked her to some extent? I am not so sure.
With the
departure of the Romans, Briton had to contend with a new and very aggressive
invader — The Saxons.
If the
Anglo-Saxon Chronicles are to be believed, then Cerdic of Wessex and his Saxon
army landed in Hampshire in 495 AD. By 419, Cerdic had conquered the south of
England, with the exception of Cornwall. Curious, isn't it?
Why? What
made Cornwall different?
There are
many reasons, but I think trade had a lot to do with it. The Cornish could be
independent because they knew what they were doing when it came to commerce.
They had trade agreements with Brittany, Wales and Ireland. Perhaps that is why
the Roman's didn't feel the need to invade Cornwall as they did with the other
kingdoms in England and Wales. Maybe Cornwall was a good trading partner — one that they had no need to upset.
Cornwall
had something everyone wanted. Tin. The history of mining for tin goes way
back, and one thing they were good at was mining for it. Silver has also been
found in Cornwall. The land is rich with treasure for those who know where to
look. Kingdoms who trade fairly are an asset. Why would you want to upset the
apple cart, so to speak, by invading? But for Cornwall, trade meant something
else as well. It meant money, and money meant they could afford the arms to
defend their kingdom if need be.
It wasn't
until the Battle of Hingston Down, in 838, when Cornwall lost her independence
to Wessex – they repelled the Saxons for over 400 years. Now, that is
impressive. I wonder why it isn't remembered?
What
bravery, what spirit this little kingdom had.
