Cornwall Life – October 2019

(^84) ŠCornwall Life: August 2019
Best for
history lovers
TRERICE
Trerice is a perfect time capsule

• an Elizabethan manor house
  once the home of the Arundell
  family and surprisingly close to
  Newquay. Away from the busy
  streets and beaches of Newquay
  this is an oasis of calm.
  Beautifully restored, one of
  the centre pieces is the Great
  Hall window with 576 glass tiles
  ranging in age from the 16th
  to 19th centuries. In the early
  days clear glass was a sign of
  wealth. The building houses an
  impressive collection of artefacts
  including a 300-year-old longcase
  clock. The gardens reflect the
  social standing of the house
  including a turf maze and the
  intricate Knot Garden in typical
  Elizabeth style. But don’t be
  fooled – it was created in 2013.
  nationaltrust.org.uk/trerice

ST MAWES CASTLE

Facing Pendennis Castle on the

opposite headland across the

Carrick Roads is Henry VIII’s

St Mawes Castle, a beautifully

preserved example of a Tudor

coastal artillery fortress. The

castles were built to deter a

perceived threat by sea from

Catholic France and Spain.

St Mawes Castle is built in a

clover-leaf shape surrounded by

octagonal outer defences. The

interior is embellished by carved

Latin inscriptions in praise of

Henry VIII and his son Edward

VI. There are magnificent views

along the Fal Estuary and out to

sea from the top of the castle.

english-heritage.org.uk

PENCARROW

Pencarrow has been home

to the Molesworth-St Aubyn

family for almost 500 years and

they still occupy a wing of the

Georgian home on the edge of

Bodmin Moor near Wadebridge

surrounded by the glorious Grade

II listed gardens. Pencarrow

in Cornish means ‘head of the

valley’ or ‘high fort’ and as you

approach the house you will pass

an Iron Age hill fort. The house

that now standards at the heart of

the estate reflected the Georgian

fascination for Greek and Roman

antiquity inside and out.

Enjoy a guided tour of the

house to hear all about its

history and admire some of the

beautiful art including family

portraits by Sir Joshua Reynolds,

porcelain by Meissen and

Sevres, historic furniture and a

series of marble busts.

In the garden there are

ancient woodlands, a sunken

Italian Garden with fountain,

an ice house and palm house.

Enjoy spotting the towering

Araucaria araucana, nicknamed

‘the monkey puzzle’ tree by an

intrigued visitor here.

pencarrow.co.uk

WHEAL MARTYN

Cornwall is an area rich in

TOP: Aerial view

of the gardens at

Trerice

‘Beautifully

restored,

one of the

centre

pieces

is the

Great Hall

window

with 576

glass tiles

ranging in

age from

the 16th

to 19th

centuries.’

©National Trust Images/John Miller