Towednack Church Cornwall

Towednack Church, Cornwall

Churches in Cornwall, Towednack Church, St. Ives

Jake Davies

The interior of Towednack parish church in Cornwall. — The interior of Towednack parish church in Cornwall

Towednack Parish Church is a low building built of large granite blocks. Like many buildings on the rugged and windswept north coast of the Penwith Peninsula in Cornwall it it seems to hunker down and hug the earth for safety.

However, there is more to the story than that. The tower of the church is even lower than traditional Cornish churches, and is believed to be the work of the devil.

Towednack Parish Church with its distinctive, squat tower. — Towednack Parish Church with its distinctive, squat tower, Cornwall

Though remote from any large settlements, the cemetery at Towednack Church is quite large. — Though remote from any large settlements, the cemetery at Towednack Church is quite large

History

When the tower was being built around the year 1500, the masons would return to work each morning to discover that the work they had done the previous day on raising the tower and adding decoration had all been undone by the devil. So, they simply gave up and left it at its current height.

It is believed it was built on the site of an ancient monastic hermitage which explains why it is some distance from any settlement of size.

The church is dedicated to St. Winwaloe, a 6th century saint who founded the monastery of Landevennec in Brittany, an area with close connections and relations with Cornwall. Wednack and Walloe are forms of Winwaloe and other places in Cornwall with connections to St. Winwaloe are Landewednack and Gunwalloe.

The roof of Towednack Church dates to the late 19th century restoration. — The roof of Towednack Church dates to the late 19th century restoration

Interior

The nave and chancel date to the 13th century, with the south aisle being added in the mid-15th century and the tower around 1500. The church was extensively restored in the late 19th century.

Inside the porch is a carved stone believed to be part of an ancient Celtic cross. Above the porch is a sundial dated to 1720.

Entering through the only doorway, the interior is unplastered and usually well decorated with small displays of flowers. The pointed chancel arch is the most westerly of such arches as the churches in the west of Cornwall did not use arches as a rule.

Noteworthy is the altar which is a rough-hewn slab of granite dating back to late Norman times. It was removed during the Reformation when it was decreed that altars must be wooden, but was later discovered in a nearby farm wall and reinstated.

Also worth a look are a pair of carved bench ends displayed on the north wall. They are dated to 1633 and depict the profiles of two different men. It is most likely that there were many more of these in previous times. These two were stolen from the church in 1997 but fortuitously recovered.

The thick, granite walls of Towednack Parish Church near St. Ives in Cornwall. — The thick, granite walls of Towednack Parish Church near St. Ives in Cornwall

Information

Towednack
St. Ives TR26 3AZ
Tel: 01736 741488
www: towednackchurch.org.uk

Located near the B3306 that runs along the north of the Penwith Peninsula from St. Ives to Lands End.

Entertainment & Accommodation

Being a resort, St. Ives is well served with eating and drinking establishments. There are cafes, pasty shops, fish & chip shops and a complete range of restaurants. There are numerous pubs, including the Sloop Inn (Tel: 01736 796584) right at the harbor which has been a pub for over 700 years since 1312.

There are a complete range of accommodation options including campsites, caravan parks, hostels, self catering cottages, guest houses and hotels that range from budget to luxury.

Some good places to stay in St. Ives are the refurbished Primrose Valley Hotel close to Porthminster Beach and the nearby St Ives Harbour Hotel & Spa with terrace bar and restaurant.

See here for a listing of hotels and guesthouses in St Ives.

St Ives Access - Getting To St Ives

St. Ives is 5 hours by train from London Paddington in west London on the First Great Western, changing at St. Erth. A good option is to take the overnight Night Riviera Sleeper Service (www.gwr.com/plan-journey/journey-information/on-board/night-riviera-sleeper) which leaves at 11:45 pm and gets you to St. Ives at 8.14 am the next morning.

Exeter in Devon, located at the end of the M5 motorway, coming south from Bristol makes for a good starting point if you are driving into Cornwall. Exeter is also a good place to hire a car.

From Exeter follow the A30 dual carriageway, north of Dartmoor through Okehampton, Launceston, Bodmin and Redruth.

Leave the A30 at the junction of the A3074 to St. Ives.

Hire a car in St Ives to explore the south west of England.

The south side of Towednack Church dating to the 13th Century. — The south side of Towednack Church dating to the 13th century

Exeter International Airport, just 5 miles to the east of Exeter city near Clyst Honiton off the A30 has regular domestic flights to Aberdeen, Alicante, Belfast, Edinburgh, Faro, Geneva, Guernsey/Jersey, the Isles of Scilly, Leeds Bradford, Manchester and Newcastle. International destinations include Amsterdam, Dubrovnik, Dublin, Funchal, Hannover, Larnaca, Nice, Palma, Paris, Malaga and Salzburg.

National Express coaches take about 8-10 hours to St. Ives from either Birmingham or London Victoria Bus Station.

Local buses from St. Ives run direct to Penzance with others going round the coast via Zennor. Local buses also connect St. Ives to Truro.

The stained glass window at Towednack Church is a fairly recent addition. — The stained glass window at Towednack Church is a fairly recent addition

Newquay Cornwall Airport (NQY) has connecting flights to Bristol Airport, Cardiff, Glasgow, Isles of Scilly, Leeds Bradford, London Gatwick, Manchester Airport, Newcastle and international flights to Cork and Dublin in Ireland as well as seasonal flights to Alicante in Spain with Ryanair and Dusseldorf in Germany with Lufthansa.

Most UK flights are operated by Air Southwest. The airport offers airport parking for over 500 cars.

There is a passenger ferry from Penzance to the Scilly Isles. The Scillonian III passenger ferry takes between 2 hours 40 minutes and 3 hours. (Timetable and further information here: https://www.islesofscilly-travel.co.uk/ferry/travel-information)

There are Skybus flights to the Scilly Isles from Exeter, Newquay and Land's End airports.