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Golant () is a village in south
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, England, United Kingdom. It is on the west bank of the
River Fowey The River Fowey ( ; ) is a river in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its source (river), source is at Fowey Well (originally , meaning ''spring of the river Fowey'') about north-west of Brown Willy on Bodmin Moor, not far from one of its trib ...
and in the
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
of St Sampson. Golant is about north of
Fowey Fowey ( ; , meaning ''beech trees'') is a port town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town has been in existence since well before the Norman invasion, ...
and east of
St Austell Saint Austell (, ; ) is a town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon. At the 2021 Census in the United Kingdom, census it had a population of 20,900. History St Austell was a village centred ...
. Golant church is dedicated to St Sampson of Dol. The poet
John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...
remarked that its pews were "extremely uncomfortable, recall the fidgets of Gus and Flora in '' Ravenshoe''". The church was mentioned in the book ''England’s Thousand Best Churches'' by Simon Jenkins. The village is on the
Saints' Way The Saints' Way () is a long-distance footpath in mid Cornwall in the United Kingdom that connects the coastal towns of Padstow and Fowey. The Saints' Way follows a possible reconstructed route taken by early traders and Christian travellers ...
long-distance footpath A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway (landscape), greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking (wilderness), backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-co ...
.


History

A once well-used ford crossed the river near Golant. During the
English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
in 1644 a 10,000-strong parliamentary army fought Royalist forces in area. King Charles was in the area during the campaign. The
Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...
and other prominent parliamentarians escaped by boat to
Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...
. many 17th century cannonballs and musket balls have been found in the area. Golant Halt was a railway station situated beside the river south of the village. It was served by trains on the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
's Fowey branch line from 1 July 1896 until 4 January 1965. The station has been demolished and the site is now a car park. The nearest railway station is now at .


The Sawmills

The Sawmills recording studio was established in 1974. The main building is a 17th-century water mill and the site has a documented history stretching back to the 11th century. Artists such as
The Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. They were one of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...
,
The Verve The Verve were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones (musician), Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Sim ...
and Swans have recorded at the Sawmills. The
Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentDefinitely Maybe ''Definitely Maybe'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band Oasis, released on 29 August 1994 by Creation Records. The album features Noel Gallagher on lead guitar, backing vocals and as chief songwriter, Liam Gallagher on lead vo ...
was also recorded there. The studio was featured in the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
programme ''Three Men in More Than One Boat'' starring Rory McGrath,
Griff Rhys Jones Griffith Rhys Jones (born 16 November 1953) is a Welsh actor, comedian, writer and television presenter. He starred in a number of television series with his comedy partner, Mel Smith. He and Smith came to national attention in the 1980s for ...
and
Dara Ó Briain Dara Ó Briain ( , ; born 4 February 1972) is an Irish comedian and television presenter based in the United Kingdom. He is noted for performing stand-up comedy shows all over the world and for hosting topical panel shows such as ''Mock the Wee ...
shown in January 2009. Little recording takes place at Sawmills nowadays and the building is principally a holiday let.


Notable people

* Annabel Vernon, the Olympic rower, was a member of Castle Dore Rowing Club in Golant. *
Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. Charles was born ...
, who camped at Castle Dore "on the night before the surrender of the Parliamentary army in 1644" according to Arthur Mee *
Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
, who lodged with Colonel Peard for some time after the gaining of Italian independence; Peard had fought in the campaign and was known as "Garibaldi's Englishman".Mee (1937); p. 250


References


External links


Golant.net village website
{{authority control Villages in Cornwall