Port Eliot in the parish of St Germans,

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, is the ancestral

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...

of the Eliot family, whose present head is Albert Eliot, 11th Earl of St Germans. Port Eliot comprises a stately home with its own church, which serves as the parish church of St Germans. An earlier church building was Cornwall's principal

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

. The house is within an estate of which extends into the neighbouring villages of Tideford, Trerulefoot and Polbathic. Both house and garden are

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

History

Originally built as a

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

with adjoining St Germans Priory Church, parts of the house date back to the 12th century. It was substantially altered and remodelled in the 17th and 18th centuries by noted architects, including

Sir John Soane Sir John Soane (; né Soan; 10 September 1753 – 20 January 1837) was an English architect who specialised in the Neo-Classical style. The son of a bricklayer, he rose to the top of his profession, becoming professor of architecture at the Ro ...

. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Eliot family invested substantially in the estate, building numerous farmhouses, fishermen's cottages and other dwellings across the land. Many of these remain part of the estate to this day, and they are rented out to local residents and friends of the family. Some properties, mainly lying remote from the estate, have been sold in recent years. In 2014, the 700-hectare estate was purchased by the

Duchy of Cornwall A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between "sovereign ...

Festivals

Elephant Fayre

In 1980 a small festival which had outgrown its site at

Polgooth Polgooth () is a former mining village in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It lies mainly in the parish of St Mewan and partly in the parish of St Ewe. The nearest town is St Austell two miles (3.5 km) to the north-east. "The gr ...

in mid-Cornwall approached the Port Eliot estate and asked if it could be held in the idyllic grounds. The estate office agreed a price, and there began the Elephant Fayre, one of the most eclectic festivals of the 1980s. The festival ran from 1981 to 1986, beginning with some 1,500 visitors over four days, and featured a mix of music, theatre and visual arts. Over the years the festival grew, attracting crowds of up to 30,000 and bands such as

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...

, The Fall and

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...

. The burning down of the oldest tree in the park, looting of the village surgery and the robbing of stall-holders in 1985 prompted Lord Eliot and fellow organisers to make the 1986 festival the last.

Port Eliot Festival

In 2003 Peregrine Eliot, 10th Earl of St Germans began the Port Eliot Lit Fest in Cornwall. Which carried on as Port Eliot Festival until 2019.

Public access

In March 2008 the house and grounds opened to the public for the first time, for 100 days, and attracted 12,000 visitors. There is a shop and cafe with gardens open all year round. Guided tours of the house are available.

Gallery

Port Eliot 1.jpg Port Eliot in St Germans, Cornwall, England, seat of Lord Eliot 1.jpg St. Jermain (49641630702).jpg Postcard St. Germans and Port Eliot Cornwall, seat of Lord Eliot 2.jpg View of Port Eliot in St Germans, Cornwall, England, seat of Lord Eliot 1.jpg

References

External links

Port Eliot Official WebsitePort Eliot FestivalBBC News on the Elephant Fayre
{{coord, 50, 23, 50, N, 4, 18, 33, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=t Grade I listed buildings in Cornwall Gardens in Cornwall Country houses in Cornwall Tourist attractions in Cornwall Historic house museums in Cornwall Grade I listed parks and gardens in Cornwall Grade I listed houses