St Veep () is a

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 ...

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, situated above the east 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 ...

about three miles (5 km) south-east of

Lostwithiel Lostwithiel (; ) is a civil parish and small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom at the head of the estuary of the River Fowey. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,739, increasing to 2,899 at the 2011 census. The Lostwi ...

. It is bordered by the parishes of

St Winnow St Winnow () is a civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its name may be connected with either that of Saint Winnoc or Saint Winwaloe. It has a population of 304, which had increased to 328 at the 2011 ...

to the north-west,

Boconnoc Boconnoc () is a civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, approximately east of the town of Lostwithiel. According to the UK census 2011, 2011 census the parish had a population of 96. The parish is rural ...

to the north,

Lanreath Lanreath () is a civil parishes in England, civil parish and a village in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is situated five miles (8 km) west-northwest of Looe. The name Lanreath (pronounced Lanreth) means 'church (La ...

to the east

Polperro Polperro (, meaning ''Pyra's cove'') is a large village, civil parish, and fishing harbour within the Polperro Heritage Coastline in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its population is around 1,554. Polperro, through which runs the Riv ...

to the south-east and Lanteglos to the south. The River Fowey forms its western boundary. The parish is named after Saint Veep of whom little is known (not even whether the saint was male or female). Part of the village of

Lerryn Lerryn (, archaically Lerrin) is a village in Cornwall, England. It is situated on the River Lerryn (a tributary of the River Fowey) approximately three miles (5 km) southeast of Lostwithiel. Lerryn straddles two parishes: north of t ...

is in St Veep parish. The hamlets of Cliff (), Higher Penpol (), Middle Penpol and Lower Penpol () are all within the parish.

History

The parish church was originally dedicated to Saint Veep, but when it was rebuilt in 1336 it was rededicated to

Saint Quiricus and Saint Julietta Cyricus and his mother Julitta are venerated as early Christian martyrs. According to traditional stories, they were put to death at Tarsus in AD 304. Cyricus Some evidence exists for an otherwise unknown child-martyr named Cyricus at Anti ...

. Following the

Prayer Book Rebellion The Prayer Book Rebellion or Western Rising was a popular revolt in Cornwall and Devon in 1549. In that year, the Book of Common Prayer (1549), first ''Book of Common Prayer'', presenting the theology of the English Reformation, was introduce ...

of 1549, a number of well-known Cornish figures and priests were murdered or hanged in Cornwall. These included Richard Bennet, vicar of St Veep, under the direct orders of

Anthony Kingston Sir Anthony Kingston (ca. 1508 – 14 April 1556) was an English royal official, holder of various positions under several Tudor monarchs.A.D.K. Hawkyard, 'Kingston, Anthony (by 1512-56), of Cadleigh, Devon and Painswick, Glos.', in S.T. Bind ...

Provost Marshal Provost marshal is a title given to a person in charge of a group of Military Police (MP). The title originated with an older term for MPs, '' provosts'', from the Old French (Modern French ). While a provost marshal is now usually a senior c ...

serving under

King Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his thi ...

. Valuable church silverware, which had been deposited with

Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank plc is a major British retail banking, retail and commercial bank with a significant presence across England and Wales. It has traditionally been regarded one of the "Big Four (banking)#England and Wales, Big Four" clearing house ...

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 ...

and subsequently lost, was rediscovered in 2015 at a storage facility near

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. Items included a communion cup (dated 1579), silver

flagon A flagon () is a large leather, metal, glass, plastic or ceramic vessel, used for storing and pouring drink, whether this be water, ale, or another liquid. They are generally not intended to be drunk from directly, like a cup. A flagon is typica ...

tankard (1737) and a silver plate (1738).

St Cadix's Priory

A small cell or priory was built by the side of Penpol Creek, today the site is referred to as "St Cadix's Priory" but it has also appeared as St Ciric, St Carroc, St Cadokys, St Carrett and St Karroc. There is some uncertainty as to which saint the priory was dedicated to; either 6th-century Celtic

Saint Cadoc Saint Cadoc or Cadog (; also Modern Welsh: Catawg or Catwg; born or before) was a 5th–6th-century Abbot of Llancarfan, near Cowbridge in Glamorgan, Wales, a monastery famous from the era of the Celtic church as a centre of learning, where I ...

or Cyricus son of Saint Julietta, who the parish church is dedicated to. Little remains of the priory today and a farmhouse was built on the site in 1710, but there are some remains of a crucifix and ecclesiastical stones dated at 1150 onwards. In 1100 the priory was granted to the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

Cluniac Cluny Abbey (; , formerly also ''Cluni'' or ''Clugny''; ) is a former Order of Saint Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Cluny, Saône-et-Loire, France. It was dedicated to Saint Peter, Saints Peter and Saint Paul, Paul. The abbey was constructed ...

Montacute Priory Montacute Priory was a Cluniac priory of the Benedictine order in Montacute, Somerset, England. History It was founded between 1078 and 1102 by William, Count of Mortain, in face of a threat that if he did not do so, the King would take the land ...

in Somerset by

William, Count of Mortain William of Mortain (bef. 1084–aft. 1140) was Count of Mortain and the second Earl of Cornwall of 2nd creation. Life William was the son of Robert, Count of Mortain, the half-brother of William I of England and Maud de Montgomery, daughter of R ...

. Before that a small cell or holy well had existed. It remained the priory's until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1536. For most of its time just one monk and prior lived there. Three priors are known: Robertus (1339), Wilhelmus Smythe (1385) and Laurence Castleton (1536). The cells' residents included Walter de Exeter who supposedly wrote a biography of

Guy of Warwick Guy of Warwick, or Gui de Warewic, is a legendary English hero of Romance popular in England and France from the 13th to 17th centuries, but now largely forgotten. The story of Sir Guy is considered by scholars to be part of the Matter of England ...

in 1301. After dissolution the freehold of the site was granted to Laurence and Dorothy Courtenay on 3 September 1545. They leased it to the Cavells who leased it to

Burchard Kranich Burchard Kranich (c. 1515–1578) (also known as Doctor Burcot) was a mining engineer and physician who came to England from Germany. He was involved in mining ventures in Derbyshire and Cornwall, and in assaying the black ore, thought to be gold- ...

a German silver smelter and adventurer. Kranich borrowed £500 from Mary Tudor, £150 from William Godolphin and more from several others to build a "melting house" in Lerryn which cost about £300 to build. Later he was lent £300 by

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

, who ordered the repair of the bridge in Lerryn. Between 1556 and 1583 at least 2,000 ounces of silver were smelted with ore coming from mines in Tregardoke,

Padstow Padstow (; ) is a town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town is situated on the west bank of the River Camel estuary, approximately northwest of Wadebridge, ...

, St Delion, Portysyke, Peran and St Columb. Kranich was arrested for his debts and held in the

Marshalsea The Marshalsea (1373–1842) was a notorious prison in Southwark, just south of the River Thames. Although it housed a variety of prisoners—including men accused of crimes at sea and political figures charged with sedition—it became known, ...

in London. He is credited with curing Queen Elizabeth I of smallpox.

Penpol

There are three hamlets named ''Penpol'' or ''Penpoll'' in the parish: ''Higher'', ''Middle'' and ''Lower Penpol''. The first known references to a ''Lord of Penpol'' are in 1224 and 1249. Higher and Lower Penpol are mentioned in a deed of 1375. In the 1839 Tithe map Higher and Middle Penpoll are sizable hamlets, but Lower Penpoll consists of just a cottage, the mill and a forge, today the hamlet has expanded with houses all the way up to Middle Penpol. Penpol Mill is mentioned in 1591 and it was rebuilt in 1794, today it is abandoned. The bridge across Penpol Creek was built in 1867, replacing a tidal ford. In the run-up to the

Battle of Lostwithiel The Battle of Lostwithiel took place over a 13-day period from 21 August to 2 September 1644, around the town of Lostwithiel and along the River Fowey valley in Cornwall during the First English Civil War. A Royalist army led by Charles I of E ...

, the ford at Penpol was seized by the Royalists on 14 August 1644.

Famous people

Buried within the churchyard is the British stage and film actor

Eric Portman Eric Harold Portman (13 July 1901 – 7 December 1969) was an English stage and film actor. He is probably best remembered for his roles in three films for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger during the 1940s. Early life Born in Halifax, ...

(1901 – 1969) who lived in Penpoll Cottage, St Veep. Also Captain

Robert Edwin Phillips Robert Edwin "Bob" Phillips Victoria Cross, VC (11 April 1895 – 23 September 1968) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and ...

VC (11 April 1895 – 23 September 1968) of the 13th Battalion, The Warwickshire Regiment who was awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

for an action at the River Hai,

Kut-el-Amara Kūt (), officially Al-Kut, also spelled Kutulamare, Kut al-Imara, or Kut Al Amara is a city in eastern Iraq, on the left bank of the Tigris River, about south east of Baghdad, and the capital of the Wasit Governorate. the estimated populatio ...

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

on 25 January 1917.

References

External links

Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for St Veep

St Veep Church

GENUKI website; St Veep
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Veep Villages in Cornwall Civil parishes in Cornwall