St Keverne

This pleasant inland village, set around a handsome square, is something of a focal point for this part of the Lizard Peninsula as it has all the main shops and facilities. Because of St Keverne’s elevated position, on a high plateau, many sailors used the spire of St Keverne’s Parish Church as a landmark to try and avoid The Manacles, but it couldn’t always guarantee their safety. The Manacles, just off the Lizard, with its submerged rocks has caught out even the most salty of sea dog. The name comes from the Cornish ‘maen eglos’, meaning ‘church rocks’. In the churchyard are some 400 graves of those who have fallen victim to the dangerous reef and, as well as a stone marking the graves of nearly 200 emigrants who drowned in 1855 on their way to Canada in The John, there is a large granite cross marking the mass grave of the 106 passengers and crew who lost their lives when The Mohegan foundered on the rocks in 1898. The Manacles are now very popular with divers due to the various shipwrecks. Porthkerris Cove, near St Keverne, is a dive site with easy access to the Manacles and there is a first class diving centre in the cove, which offers a full range of services including: air, nitrox, a dive shop, charter boats and a cafe.

The church, once voted the ‘Best Church to Visit’ in Britain, dates mainly from the 15th century and earlier, though the spire was rebuilt in 1770 after being struck by lightning. It is thought that a church of some kind has stood here since about AD600, when Celtic monks settled in the area.

Two Cornish rebellions, one in 1497 the other in 1547, have their roots in St Keverne. A statue commemorates the 500th anniversary of the Cornish Rebellion of 1497 and, back in the church, is a plaque in memory of the executed rebel leaders. At the head of the rebellion was Michael Joseph, the village blacksmith, protesting against the punitive taxes levied by Henry VII. The uprising was routed on its march to London and Joseph and the other protagonists were subsequently,hanged, drawn and quartered.

Less than a mile south of St Keverne, Roskilly’s Ice Cream and Organic Farm produces some of Cornwall’s best ice creams, available in 50-odd flavours. There is plenty to see and do here from watching daily milking to close-up encounters with cows, calves, donkeys, hens and ducks, along with learning about the farm’s history.