Tywardreath

Tywardreath
Tywardreath Church
Tywardreath is located in Cornwall
Tywardreath
Tywardreath
Location within Cornwall
OS grid referenceSX084544
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townPAR
Postcode districtPL24
Dialling code01726
PoliceDevon and Cornwall
FireCornwall
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Cornwall
50°21′27″N 4°41′40″W / 50.3576°N 4.6945°W / 50.3576; -4.6945

Tywardreath (/ˈtwərˌdrɛθ/; Cornish: Ti War Dreth, meaning "House on the Beach" (or Strand)) is a small hilltop village on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, about 3 miles (5 km) north west of Fowey. It is located in a sheltered spot overlooking a silted up estuary opposite Par and near the beach of Par Sands. It is on the Saints' Way path.

Tywardreath was featured by Daphne du Maurier in her novel The House on the Strand. Although this was a fictional tale of drug-induced time-travel, the history and geography of the area was carefully researched by du Maurier, who lived in a house called Kilmarth (Cornish: Kilmergh, meaning horses' ridge), 1 mile (2 km) to the south. It also appears in her 1946 novel The King’s General.

The seal of the borough of Tywardreath was a Shield of Arms, a saltire between four fleurs-de-lis, with the legend "Tywardreath".[1] The arms are derived from those of the priory: the saltire for St Andrew, the patron of the priory and parish church; the fleur-de-lis for the French mother house at Angers.

Tywardreath was recorded in the Domesday Book (1086) when it was one of 28 manors held by Richard from Robert, Count of Mortain. There were 2 hides of land and land for 12 ploughs. One virgate of land was held by Richard with 4 ploughs and 7 serfs; 8 villeins and 18 smallholders had the rest of the land with 3 ploughs. There were 6 acres of woodland and 100 acres of pasture. The manor was valued at £2 though it had formerly been worth £4.[2]

Although the civil parish is shown under Tywardreath and Par, there is an electoral ward (which also includes Par) shown under the name of Tywardreath only. The population of this ward at the 2011 census was 4,897.[3]

  1. ^ Pascoe, W. H. (1979). A Cornish Armory. Padstow, Cornwall: Lodenek Press. p. 135. ISBN 0-902899-76-7.
  2. ^ Thorn, C. et al. (1979) Cornwall. Chichester: Phillimore; entry 5,3,8
  3. ^ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 15 February 2011.