The Parochial History of Cornwall/Volume 1/St Ewe
ST. EWE.
HALS.
Alias Hewa, or Hevh, is situate in the hundred of Powdre, and hath upon the north and east, St. Mewan and Mevagissey; south, Geran; west, Cuby, and St. Michael Caryhayes.
At the time of the Norman Conquest, this district was taxed under the jurisdiction of Goran, Caryhayes; or is rather that Nantvat mentioned in Cornwall in the Domesday Book, 1087, which signifies in Cornish at the side of the valley, near some high lands, as perhaps this church is situate.
In the Inquisition of the Bishops of Lincoln and Winchester, 1294, into the value of Cornish benefices, Ecclesia de Sancti Ewe in Decanatu de Powdre, was valued viiil. In Wolsey's Inquisition, 1521, by the name of Ewa, 21l. The patronage formerly, I take it, in the Prior of Tywardreth; now in St. Aubyn, Tredinham, et aliis. The Incumbent, May or Pineck; and the parish rated to the 4s. per pound Land Tax for one year, 1696, 279l. 16s. But, when all that is said or done in this matter, St. Tue may be a corruption of St. Hugh, the tutelar guardian and patron of this church's name; who, in all probability, was either St. Hugh, the twenty-sixth Bishop of Lincoln, 1186, who died 1203, or St. Hugh who was also born and lived at Lincoln, as Copgrave out of Matthew Paris informs us; who was stolen from his parents at nine years old by the barbarous and bloody Jews (first brought and tolerated in England by William the Conqueror), who, in derision of Christ and Christianity, in a private place, was by them inhumanly crucified, the 7th of July, 1255. Nevertheless, this fact was not so secretly performed but that at length it came to the magistrates' ears, who thereupon apprehended the malefactors, and so ordered their indictment that severe justice was done upon all those offenders, that could be discovered to have had a hand in shedding the blood of this innocent youth. But, alas! this punishment of part of them did neither fully content or satisfy the prince or people at that time; for soon after King Henry the Third, by proclamation, set out all Jews in his dominions at a certain rent to such as would poll and rifle them, and amongst others to his brother Richard King of the Romans; who, after he had plundered their estates, committed their bodies as his slaves, to labour in his tin-mines of Cornwall; the memory of whose workings is still preserved in the names of several tin-works, called Towle Sarasin, and corruptly Attall Saracen, i.e. the refuse or outcast of the Saracens; that is to say, of those Jews descended from Sarah and Abraham. Other works were called Whele Etherson, the Jews' Works, or Unbelievers' Works, in Cornish.
But, alas! this matter did not rest here; for King Edward the First, out of an abhorrence of them for the aforesaid crime, and for that they were accused of clipping and corrupting the sterling money of the kingdom, caused two hundred and ninety-seven of them to be executed on the gallows, and the remainder of them by public proclamation banished out of this land, and all their goods and chattels confiscated to his use, after they had been in England two-hundred and twenty-three years. Lastly, Copgrave further assures us, who lived tempore Edward the Fourth, that at the shrine of this St. Hugh at Lincoln, divers supernatural facts or miracles were done; for which reason he was put into the Catalogue of Roman Saints. Hugh, ugh, in British-Cornish, is a matter or thing high, large, and lofty.
In this parish is the barton and manor of Lan-hadarn, alias Lanhaddarne, alias Lanhadden, alias Lansladarne, the thieves' or robbers' place.
Which place gave name and original to an old family of gentlemen, from thence surnamed de Lanhaddarne; of which family was Serlo de Lanhaddarne, called by writ of summons to Parliament as a Baron tempore Edward the First or Second: of whose posterity Serlo de Lanhaddarne, 3 Henry IV. held in this place Guran and Lantine, by the tenure of knight service, one fee and a half of lands; whose issue male failing in Henry the Sixth's days, he left only two daughters, that became his heirs, the one married to Sir John Arundel, of Lanherne, Knight, the other to Sir John Arundel, Knight, of Trerice; in whose issue the name, blood, and estate of those gentlemen is terminated; which was no small augmentation of the wealth and revenues of those Arundels; and as the present possessor of this lordship, Sir John Arundel, of Lanherne, Knight, hath for many years made of his toll-tin out of the wastrel lands thereof at Tolgoath above fifteen hundred pounds per annum; so in like manner the Lord Arundel of Trerice, out of the manor of Allett in Kenwen, at a place called the Garrows, parcel of those Lanhaddarns' lands, hath had considerable benefit from an ancient lead-mine there, out of which divers thousand pounds' worth of lead and silver have been extracted. (See Kenwen.)
Treg-on-an, in this parish, i.e. the dwelling on the valley or on the level valley, is the seat of Sir Joseph Tredinham, Knight, that married the daughter of Sir Edward Seymour, of Berry Pomeroye, in Devon, Bart. His father, an attorney-at-law, married the daughter of Molesworth, of Pencarrow, Esq.
Sir Joseph Tredingham succeeded to his estate, upon the issueless decease of his elder brother, Sir William Tredingham, Knight; and had issue by ——— Seymour, John Tredinham, Esq. Member of Parliament for St. Mawes, that married ——— Jones, of Wales, as I take it, but died without issue by a fall from his coachbox; and also two daughters, the eldest married to John Nicholls, of Trewane, Esq. the other to Francis Scobell, Esq. Member of Parliament for Mitchell, now in possession of this lordship, and all other Sir Joseph's lands, greatly encumbered with debts.
Hal-liggon, in this parish, is the dwelling of Sir John Tremayne, Knight, serjeant-at-law, who married, but died without issue. His father, Colonel Lewis Tremayne, married ——— Carew, of Penwarne, by whom also he had issue ——— Tremayne, Clerk, Vicar of St. Austell, whose son by ——— Jagoe, ——— Tremayne, Esq. is now in possession of this barton and manor, who married Clotworthy's heir. Originally this family was descended from the Tremaynes of Collacomb, in Devon (for which see Mabe).
Tre-vethick, alias Trevithick, in this parish, i.e. the farmer, rustic, or husbandman's town, is the dwelling of John Hickes, Esq. Commissioner for the Peace and Taxes, and sometime Member of Parliament for Fowey, who married ———; his father an attorney-at-law.
This gentleman's father came to an untimely death by means of an unskilful nurse that attended him in his sickness, who being prescribed a medicine by the physician, wherein was to be compounded, amongst others, (the herb) mercury, which the woman not understanding, bought of the apothecary the poisonous drug mercury, or crocus metolorum, instead thereof, which being administered to him soon caused his death.
In like manner a son of his, named Stephen Hickes, a youth of about eighteen years of age, at school with Mr. Halsey at Merther, carrying about a birding-gun charged with powder and shot in his hand, the gun accidentally went off at such time as the mouth thereof was opposite to his body, which shot him dead through the breast and heart, to the grief of all that knew him.
Tre-luick, alias Tre-luige, in this parish, signifies the lake or river of Water town, or the town whose lands are situate upon some river or bosom of waters, is the dwelling of John Archer, Gent, that married Addis; his father ——— Archer, Clerk, Vicar of Manaccan, married Sweet.
This I take to be that place taxed in the Domesday Book, 1087, as the voke lands of some manor, by the name of Treluwe, or else Treluick, in St. Allen parish.
TONKIN.
This parish is dedicated to St. Eva or Ewe, not from our grandmother Eve. It is a rectory, and in the gift of Sir John St. Aubyn and Dr. John Hawkins, from the Tredinhams.
Various manors are situated in this parish. Pelrew, i.e. the black park, includes two bartons, distinguished by the names of Trevelisick Wartha and Trevalisick Wallas, that is, the higher and lower, and belong to William Seccombe, Gent, who gives for his arms, Argent, a fess Gules between three lions rampant Sable.
Adjoining to these lands is Trelisick; for the meaning of which see St. Erth, a part of the said manor, but the property of Mr. Tremayne.
The manor of Precays. This being part of the possessions of Sir Henry Bodrigan, was on his attainder inter alia given by Henry the Seventh to Sir Richard Edgecumbe, Comptroller of his household, in whose posterity it now continues; the Hon. Richard Edgecumbe being the present lord of this manor.
To speak now of the most noted places, the first we come to, and which joins with Trelisick in Tregonan, that is, the town on the downs, formerly the property of the Tredenhams; but on the death of John Tredenham, Esq. at Westminster, December the 25th, 1710, a gentleman of very bright parts and of great loyalty, which he often shewed in Parliament, this barton came to his second sister, Mary, the wife of Francis Scobell, esq. who makes this place his residence.
Next the manor of Treworick, that is, the town on the river, called in Domesday Book Treworoc, was one of the manors given by William the Conqueror to Robert Earl of Morton. This was also a part of the property forfeited by Sir Henry Bodrigan, and given to Sir Richard Edgecumbe.
The manor of St. Ewe or Eva, so called from the name of the parish. The church and glebe being taken out of it, and the advowson being still appurtenant, was anciently the inheritance of the family of Coleshul. Sir John Coleshul, slain at the battle of Agincourt, left a son of the same name, Sir John Coleshul, Sheriff of Cornwall the 17th Henry VI. and the 7th Edward IV. who dying without issue his sister Joan, married to Sir Remfry Arundel, became his heir.
Sir John St. Aubyn possesses one fifth and one sixtieth;, or thirteen sixtieths of this property; the remaining parts came through different hands at last to Sir John Tredenham of Tregoran, and were sold, with the greatest part of the Tredenham estates, to Francis Scobell, Esq. in 1727 so that John Hawkins, of Pennannce, D.D. and Sir John St. Aubyn, are the actual proprietors.
Not far from the church, as the name signifies, a tenement called Lanewa, lately the seat, under the said lords, of George Slade, Gent, till he removed to Trevisick, in St. Austell.
The manor of Heligon was anciently the inheritance of the Whitleighs, of Efford, in Devonshire. Richard Whitleigh, Esq. had two daughters and heirs, Joanna, married to Richard Hals, of Kenedon, in Devonshire, Esq. and Margaret to Roger Granville, Esq. of Stow, between whom this and many more manors were divided. Roger and Margaret Granville gave their part of this manor to their third son, Degorie Granville, of Penheale, Esq. and in the 28th year of Henry the Eighth John Hals, of Efford, and his son Richard Hals, sold their half of the manor to Sampson Tremayne, senior, of St. Ewe: and,. on the 8th of May, in the 10th year of Queen Elizabeth, Richard Granville, of Penhele, sold the other half to the said Sampson Tremayne, and the whole is now enjoyed by his descendant John Tremayne, who married in 1735 Grace, the youngest daughter, and in a manner sole heiress, of Henry Hawkins, of St. Austel, attorney-at-law.
Sir John Tremayne, serjeant-at-law, built the present house, in addition to some rooms of an old house in the same place. Those places, called Kestell, that is, castle, belong to the manor. Kestell Wartha, the Middle Castle, and Kestel Wallas, but why so named I cannot learn, there not being the least remains of any fortification. Kestell Wartha, or the higher castle, was for a time the residence of Lewis Tremayne, Esq. during the life of his father. This gentleman, great-grandfather of Mr. John Tremayne, the present possessor, was then a lieutenant-colonel under King Charles the First, and a very stout honest man.
The manor of Coran is now become a part of the manor of Pentnar, in Mevassary, the lord of which is the Hon. John Roberts.
Lanhedrar, the seat of thieves, belonged to Robert Earl of Morton. Serlo de Lanhedrar, of this place, had summons as a Baron, and also to attend the King beyond the seas, 25th Edward the First.
Lower Lanhedrar was the seat by lease under the Arundels, of Thomas Maunder, Gent, who left three daughters his coheirs: Mary married to Kenwood, Priscilla to John Wolridge, of Gorminick, the third to John Williams, who lived at Tregenna.
To the northward of Lanhedrar, is Trelean, memorable, or rather infamous, for having been the birthplace of that trumpeter of rebellion Hugh Peters, as the late Mr. Lewis Tremayne has often assured me.
Next to this is Rosecorla, that is, the valley of the sheepfold, lately the seat, in lease too from the Arundels, of Edward Maunder, Gent.
Next is Trelewick. This seems to have been anciently a manor of itself, although long since disfranchised. It is now the seat of William Archer, a minor. His father, John Archer, Esq. married ——— Adis, of Plymouth. The arms of Archer are, Sable, a chevron engrailed between three sheens (i.e. spear-heads) Or.
The manor of Tregian gave name to the noted family of Tregian, and was their chief seat till they removed to Golden in Probus, when the ancient seat fell into decay, so that no traces are now left. This, with the rest of Mr. Tregian's great estate, was forfeited, as will be stated under Probus.
Pensiquillis, the head of the dry copes, or the dry hill of wood, was the last seat of the Penkevills, in this county; where they retired after they had sold off the greatest of their considerable estates therein. The last heir-male of this ancient family, Benjamin Penkivill, Esq. died here unmarried, of the smallpox, the 21st of November, 1699, leaving his six sisters co-heirs.
To the north of this place is Lithony, commonly Luny, and is the modern seat of the Mohuns. Warwick Mohun, Esq. on his marriage with ———, daughter of ——— Adis, Esq. built a house here in his father's lifetime, where he resided till his death, which happened on the road to London in October 1736.
To the south is Borew, the bleak dwelling, but why so called I cannot guess. This was formerly the seat of Cruffs, on lease from the Arundels.
And next to that is Tregenno, the town of the mouth or entrance, as I believe from the situation of its chief place just by the downs. This manor was for several generations the seat, on lease under the Arundels, of the family of Robins; the last of which, Stephen Robins, resided for the most part in St. Winnow. It has since been the dwelling of Richard Randyl, Gent, whose arms are. Gules, on a cross Argent, three mullets pierced Sable.
Further south lies Levalra, where lived Hugh Kenwood, Gent.; but, on his decease in 1733, the place was sold.
To the north of Tregenno is the manor of Penstruan, that is, the head of the springs. This was a part of Sir Henry Rodrigan's forfeited estate, and came by grant to the Edgecumbes.
I now come to the church of St. Ewe, which consists of a nave, a south aile, a vestry to the north, and a cross aile, At the western end is a square tower, with a steeple on the top, in which are three bells. Some of the windows have painted glass; in one, an angel holds in his hands an escutcheon, charged, Azure, on a fess Sable, three chevronels sideways of the Field. The church plate is very handsome. On the flaggon is inscribed:
Jacobus Robins, de Tregennoe, Arm.
nuper expirans
ex voto legavit.
On the cup: Εις Ευχαρισταν.
In the north-west corner of the churchyard is a rough altar tomb, without an inscription visible at present, but tradition says it had formerly the following:
Here lies Parson Hugh,
The famous Atwell, Rector of St. Ewe.
The church is built low, and at one end of the parish. It had formerly but a low wooden cover for two bells; but the parishioners have taken that down, and are this present year, 1732, erecting a handsome square tower, at their own sole charge, wherein they design to have a ring of three bells.
In the nave, against the wall, is a small monument with this inscription:
M'æ Sm.
Roberti Quarme, Genosi,
ob. ximo Ap. anno Domi m.dccviii.
ætatis suæ lxxii.
Patri suo charissimo filius natu et amore maximus
Gualterus, apud Falmo in hoc Comtu postea residens,
sibiq. vivo, et suis
ponendum curavit.
Ad Lectorem Monitio.
Non Ambrosius, non Augustinus, non Johanes Chrysostomus,
Nec Petrus, nec Paulus, nec facundus Apollos,[1]
Nec Divus ipse noster Salvator Jesus:
Num tu Viator omnibus?
Deo placere cura, et valeto.
Arms, Barry lozengy Argent and Gules, Counter-changed. Crest, a tiger passant Proper.
THE EDITOR.
St. Ewe has to lament the loss of all the gentlemen's families, with the exception of one, which are stated to have resided there in former times; but that one may well compensate for the absence of all the others.
Mr. John Tremayne, who married Grace, the youngest daughter of Mr. Henry Hawkins, of St. Austell, had two sons, and a daughter married to Mr. Charles Rashleigh, of Desporth, as has been noticed under St. Austel. The eldest son, Lewis, died in the prime of life, when the second son, who had taken orders, became the heir of his family.
The Rev. Henry Hawkins Tremayne married Harriet, daughter and coheir of John Hearle, Esq. of Penryn, and of her mother heiress of the Paynters of St. Erth. They have left an only son, John Hearle Tremayne, married to Caroline, daughter of the late Sir William Lemon.
It is impossible to say too much in praise of the late Mr. Henry Hawkins Tremayne: possessed of good abilities, of a sound understanding, of practical knowledge of business, and of the utmost kindness of heart, he became the father of his neighbourhood, reconciling all disputes, adjusting all differences, and tempering the administration of justice with lenity and forbearance. So high and so extensive was the reputation of Mr. Tremayne throughout the whole county, that his son, buoyant on the father's virtues, and before opportunities were afforded for displaying his own, passed by an unanimous election into the high station of representative for Cornwall; but experience soon proved that Mr. John Hearle Tremayne wanted no assistance from hereditary claims to make him worthy of that, or of any other distinction. And the Editor takes this opportunity of repeating what he had the honour of addressing to a county meeting, previously to Mr. Tremayne's declaration of not allowing himself to be elected for the sixth time, to avoid the embroilment of a contest:
"I have had the happiness of witnessing Mr. Tremayne's conduct in Parliament for twenty years; and knowing the high estimation in which he is held by all parties, and by all sides of the House of Commons, I venture to assert that Cornwall would fall in public opinion if Mr. Tremayne were not again returned, let his successor be who he may"
The parish of St. Ewe measures 5,085 statute acres.
| Annual value of the Real Property, as returned to Parliament in 1815 | £. 4,685 |
s. 0 |
d. 0 |
| Poor Rate in 1831 | 1211 | 8 | 0 |
| Population,— | in 1801, 1176 |
in 1811, 1125 |
in 1821, 1663 |
in 1831, 1699 |
giving an increase of 4412 per cent. in 30 years.
Present Rector, the Rev. John Cregoe, instituted in 1785.
THE GEOLOGY, BY DR. BOASE.
Dr. Boase observes on the geology of this parish, that it has the same geological structure as the contiguous parishes of Creed and Cornelly.
On the parish of Cornelly Dr. Boase states that the prevailing rock is a fissile blue slate; that it probably contains beds of massive lamellar rocks; and that all belong to the calcareous series.
P.S. It should have been noticed that the late Mr. Tremayne greatly improved the house built at Heligon by Serjeant Tremayne; that his son has carried the improvements still further, and rendered the whole place one of the finest in Cornwall.
END OF VOL I.
J. B. NICHOLS AND SON, 25, PARLIAMENT STREET.