Bodmin

Bodmin was once the county town of Cornwall and the only town in Cornwall entered in the Domesday Book that was commissioned by William the Conqueror.

Co-incidentally, the Domesday Book was actually held at Bodmin Gaol in the First World War.

The name Bodmin is derived from the Cornish ‘Bod" and "meneghy."  Bod means abode or dwelling and meneghy means of the monks.

The prior was closed by Henry the eight in 1538 and all that remains today is fishpond (now know as Priory Pond).

Bodmin became an important place of trade as it lay on the Saint's Way, a route taken from the North and South coasts of Cornwall between the rivers Fowey and Camel.

In the Iron Age, the Celts built a hill fort just outside of Bodmin.  This hill fort is currently called Castle Canyke little of which remains apart from some earthwork, a ditch and bank.  The photograph shows a view across the northwest quadrant of Castle Canyke toward Gilbert monument atop Beacon Hill.  The monument is some 144 feet tall and was erected in memory of Sir Walter Raleigh Gilbert to recognise his service in India.  In 1994, the Beacon was declared as a Local Nature Reserve.

The largest parish church in Cornwall is call St. Petroc's and is located in Bodmin.  It was erected over three years from 1469 with money donated by the people of the town.  In the nineteenth century, it was re-built.

The Gaol was constructed in 1776 with a number of executions, by hanging, occurred through to the last hanging in 1992.  The one hanging that still draws the most debate is that of Matthew Weeks.  He was hung for the killing of Charlotte Dymond on Bodmin Moor in 1844.  A memorial stone was laid at Roughtor Ford in her memory, close to the place she was murdered.  She was laid to rest in Davidstow churchyard.

During the Second World War, Bodmin was station to a large number of servicemen (mainly American) in preparation for the D-Day landings.

Places of interest in and around Bodmin:

• The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry Museum.
• Eye Well - Reputed to have beneficial affects for diseases of the eye.
• Lanhydrock - A late Victorian country house now owned by the National Trust and was used as a film location for the 1993 version of The Three Musketeers and the 1996 version of Twelfth Night.
• Bodmin and Wenford Steam Railway
• Carnglaze Caverns - Was once a slate mine and features three caverns.  One of which is used to stage concerts.
• Bodmin Plant & Herb Nursery.

Famous people from Bodmin include:

• The English watchmaker, John Arnold, who developed the escapement and balance spring mechanisms.
• William Clift - Naturalist
• Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch - Mostly know for the "Oxford Book of English Verse 1250 - 1900."
• William Robert Hicks - nineteenth century humorist and superintendent of the Cornwall county lunatic asylum.

The picture used in this article is (c) Copyright Phil Williams and licensed for reuse under the Creative Commons Licence.

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