Everything about Marazion totally explained
Marazion is a
civil parish and town in the
Penwith district of
Cornwall,
England,
UK. It lies on the shores of
Mount's Bay, two
miles east of
Penzance and is served by the
Great Western Railway. A causeway passable at low tide unites Marazion with the otherwise insular
St Michael's Mount.
The
church of St Hilary, destroyed by fire in
1853, had a very fine
spire, faithfully reproduced when the church was rebuilt. Unusual
archaeological interest attaches to the
churchyard. Its
inscribed stones date from the
fourth century, one being in honour of
Constantine the Great. Another has Cornish lettering which can no longer be deciphered. There are also
British and
Roman crosses.
History of Marazion
Marazion is one of the towns claiming to be
Britain's oldest town.
The charter attributed to
Robert, Count of Mortain granted lands and liberties to St Michael's Mount opposite Marazion and included a market on Thursdays. This appears to have been held from the first on the mainland. From it's probably derived the
Marghasbigan (Parvum Forum) of the earlier and the
Marghasyewe or
Marketjew (Forum Jovis) of the later charters. It may be added that a Jewish origin has been ascribed to the place from the name Marketjew.
It is certain that
Richard, Earl of Cornwall provided that the three fairs, on the two feasts of St Michael and at Mid-Lent, and the three markets which had hitherto been held by the priors of St Michael's Mount on land not their own at Marghasbighan, should in future be held on their own land at Marchadyou. He transferred in fact the fairs and markets from the
demesne lands of the Bloyous in Marazion to those of the prior.
To remedy the loss incurred by this measure Ralph Bloyou in
1331 procured for himself and his heirs a market on Mondays and a fair on the vigil, feast and morrow of St Andrew at Marghasyon. In Leland's time the market was held at Marhasdeythyow (Forum Jovis), and both Norden (
1582) and Carew (
1602) tell us that Marcajewe signifies the Thursday's market, which, whether etymologically sound or not, shows that the prior's market had prevailed over its rival. In 1595 Queen Elizabeth granted to Marazion a charter of incorporation. This ratified the grant of St Andrew's fair, provided for another on the Feast of St Barnabas and established a market on Saturdays.
The corporation was to consist of a mayor, eight aldermen and twelve capital burgesses. This corporation continued to administer the affairs of the borough until it was dissolved under the
Municipal Corporations Act 1835, when the property belonging to it was vested in charity commissioners. The chairman of the commissioners retains possession of the regalia. Of the fairs, only the Michaelmas fair has survived and all the markets have gone. It is frequently stated that Marazion had formerly the right of returning two members to parliament, but that owing to its inability to pay the members' expenses the right was lost.
Under the
Commonwealth an attempt was made to secure or recover the right, and two members are said to have been returned, but they were not allowed to take their seats. Remains of an ancient bronze furnace, discovered near the town, tend to prove that
tin smelting was practised here at an early period.
Marazion was once a flourishing town, owing its prosperity to the throng of pilgrims who came to visit St Michael's Mount. During the first half of the
16th century it was twice plundered; first by the French, and later by Cornish rebels. The rise and progress of the neighbouring borough of
Penzance in the
17th century marginalised Marazion.
Penwith is believed to be the last part of Cornwall to speak Cornish as a community language.
Dolly Pentreath, the last recorded speaker (but arguably not the very last) came from
Paul in Penwith. A year following the death of Dolly Pentreath, Barrington received a letter, written in Cornish and accompanied by an English translation, from a fisherman in
Mousehole named
William Bodinar stating that he knew of five people who could speak Cornish in that village alone. Barrington also speaks of a
John Nancarrow from
Marazion who was a native speaker and survived into the 1790s.
The
West Cornwall Railway opened a
Marazion railway station on
11 March 1852 and it developed into an important place for loading trains with produce from farms in the district. Although it has since closed, for many years it was famous four being the home to some old
Pullman carriages that were used as
camping coaches.
Marazion is now a thriving tourist resort with an active artists' community who produce and sell paintings and pottery at numerous art galleries.
Local Government
Following the restructure of local government in 1974 the Marazion parish regained its town status and right to elect a Mayor from the Marazion Town Council. As an historical oditity the civic regalia of the Mayor is still held by the Marazion Town Trust. As part of any Mayoral election in Marazion it's still a requirement for the Mayor-Elect to be appointed the Chairman of the town trust before the actual appointment can take place, this is reflected in the process of the Mayor choosing ceremony where 2 nominations take place for 2 separate offices.
Penwith District Council and
Cornwall County Council are now the principal local authorities in the area.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Marazion'.
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