Fowey. pronounced "Foy", has a population of just 2,500 people. The town has listed 1,600 holiday rental properties. It is no wonder the local people are angry that they are priced out of buying a property and living in the area they were born.
So, yes a tiny town built on the steep west bank on the Fowey Estuary. It is a natural harbour that has contributed to a history that is filled with stories of battles, sea raids and piracy.
In the depths of autumn it is quiet with just a few people out and about, the summer season of tourists filling the streets and occupying the holiday rental properties, that in earlier times were lived in by local working Cornishmen, the fishermen, the tin miner, the quarryman the pirates and plunderers all long gone.
At one time, the harbour was one of the most important on the south coast, ships laden with cargoes of tin and china clay departed for Europe and warships set forth, to fight the good fight.
In 1347, forty seven ships set sail from the harbour to cross The Channel and take part in Edward III’s siege of Calais.
Due to the port being seen as both an important trading post and military hub, the harbour by decree was home to and defended by 160 archers and longbow men
What stories these tiny winding streets could tell.
Pirates and Privateers ( a privateer was just a pirate with a written letter of authority to plunder and raid foreign vessels and lands), were aplenty in the town and waters of Fowey.
“The Gallants of Fowey”, forever immortalised in a poem by the 19th century Cornish poet Henry Stokes, were real people, an infamous band of privateers who operated out of Fowey.
They were given licence to seize French ships during the Hundred Years War. The poem tells of all sorts of skirmishes the Gallants ran into with the Spaniards and Dutch as well as the French.
In 1457, sailing up the estuary a fleet of french marauders attacked Fowey.
A legendary six-week stand ensued in which the Gallants of Fowey defended and saved the town
Their heroism lives on, if only in name; The Fowey Gallants sailing cub was formed in 1972, it boasts a full annual sailing program, with a thriving junior section
And a well run sociable club where folk can come for food and drink whilst enjoying the riverside views with their families.
Daphne du Maurier. The author of such English Classics as Rebecca, Jamaica Inn and The Birds made her home in Fowey, her legacy lives on in the annual Daphne du Maurier Festival of Words and Music
She sells sea shells on the sea shore
Active in the late 18th century, John Carter and his brothers were Cornish smugglers, often described as "among the most famous of all the Cornish smugglers. John was given the nickname ‘King of Prussia’; as a child he always had to be ‘king’ when playing with his brothers. John kept the nickname because he became ‘king’ of the smuggling activity in Mount’s Bay, further down the coast.
Just like modern day, many people in Cornwall at the time felt that taxes on goods like brandy and tobacco were unfair.
So to them, there was nothing wrong with smuggling such items. To fellow Cornish men and women the Carter’s became heroes and were protected by the local community
Sadly we don't get to see the fascinating creatures of the deep
I shall allow you to snigger behind your blushes as you add your own smutty innuendo.
and I shall enjoy my frothy cofee
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