FOWEY

The estuary town of Fowey, which lies at the mouth of a river of the same name, saw a certain amount of action during the Civil War, when the peninsula surrounding the largely Royalist town was occupied by a Parliamentarian army. King Charles I had a close shave later on the opposite side of the river, when this army came to blows with a Royalist army. Going further back in time, just outside Fowey, near Readymoney Cove, our old friend Henry VIII built a castle in 1536 called St Catherine’s Castle to protect the area from invasion by the French. Visitors can learn more about the town's history at the Fowey Museum.

Back in the 21st century, the town has an upmarket air about it, with its liberal sprinkling of yachts and its elegant, solid old Cornish houses surrounding the harbour and clinging to the wooded slopes behind the town centre. There are a variety of boat trips available during the summer months. The town has long proved a popular base for luminaries such as writers, and more recently television personalities, for example Kenneth Grahame of Wind In The Willows fame, and longtime stalwarts of British daytime TV Richard and Judy.

For a list of events in Fowey, see here.

Live webcam.

Map of the area.

Fowey Harbour from Polruan - geograph.org.uk - 535297. Photo by Tony Atkin, via Wikimedia Commons.