If you have never been to Tintagel Castle, it is very worth a visit. It is an hour from the Caravan but it's a great day our, especially if you don't have small children tagging along.
ADDRESS
Castle Road, Tintagel, Cornwall, PL34 0HE.
You need to book tickets in advance, even if you are a English Heritage member who can go for free.
It's open 10am-6pm
History:
The site of Tintagel Castle has been inhabited at least since the late Roman period, and a community flourished here in the 5th to 7th centuries. In the 12th century Tintagel gained literary fame when Geoffrey of Monmouth named it as the place where King Arthur was conceived. These Arthurian associations may have inspired the fabulously rich Richard, Earl of Cornwall, to build a castle at Tintagel in the 1230s, and the enduring legend still ensures Tintagel’s international renown.
The Arthur legend
After the mid-7th century there is little evidence of activity on the headland for over 500 years. In about 1138 Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain gave the figure of King Arthur, the legendary ruler of Britain, Ireland and large parts of continental Europe, its international fame.
The History contains the earliest written mention of Tintagel in the tale of how Arthur was conceived there by Uther Pendragon, King of Britain, the result of his magically assisted seduction of Queen Igerna (Igraine), wife of Duke Gorlois of Cornwall.
The reasons for Geoffrey’s use of Tintagel can only be guessed. He associated Arthur closely with Cornwall, and Cornish legend may have preserved a folk memory of the earlier importance of the site, perhaps as a stronghold of the rulers of Cornwall. Geoffrey described its dramatic physical attributes, evidently appreciating its romantic nature.
ADDRESS
Castle Road, Tintagel, Cornwall, PL34 0HE.
You need to book tickets in advance, even if you are a English Heritage member who can go for free.
It's open 10am-6pm
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