Cornwall lies at the south-west tip of Great Britain and is one of the UK's ancient Celtic nations. Although now a single county, its national borders once took in a major proportion of the neighbouring county of Devon. It is shown here on the map in black (click for larger image).

Celtic nations?

The Celts migrated to the UK sometime in the 4th and 5th centuries from mainland Europe and Scandinavia. However, they soon found themselves competing against successive invasions of Angles, Saxons, Vikings and Romans (to name just a few) and were gradually pushed towards the outer extremities of the UK, eventually settling in Scotland (blue), Wales (red), Ireland (green), the Isle of Man (purple) and Cornwall. They spoke variant forms of several Celtic languages but had no written language.

Cornwall is an isolated peninsula some 80-90 miles long, which is surrounded on three sides by the sea (click map for larger image showing main towns). It is separated from Devon by the River Tamar, which almost runs from coast to coast. The fact that Cornwall is virtually an island helped it to retain its independence for over a thousand years. However, it became the first Celtic enclave to be incorporated within the English state, resulting in centuries of political and cultural subjugation. By the year 1400, Cornwall was considered to be part of England by everyone except the Cornish. But despite several rebellions, it eventually lost its parliament and all but lost its language, known as Kernewek. People continued to speak the language until the late 1700s but, after that, it was only spoken as a second tongue after English.

Arms, Flags and Tartans

The Cornish Arms depicts a fisherman and a tin miner; representatives of the two industries that once dominated Cornwall. The bird is the Cornish Chough (pronounced 'chuff'). The shield carries 15 gold 'Bezants' on a black background. These are said to represent the Byzantine gold coins that were paid as ransom to the Saracens for the release of the Earl of Cornwall in the 9th century. The motto 'One and all' (or in Cornish, 'Onen hag oll'), is said to commemorate the voluntary efforts of the Cornish people to raise this ransom.

The Cornish flag is a white cross on a black background. It is known as the flag of St. Piran as Piran is the Patron Saint of Cornwall and also of tin miners (or ‘Tinners’). The colours represent the bright tin shining against the dark rock.

Cornwall even has a national tartan. Designed by E E Morton-Nance (registered as #1567), the Cornish tartan colours all have a special meaning: White on black for the flag of St Piran; Red for the beak and legs of the Cornish Chough; Blue for the sea that surrounds Cornwall; and Black and gold for the colours of the ancient Cornish kings.

Black and gold can still be seen on the shield of the Cornwall coat of arms. More commonly, it is seen as the colours of Cornwall's formidable rugby team: