The Boathouse
Port Eliot is the ancestral home of the Eliot family, Earls of St Germans. The house has roots as ancient as the 5th century AD, making it one of the oldest buildings in continuous habitation in the UK. Excavations have revealed a late Iron Age glazed tiled floor thought to date to the late 3rd century.
Around AD 430 St Germanus of Auxerre founded a church here. That church grew in importance to become a bishop's seat and among the most important monastic sites in the south-west. The priory was established as an Augustinian monastery in 1161.
The monastery was dissolved by Henry VII in 1539, and parts of the monastic buildings were incorporated into the dwelling house that was built on the site. In the 18th century Port Eliot House was constructed around these medieval and earlier remains.
In the early 18th century, the Eliot family decided to create a park in keeping with their wealth and status. They dammed the estuary, diverting the watercourse, and built a winding drive two miles long to follow the water's edge. The drive winds through carefully designed parkland before you emerge to find a stunning view of the mansion side by side with St German's Priory.
In the late 18th century, the house was remodelled again by Sir John Soanes, who also restored the remains of the Priory beside the house, now St Germans Priory Church, which originally acted as a cathedral for the whole of Cornwall. Around the same time Humphry Repton was laying out the surrounding landscape gardens and park.
In the garden is a picturesque 18th century boathouse. The boathouse served as a working dock until the arrival of the railway in the 1860s made it redundant. Before the railway came to Port Eliot staff would have to undertake regular boat trips to Plymouth for household supplies.
Adapted from www.britanexpress.com/attractions
The Boathouse
Port Eliot is the ancestral home of the Eliot family, Earls of St Germans. The house has roots as ancient as the 5th century AD, making it one of the oldest buildings in continuous habitation in the UK. Excavations have revealed a late Iron Age glazed tiled floor thought to date to the late 3rd century.
Around AD 430 St Germanus of Auxerre founded a church here. That church grew in importance to become a bishop's seat and among the most important monastic sites in the south-west. The priory was established as an Augustinian monastery in 1161.
The monastery was dissolved by Henry VII in 1539, and parts of the monastic buildings were incorporated into the dwelling house that was built on the site. In the 18th century Port Eliot House was constructed around these medieval and earlier remains.
In the early 18th century, the Eliot family decided to create a park in keeping with their wealth and status. They dammed the estuary, diverting the watercourse, and built a winding drive two miles long to follow the water's edge. The drive winds through carefully designed parkland before you emerge to find a stunning view of the mansion side by side with St German's Priory.
In the late 18th century, the house was remodelled again by Sir John Soanes, who also restored the remains of the Priory beside the house, now St Germans Priory Church, which originally acted as a cathedral for the whole of Cornwall. Around the same time Humphry Repton was laying out the surrounding landscape gardens and park.
In the garden is a picturesque 18th century boathouse. The boathouse served as a working dock until the arrival of the railway in the 1860s made it redundant. Before the railway came to Port Eliot staff would have to undertake regular boat trips to Plymouth for household supplies.
Adapted from www.britanexpress.com/attractions