Penzance, Cornwall
Penzance
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 A panorama of Penzance |
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 Penzance
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| Penzance shown within Cornwall | |
| Population | 21,200 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | SW475306 |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | PENZANCE |
| Postcode district | TR18 |
| Dialling code | 01736 |
| Police | Devon and Cornwall |
| Fire | Cornwall |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | www.penzancetowncouncil.co.uk |
Penzance (/pɛnˈzæns/; Cornish: Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in Cornwall, in England, United Kingdom. It is well known for being the most westerly major town in Cornwall. and is about 75 miles (121 km) west of Plymouth and 300 miles (480 km) west-southwest of London. Situated in the shelter of Mount's Bay, the town faces south-east onto the English Channel, is bordered to the west by the fishing port of Newlyn, to the north by the civil parish of Madron and to the east by the civil parish of Ludgvan.
The civil parish includes the town of Newlyn and the villages of Mousehole, Paul, Gulval and Heamoor.
Granted various royal charters from 1512 onwards and incorporated in 1614, it has a population of 21,200 (2011 census).
Penzance (Pennsans), or "holy headland" in the Cornish language, is a reference to the location of a chapel nowadays called St Anthony's that is said to have stood over a thousand years ago on the headland to the west of what became Penzance Harbour. There are no early documents mentioning an actual dedication to St Anthony which seems to depend entirely on tradition and may be groundless. The only remaining object from this chapel is a carved figure, now largely eroded, known as "St Raffidy" which can be found in the churchyard of the parish church of St Mary's near the original site of the chapel. Until the 1930s this history was also reflected in the choice of symbol for the town, the severed "holy head" of St John the Baptist. It can still be seen on the civic regalia of the Mayor of Penzance and on several important landmarks in the town.
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