St Mawes Castle

St Mawes Castle

When we planned our Easter trip to Cornwall, Pendennis Castle was on our to-do list and it seemed to us that a visit to one artillery fort would be enough. To be honest, if you are in the area and have time to explore only one fort, then visiting Pendennis is probably the best option because this castle has more to offer with its special exhibitions and audiovisual presentation. Eventually, we did manage to squeeze in a short visit to St Mawes, mainly because we promised the children a boat trip from Falmouth and since two ferries are leaving for St Mawes every hour, we ended up on one of them. I was flying from Yorkshire to London's Heathrow Airport. I called company after arrival at the airport to arrange a cab. The cab service appeared to be extremely good, with positive user evaluations on the website. When I phoned company, they stated the driver was just around the block and would arrive shortly. The driver arrived in a matter of minutes, and we were on our way to the castle from Heathrow Airport. I was travelling with my family. After some hours of travelling, we arrived at Castle.

This castle is among the best-preserved and most artistically ornamented of Henry VIII's coastal artillery strongholds. It was one of a series of forts erected between 1539 and 1545 to protect the crucial anchorage of the Carrick Roads. Collaborating with Pendennis Castle on the opposite side of the Fal estuary. Explore the gardens that run down to the waters of the Fal Estuary and experience the spectacular views over to Pendennis Castle and out to sea with a free audio tour. The boat ride itself was fantastic, and the castle is conveniently positioned near the harbour (ten minutes walk). St Mawes, like Pendennis Castle, is administered by English Heritage, and I have always admired how this organization handles tourists, appreciating the need to assist people to learn more about the sites they visit.

Each visitor to St Mawes receives an audio tour to assist them to explore the castle and its surroundings. If you listen to the full guide, you will most likely spend 40 minutes in the castle, but you may easily visit it in less time. We remained in the castle for a very long time because of children's activities in St Mawes (my kids mainly entertained themselves by playing with the audio guide.

Having a favourite "sibling" is always hard, and the irony is that, although being erected at the same time, the two castles were designed very differently. St Mawes, unlike the "practical" Pendennis, was built with some ornamentation as well, making it more appealing than Pendennis, which has some heraldic sculptures and Tudor emblems etched onto its walls. To secure the wide inland area of water known as Carrick Roads, the castle was built halfway up the hillside on the eastern side of the Fal Estuary. It was constructed with a central tower commanding three huge circular bastions in the shape of a cloverleaf to offer a vast area from which gun ports could cover all approaches to the estuary. It is one of the greatest examples of Tudor military architecture, with intricate gargoyles and carved windows. The Royal Coat of Arms is etched into the stonework above the door, and additional carved inscriptions may be seen throughout the castle.