Village associated with the Cornish Anthem
Pelynt is a civil parish and village twenty miles west of Plymouth and four miles west-north-west of Looe on the B3359. Pelynt had a population of around 1,124 at the 2001 census which increased to 1,296 at the 2011 census.
The manor of Pelynt is mentioned in the 1086 Domesday Book when it was valued much higher than Looe; it was held by Algar from Robert, Count of Mortain.
The parish church is dedicated to St. Nonna and built in the Perpendicular style. In about 1680, one of the arcades was remodelled in Tuscan Doric style. The tower is of the 14th century, earlier than the rest of the church. There are a number of interesting memorials including that to Bishop Jonathan Trelawny, whose pastoral staff is preserved in the church. Other notable members of the locally resident Trelawny family are also commemorated. In 1882 the south wall, Trelawny aisle, porch and vestry were restored at a cost of £1350, The church was re-opened on 12th October 1882.
The village has a school, founded in 1882, and a 16th-century inn, The Jubilee Inn. The first mention of a post office in Pelynt was in May 1852, when a type of postmark known as an undated circle was issued. Details of some of the people who have run the post office, including William Churchill (1856), Harriet Andrews (1910) and Samuel Harvey (from 1929) appeared in a book published in 1988.
The parish contains several historic estates including: Trelawny (modern: Trelawne) long the seat of the Trelawny family, later Trelawny baronets, one of the most eminent of Cornish gentry families.
Sir Jonathan Trelawny (1650-1721), 3rd Baronet of Trelawny, Bishop of Bristol, Exeter and Winchester. The hero of the Cornwall's National Anthem - "Song of the Western Men". He purchased the manor of Trelawny from the Crown, and moved his residence to there from Menheniot in 1600.
Eliza Fenwick (1767-1840), writer, was born in Pelynt.
Seven sons of the Reverend Canon William Shuckforth Grigson M.A. (1845-1930) and Mary Beatrice Boldero (1863-1943) were born in the vicarage; five died in the two world wars. They included:
Geoffrey Grigson (1905-1985), poet and author of Freedom of the Parish in 1954.
John Grigson (1893-1943), aviator, died in an air crash.
Wilfrid Grigson (1896-1948), soldier and civil servant.
Liskeard Looe Polperro Trelawny Manor