Truro Walk: City Centre【4K】

Located in the county of Cornwall, and 35 miles northeast of Land's End, is the city of Truro.

Geographically, Truro sits at the point where the rivers Allen, Kenwyn and the now disappeared Glasteinan converge to form the Truro River.

During the 12th century a castle was built in Truro by Richard de Lucy, Chief Justice of England to Henry II. By circa 1270 it had already fallen into disrepair, and nothing of it remains today, although the circumstances surrounding its fate remain a mystery.

By the 14th century Truro had become a thriving port, partially on account of its inland location which left it less vulnerable to foreign invaders than other towns nearer the coast. Furthermore, in 1305 Edward I granted Cornwall a Stannary Charter. Truro became a stannary town, whereby locally mined tin would be sent here to be verified as to its validity before it could be transported. Alongside Truro, other Cornish stannary towns included Lostwithiel, Bodmin, Liskeard and Helston. It wasn't until 1838 that this practice ended. Note that 'stannary' derives from Latin 'stannum', which is also the origin for the symbol 'Sn', denoting tin in the Periodic Table.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, Truro prospered following improved mining methods and high demand for tin. This is reflected in some of the architecture seen, particularly on Lemon Street at the start of the walk. This is named after William Lemon, manager of a tin smelting works near Penzance. The street has been described as having the 'finest examples of Georgian architecture west of Bath'.

At the top of Lemon Street, seen at the very start of the walk, is Lander's Monument. This is a memorial to Richard Lander. Born in Truro in 1804, Richard, along with his brother John, would discover the source of the Niger River in West Africa, and ascertain that its mouth is the Atlantic Ocean. In 1834 Richard died from an infected wound after being shot in the thigh by natives, just two days short of his 30th birthday. The monument was built in 1835, and predates both Nelson's Column in London and Grey's Monument in Newcastle upon Tyne.

In 1846 the West Cornwall Railway was founded to construct a railway line between Truro and Penzance, which was completed in 1852. In 1859 the current Truro Railway Station opened. This came just days after the opening of Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge over the River Tamar between Devon and Cornwall. Today the station is situated on the Cornish Main Line between Penzance and Plymouth, which in turn provides a direct route to London Paddington. Trains to London typically take around 4-and-a-half hours, or sometimes longer depending on stops. Truro Station is also the northern terminus of the Maritime Line linking to Falmouth on the south coast.

In 1877 city status was granted to Truro by Queen Victoria, and in 1880 work began on the construction of Truro Cathedral. It was designed by John Loughborough Pearson - a leading Gothic Revival architect. The cathedral was consecrated in 1887, however construction took until 1910 to reach completion. Pearson died in 1897 aged 80, however his son Frank took over the project. Truro Cathedral was the first Anglican cathedral to have been built on a new site in England since Salisbury Cathedral in 1220. Its distinct triple spire is one of only three such instances in the UK - the other two being Lichfield Cathedral and St Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh, although Lincoln Cathedral originally had three spires before one collapsed in a storm and the other two were removed for safety reasons. As Pearson worked on the conservation of Lincoln Cathedral, it is speculated that Truro Cathedral's design represents a smaller version of Lincoln Cathedral from when its spires were still intact.

In 2011 The Drummer Sculpture was unveiled on Lemon Quay by its creator Tim Shaw and Queen drummer Roger Taylor, who grew up in Truro. It represents Cornish identity and a place where 'the drum beats differently', according to Shaw.

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Filmed: 29th August 2023

Link to the walk on Google Maps: https://maps.app.goo.gl/iWRLWzxf1ktqF...

Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Lander's Monument
0:08 Lemon Street
5:38 Back Quay
6:48 Lemon Quay
7:57 Green Street
8:36 Quay Street
9:46 Princes Street
10:37 Boscawen Street
11:27 Duke Street
11:55 New Bridge Street
14:11 St Mary's Street
15:17 Old Bridge Street
17:25 St Clement Street
18:17 Wilkes Walk
20:28 Truro Cathedral
22:01 High Cross
24:06 Pydar Street
27:39 King Street
28:38 St Nicholas Street
29:11 Victoria Square
30:13 River Street