Prayer Book Rebellion - 8 June 2016

The memorial stone at the bottom of Quay Hill, Penryn is probably passed by hundreds of people a day but a pause to read it led to a fascinating insight into the history of Cornwall. Cornwall had been a troubled province with strong anti-English feelings in an England which was very different in the 15th century. Two uprisings had taken place in 1497. The Cornish and their leaders did not fare well.

The Prayer Book Rebellion took place in 1549 and centred around the introduction of the Book of Common Prayer which was also hugely unpopular elsewhere. The stone also references the 'loss' of Glasney College which was destroyed in 1548 in a manner similar to the destruction during the earlier dissolution of the monasteries. At the time of these events, Edward VI was on the throne.

The information on the modern plaque (lower right), which is adjacent to the memorial, is, I think, a little misleading in referencing the 'Cornish Rebellion Stone'. The stone featured here marks specifically the Prayer Book Rebellion and the events which led to it.

Prayer Book Rebellion Collage