D H LAWRENCE AND HIS SPAT WITH THE CORNISH: ZENNOR

Normally when a famous author takes up residence in Cornwall the story is one of idyllic days spent writing while soaking up the beautiful scenery and, hopefully, earning the affection and respect of the locals.  When D. H. Lawrence took up residence in Zennor in the wilds of the far west of Cornwall, however, the outcome was somewhat different.  The problems arose from the fact that the stay took place during the First World War, and Lawrence’s wife Frieda was German.  The locals were convinced that the couple were German spies, and they were eventually hounded out on the orders of the police.  To be fair to the locals, Lawrence had been very cruel in his remarks about the Cornish, describing them as “insects gone cold” and declaring that “they ought all to die”.  Not the best way to endear himself with his new neighbours.

The couple started out staying in the local pub, the Tinners Arms, but they later moved to a property in a tiny hamlet called Higher Tregerthen, near Zennnor, which they rented for the princely sum of five pounds a year.  The marriage was reportedly a rocky one, and the cottage was the scene of some fiery arguments, with Lawrence chasing Frieda around the cottage during one of their fights, and with her smashing a plate over his head on another occasion.  At the time of his stay Lawrence was writing Women In Love, published in 1920 and a sequel to his earlier novel The Rainbow. 

The pine, the pub sign and the church - Zennor - geograph.org.uk - 1807780. Photo by Sarah Smith, via Wikimedia Commons

The Tinners Arms is still in business today, providing a welcome respite for walkers roaming this windswept landscape, and  it is so called because this was classic mining country when mining was still a thing around here.  Reminders of that time remain all around the area in the form of ruined engine houses and other mining paraphernalia (a landscape which would be familiar to fans of Poldark).  Before becoming a fully-fledged pub, during the 13^th century, the building was used to house some stonemasons working on the local church, St Senara’s, which gives the village its name.  Higher Tregerthen lies close to the B3306, which links St Ives and St Just and is generally regarded as one of the most spectacular roads in the country.

Large house beside the B3306 at Higher Tregerthen -  geograph.ork.uk - 1617215.  Photo by Rod Allday, via Wikimedia Commons.

Map of the area.