Legends of Giants in Cornwall, England

Bedruthan Steps Beach on Cornwall's Atlantic Coast

Sep 2, 2009

One of the top 50 British beaches, the Bedruthan Steps and its huge slate outcrops are steeped in legend.

Legends of giants abound in Cornwall. “It is the tradition of the country that a much larger race of men stalked over this ground”, writes J. T. Blight in 1861: the vibrations of their laughter shook the cliffs, their footprints marked the solid rocks, they hurled large stones, tossed them in games of quoits, arranged them in peculiar ways, or in the case of the Bedruthan Steps used them as stepping stones.

Bedruthan Beach

On Cornwall’s Atlantic Coast, 6 miles SW of Padstow, the Bedruthan Steps offer spectacular clifftop views and a beach over a mile long at low tide, interspersed with huge slate outcrops. Thanks to the National Trust which has built steps down the steep face of the cliff, the Bedruthan Steps beach is accessible most of the year offering relaxing walks on the fine sand and amidst the volcanic rock stacks.

Ranking first on The Times best of British dramatic beaches list in 2009, the Bedruthan Steps is to be enjoyed with caution. The steps leading to the beach are steep and the staircase is closed in the winter months; swimming is prohibited due to strong currents and the beach all but disappears at high tide, so visitors should watch out for tide times before they venture down.

A memorial plaque at the top of the steps is dedicated to Alex Laurie who had drowned on these shores, a warning to visitors which does not seem to be heeded. Swimming aside, there are many rock pools with crystal clear water and of reasonable depth, plenty of caves and crevices to be explored. The views of the Atlantic are simply overwhelming.

Legends of Giants

Giants are traditionally creators of landscape features, especially associated with large isolated boulders or stones. In Cornwall, which Blight calls the “fabled land of giants”, there are many legends of giants, such as Bolster, John of Gaunt, Jack the Giant Killer, Wrath and Dan Dynas. They hurled rocks to each other in battle or threw boulders in games of quoits or in strength competitions; they were also known to take giant strides.

The Bedruthan giant of Cornwall is reportedly a late-19th-century invention of the locals for the benefit of the Victorian tourist. The Giant used the huge outcrops as stepping stones to cross the bay between Park Head and Berryl’s Point in the south. He was possibly inspired by the Bolster giant, who took a six-mile stride from St. Agnes Beacon to Carn Brea. The impressive volcanic rock stacks have been given names, like Samaritan and Queen Bess.

Jennifer Westwood and Jacqueline Simpson (eds.), The Lore of the Land. A Guide to England’s Legends, from Spring-Heeled Jack to the Witches of Warboys, Penguin Books 2005.

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