Blunderbore

Last updated

Blunderbore and Rebecks getting hanged by Jack. Blunderbore.png
Blunderbore and Rebecks getting hanged by Jack.

Blunderbore (also recorded as Blunderboar, Thunderbore, Blunderbus, or Blunderbuss) is a giant of Cornish and English folklore. A number of folk and fairy tales include a giant named Blunderbore, most notably "Jack the Giant Killer". The stories usually associate him with the area of Penwith.

Contents

Cornish folklore remembers Blunderbore as living in Ludgvan Lese (a manor in Ludgvan), where he terrorized travelers heading north to St Ives. [1] [2] In "Jack the Giant Killer" he is the second or third giant (along with his brother Rebecks) killed by the hero Jack. Under the influence of that story, the name "Blunderbore" is frequently appropriated by other legendary giants; the later fairy tale "Tom the Tinkeard", a local Cornish variant of "Tom Hickathrift", contains a similar account of the hero's battle with a giant named Blunderbore. Likewise, it is usually given as the name of the ogre in "Jack and the Beanstalk".

Appearances

Blunderbore first appears in the fairy tale "Jack the Giant Killer". In the version recorded by Joseph Jacobs, Blunderbore lives in Penwith, where he kidnaps three lords and ladies, planning to eat the men and make the women his wives. [3] [4] When the women refuse to eat their husbands with the giant, [3] he hangs them by their hair in his dungeon and leaves them to starve. [4] Shortly, the hero Jack stops along the highway from Penwith to Wales to get a drink from a fountain and take a nap. Blunderbore discovers the sleeping Jack. Recognizing him by his labeled belt and having known of him killing Cormoran, carries him to his castle and locks him in a cell. While off inviting his friend Rebecks to come help him eat Jack, Jack creates nooses from some rope. When the giants arrive, he drops the nooses, slides down the rope, and slits their throats. [3] [4]

A giant named Blunderbore appears in the similar Cornish fairy tale "Tom the Tinkeard" (or "Tom the Tinkard"), a local variant of the more famous "Tom Hickathrift". Here, Blunderbore has built a hedge over the King's Highway between St Ives to Marazion, claiming the land as his own. The motif of the abduction of women appears in this version, as Blunderbore has kidnapped at least twenty women as his wives. [3] The hero Tom awakes the giant from a nap while taking a wagon and oxen back from St Ives to Marazion. Blunderbore tears up an elm to swat Tom off his property, but Tom slides one of the axles from the wagon and uses it to fight and eventually fatally wound the giant. In his dying breaths, the giant confers all his wealth to Tom and requests a proper burial. [1] [2]

Blunderbore appears as a monster type in the computer game Diablo II . [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pixie</span> Mythical creature of British folklore

A pixie is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas around Devon and Cornwall, and in the New Forest area of Dorset and Hampshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Michael's Mount</span> Tidal island in Mounts Bay, Cornwall, England

St Michael's Mount is a tidal island in Mount's Bay, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The island is a civil parish and is linked to the town of Marazion by a causeway of granite setts, passable between mid-tide and low water. It is managed by the National Trust, and the castle and chapel have been the home of the St Aubyn family since approximately 1650.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack the Giant Killer</span> Cornish fairy tale and legend

"Jack the Giant Killer" is a Cornish fairy tale and legend about a young adult who slays a number of bad giants during King Arthur's reign. The tale is characterised by violence, gore and blood-letting. Giants are prominent in Cornish folklore, Breton mythology and Welsh Bardic lore. Some parallels to elements and incidents in Norse mythology have been detected in the tale, and the trappings of Jack's last adventure with the Giant Galigantus suggest parallels with French and Breton fairy tales such as Bluebeard. Jack's belt is similar to the belt in "The Valiant Little Tailor", and his magical sword, shoes, cap, and cloak are similar to those owned by Tom Thumb or those found in Welsh and Norse mythology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penzance</span> Town in Cornwall, England

Penzance is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about 64 miles (103 km) west-southwest of Plymouth and 255 miles (410 km) west-southwest of London. Situated in the shelter of Mount's Bay, the town faces south-east onto the English Channel, is bordered to the west by the fishing port of Newlyn, to the north by the civil parish of Madron and to the east by the civil parish of Ludgvan. The civil parish includes the town of Newlyn and the villages of Mousehole, Paul, Gulval, and Heamoor. Granted various royal charters from 1512 onwards and incorporated on 9 May 1614, it has a population of 21,200.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penwith</span> Area in west Cornwall, England

Penwith is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. The area is named after one of the ancient administrative hundreds of Cornwall which derives from two Cornish words, penn meaning 'headland' and wydh meaning 'at the end'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Erth</span> Human settlement in England

St Erth is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mousehole</span> Village in southwest Cornwall, England

Mousehole is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, England, UK. It is approximately 2.5 miles (4 km) south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay. The village is in the civil parish of Penzance. An islet called St Clement's Isle lies about 350 metres (380 yd) offshore from the harbour entrance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Ives (UK Parliament constituency)</span> UK parliamentary constituency since 1885

St Ives is a parliamentary constituency covering the western end of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. The constituency has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Derek Thomas, a Conservative MP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culture of Cornwall</span> Overview of the culture of Cornwall

The culture of Cornwall forms part of the culture of the United Kingdom, but has distinct customs, traditions and peculiarities. Cornwall has many strong local traditions. After many years of decline, Cornish culture has undergone a strong revival, and many groups exist to promote Cornwall's culture and language today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golowan Festival</span> Midsummer celebrations festival in Cornwall, UK

Golowan is the Cornish language word for the Midsummer celebrations in Cornwall, UK; widespread prior to the late 19th century and most popular in the Penwith area and in particular Penzance and Newlyn. The celebrations were centred on the lighting of bonfires and fireworks and the performance of associated rituals. The midsummer bonfire ceremonies were revived at St Ives in 1929 by the Old Cornwall Society and since then spread to other societies across Cornwall, as far as Kit Hill near Callington. Since 1991 the Golowan festival in Penzance has revived many of these ancient customs and has grown to become a major arts and culture festival; its central event 'Mazey Day' now attracts tens of thousands of people to the Penzance area in late June.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ludgvan</span> Village in Cornwall, England

Ludgvan is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, UK, 2+12 miles (4.0 km) northeast of Penzance. Ludgvan village is split between Churchtown, on the hill, and Lower Quarter to the east, adjoining Crowlas. For the purposes of local government, Ludgvan elects a parish council every four years; the town elects a member to Cornwall Council under the Ludgvan division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Brave Little Tailor</span> German fairy tale

"The Brave Little Tailor" or "The Valiant Little Tailor" or "The Gallant Tailor" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm. "The Brave Little Tailor" is a story of Aarne–Thompson Type 1640, with individual episodes classified in other story types.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Hickathrift</span> Legendary figure of East Anglian folklore

Tom Hickathrift is a legendary figure of East Anglian English folklore — a character similar to Jack the Giant Killer. He famously battled a giant, and is sometimes said to be a giant himself, though normally he is just represented as possessing giant-like strength.

<i>Jack the Giant Killer</i> (1962 film) 1962 film by Nathan H. Juran

Jack the Giant Killer is a 1962 American heroic fantasy adventure film starring Kerwin Mathews in a fairy tale story about a young man who defends a princess against a sorcerer's giants and demons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cornish mythology</span> Folk tradition and mythology of the Cornish people in England

Cornish mythology is the folk tradition and mythology of the Cornish people. It consists partly of folk traditions developed in Cornwall and partly of traditions developed by Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium, often shared with those of the Breton and Welsh peoples. Some of this contains remnants of the mythology of pre-Christian Britain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack and the Beanstalk</span> English folktale closely associated with the tale of "Jack the Giant-killer"

"Jack and the Beanstalk" is an English fairy tale. It appeared as "The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean" in 1734 and as Benjamin Tabart's moralized "The History of Jack and the Bean-Stalk" in 1807. Henry Cole, publishing under pen name Felix Summerly, popularized the tale in The Home Treasury (1845), and Joseph Jacobs rewrote it in English Fairy Tales (1890). Jacobs' version is most commonly reprinted today, and is believed to be closer to the oral versions than Tabart's because it lacks the moralizing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack (hero)</span> English hero and stock character

Jack is an English hero and archetypal stock character appearing in multiple legends, fairy tales, and nursery rhymes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cormoran</span> Character of Cornish folklore

Cormoran is a giant associated with St. Michael's Mount in the folklore of Cornwall. Local tradition credits him with creating the island, in some versions with the aid of his wife Cormelian, and using it as a base to raid cattle from the mainland communities. Cormoran appears in the English fairy tale "Jack the Giant Killer" as the first giant slain by the hero, Jack, and in tales of "Tom the Tinkeard" as a giant too old to present a serious threat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Cornwall</span> Overview of and topical guide to Cornwall

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Cornwall: Cornwall – ceremonial county and unitary authority area of England within the United Kingdom. Cornwall is a peninsula bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall is also a royal duchy of the United Kingdom. It has an estimated population of half a million and it has its own distinctive history and culture.

Presented below is an alphabetical index of articles related to Cornwall:

References

  1. 1 2 Matthews, John Hobson (1892). "Legendary Lore". A History of the Parishes of Saint Ives, Lelant, Towednack, and Zennor, in the County of Cornwall. London: Elliot Stock.
  2. 1 2 "Tom the Tinkard". Stories of the Giants. 2008. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Jack the Giant Killer, a Hero celebrated by ancient Historians". Banbury. c. 1820. Archived from the original on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 Jacobs, Joseph (1890). "Jack the Giant-Killer". English Fairy Tales. London: David Nutt.
  5. "The Arreat Summit Bestiary". Blizzard Entertainment. Retrieved 21 June 2014.