Rame Head or Ram Head [1] (Cornish : Penn an Hordh) [2] is a coastal headland, southwest of the village of Rame in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. [3] It is part of the larger Rame Peninsula.
Rame Head or Ram Head [1] (Cornish : Penn an Hordh) [2] is a coastal headland, southwest of the village of Rame in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. [3] It is part of the larger Rame Peninsula.
 | This section relies largely or entirely on a single source .(November 2017) |
The natural site was used for a promontory fort ('cliff castle') in the Iron Age and the narrow neck of land was further excavated on the landward side with a central causeway, still visible. The eastern part retains traces of round house platforms, though damaged by wartime construction. [4] The headland has a prominent chapel, dedicated to St Michael, as are many early Christian headland sites in the region, accessible by a steep footpath.
The chapel was first licensed for Mass in 1397 and is on the site of a much earlier and ancient, Celtic, hermitage. It remains as an intact shell and was originally lime-washed so that it stood out on the headland. Ordwulf, who was the owner of vast estates in the West Country and was the uncle of King Ethelred the Unready, gave Rame to Tavistock Abbey (which Ordwulf had founded) in 981, meaning the parish was technically in Devon until the modern period.
| | This section relies largely or entirely on a single source .(November 2017) |
Around the head, Dartmoor ponies are kept to graze. This area is also frequented by deer, sheep and cattle which can often be viewed from the sea. Due to its exceptionally high and panoramic vantage point, there is a volunteer National Coastwatch Institution lookout on the top of the headland (next to the car park). Rame Head is a part of Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park which is jointly owned and run by Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council.
The headland is prominent to sailors and fishermen leaving Plymouth through Plymouth Sound. It is often the last piece of land they see leaving England, and the first they see when returning home; Rame Head thus appears in the sea shanty "Spanish Ladies".
The headland forms part of Rame Head & Whitsand Bay SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), noted for its geological as well as biological interest. The SSSI contains 2 species on the Red Data Book of rare and endangered plant species; early meadow-grass ( poa infirma ) and slender bird’s-foot-trefoil (from the lotus genus). [5]
The Tamar is a river in south west England that forms most of the border between Devon and Cornwall. A part of the Tamar Valley is a World Heritage Site due to its historic mining activities.
Cawsand and Kingsand are twin villages in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is situated on the Rame Peninsula and is in the parish of Maker-with-Rame.
St Levan is a civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish is rural with a number of hamlets of varying size with Porthcurno probably being the best known. Hewn out of the cliff at Minack Point and overlooking the sea to the Logan Rock is the open-air Minack Theatre, the inspiration of Rowena Cade in the early 1930s.
The Rame Peninsula is a peninsula in south-east Cornwall. The peninsula is surrounded by the English Channel to the south, Plymouth Sound to the east, the Hamoaze to the northeast and the estuary of the River Lynher to the northwest. On a clear day, the Atlantic Ocean can be seen from advantageous points from Rame Head. The largest settlement is Torpoint, which is on the eastern coast, facing Devonport in Plymouth, Devon.
Kingsand and Cawsand are twin villages in southeast Cornwall, United Kingdom. The villages are situated on the Rame Peninsula and are in the parish of Maker-with-Rame.
Whitsand Bay, situated in south east Cornwall, England, runs from Rame Head in the east to Portwrinkle in the west. It is characterised by sheer, high cliffs, dramatic scenery and long stretches of sandy beaches. The South West Coast Path runs the length of the bay.
Gurnard's Head is a prominent headland on the north coast of the Penwith peninsula in Cornwall, England. The name is supposed to reflect that the rocky peninsula resembles the head of the gurnard fish.
Gwennap Head is a headland on the south coast of the Penwith peninsula, Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is within the parish of St Levan and approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Land's End, and less than 1 mile (1.6 km) north-west of Porthgwarra, the nearest village. The area of Gwennap Head is designated as part of the Penwith Heritage Coast and also designated as part of the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The South West Coast Path closely follows the coastline around the headland.
Portwrinkle is a small coastal village in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western end of Whitsand Bay five miles (8 km) south-west of Saltash.
The Forgotten Corner of Cornwall is a geographical area of South East Cornwall, Great Britain. It includes the Rame Peninsula and the town of Torpoint, as well as villages like Antony, Downderry, Polbathic, Portwrinkle and Widegates.
Stepper Point is a headland on the Atlantic coast in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at grid reference SW911781. Stepper Point and Pentire Point stand at either side of the mouth of the River Camel; Stepper to the south-west, Pentire to the north-east.
Downderry is a coastal village in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated 12 miles (19 km) west of Plymouth and one mile east of Seaton.
Trevose Head is a headland on the Atlantic coast of north Cornwall, on the south-western coast of Great Britain. It is situated approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Padstow. The South West Coast Path runs around the whole promontory and is within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Trevose Head Heritage Coast. In clear weather, visitors to Trevose Head can see virtually the whole length of the north Cornwall coast; to the north, the view extends beyond the Cornwall county boundary to Hartland Point, Devon; to the south, it extends beyond St Ives to the headland at Pendeen Watch.
St John is a coastal civil parish and a village in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Saltash and 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-west of Torpoint.
Trevaunance Cove is a small bay on the north Cornish coast and a residential area of St Agnes, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. In the 18th and 19th centuries it was a busy harbour despite storms often destroying the quay. The South West Coast Path passes over the coastal slope to the north.
Porthgwarra to Pordenack Point is a coastal Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in west Cornwall, England, noted for its biological characteristics. The South West Coast Path runs through the SSSI.
Cornish promontory forts, commonly known in Cornwall as cliff castles, are coastal equivalents of the hill forts and Cornish "rounds" found on Cornish hilltops and slopes. Similar coastal forts are found on the north–west European seaboard, in Normandy, Brittany and around the coastlines of the British Isles, especially in Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Many are known in southwest England, particularly in Cornwall and its neighbouring county, Devon. Two have been identified immediately west of Cornwall, in the Isles of Scilly.
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.
| Unitary authorities | |
|---|---|
| Major settlements (cities in italics) |
|
| Rivers | |
| Topics | |
