Constantine is situated in the deanery and Hundred of Kerrier, and is
one of the largest Parishes in Cornwall. In 1869, it was bounded on the
east by Budock and Mawnan, on the south by Helford Creek, which
separates it from Manaccan, St Martins and Mawgan-in-Meneage, and on the
west and north by Wendron, Stithians and Mabe. The parish is named after
its patron, Saint Constantine. The village is mentioned in the Domesday
Book of 1086 as Saint Constantin.
The population of the parish is just over 2,000, about half living in the village of Constantine itself, and the rest in other smaller villages or hamlets - Gweek, Seworgan, Brill, Port Navas, Budock Vean, Helford Passage - or on isolated farms.
On approaching Constantine, the high tower of the Church stands prominently upon an ancient mound that is probably the remains of an original Celtic monastery. Built between 1420-1480, it is dedicated to St. Constantine who, according to legend, was a chieftain or prince around the 5th century A.D. From the main porch the view southwards is superb, with a deep valley ahead and the Goonhilly Downs beyond.
Employment over the centuries has centred on the river, farming and granite quarries. Now, with very little quarrying done, and no schooners and barques using the river, tourism is very important, with lots of vessels enjoying the river with its beautiful creeks and small beaches. Walkers, garden lovers and golfers all recharge their batteries in this lovely area.
The Online Parish Clerk for Constantine is Damien Willey, who may be reached via Email.
Damien's website for this Parish can be viewed here.
Information can be found at COCP - the Cornwall Online Census Project - which is regularly updated and has been verified, FreeCen at Rootsweb, which has a very good search engine and information from COCP, as well as GenUKI, which has more reference information and alternate resources.
For further Parish Register information, please see GenUKI - link below.
For information, see GenUKI. Link below.
For a Bastardy Bond, dated 31 Dec 1790, naming James MITCHELLS of this Parish, click here.
For a document dated 28 Dec 1894, listing lunatic paupers, click here.
For more information regarding history, population, etc., visit GenUKI.
For a Parish Locator map, please click here. Constantine can be located at coordinates E - 2.
For further map information, please visit GenUKI (Genealogy - United Kingdom & Ireland).
To see a current, zoomable Ordnance Survey map, please visit MultiMap, or for maps and satellite images use Google Maps.
Budock, Mawnan,
Mabe,
Stithians and Wendron
