St Just - Lannyust

St Just (Lannyust) is a town north of Ballowall Barrow and on the B3306 and is about eight miles west of Penzance. The settlement has a long mining history. The church of St Just was built in 1334 but only part of the chancel remains from that period with the current building dating from the fifteenth century. On the common green is Plain-an-Gwarry which has historically and continues to be used for entertainments.

Our visit

It was a blustery March day when we visited St Just. We started by visiting the church of St Just. It is not clear who St Just was but many think that the church was founded by Saint Lestyn. The sixth century Lestyn was thought to have been the son of Geraint ab Erbin. He was the ruler of Dumnonia, the Celtic Kingdom of which Cornwall was part. It is also said that his brother was Cador, Duke of Cornwall and friend to Arthur. Saint Lestyn has two other churches dedicated to him in north Wales and is linked to another in Brittany. The present church structure mostly dates from the fifteenth century with part of the chancel dating back to 1334.

In St Just is also Plen an Gwarry (Playing Place) a grass amphitheatre where until the early seventeenth century performances of medieval miracle plays were held. The Ordinalia mystery plays were written and performed in Cornish and date from the fourteenth century.