West Britons: Cornish Identities and the Early Modern British State (review)

Reviews 235 'bright one'; The Cloud of Unknowing can only loosely be called a 'devotional' text, and even more loosely described as 'a self-reflexive narrative'. It is a pity that this book is marred by these errors; it is an even greater pity that the presentation ofAristotle's thought is inaccurate, and inaccurate in a way that undermines the integrity of the thesis. It is a pity because the blurred edges and imprecise terminology have denied readers what might have been a fascinating study of Chaucer's epistemological exploration. Peter Whiteford Victoria University of Wellington Stoyle, Mark, West Britons: Cornish Identities and the Early Modern British State, Exeter, University of Exeter Press, 2002; hardback; pp. xv, 262; 10 b/w illustrations, 8 maps; R R P £40.00; ISBN 0859896870. With a few towering exceptions such as A.L. Rowse's Tudor Cornwall, Cornwall's past has been relatively short on academic research, perhaps because of its history as a county without a university. Stoyle's book is a significant contribution to altering this situation. His research is presented with characteristic clarity and elegance. H e argues that early m o d e m Cornwall should be viewed within a British-rather than English perspective. Indeed, the Cornish viewed themselves as 'British originals' not 'English provincials' (p. 6). As the articles ofthe Prayer Book rebels of 1549 stated: 'we the Comyshe men.. .utterly refuse thys newe Englysh'. The remnants of the Cornish language and particular independence of the Cornishman lingers on into recent times. The book is a collection of essays. Five of them were previously published in the second half of the 1990s but the others are new. The unifying theme establishes a sense of 'Cornish ethnic identity' and attempts to explain why the Cornish were so royalist in the Civil War and the outstanding success ofthe Cornish army. M u c h discussion also considers whether the Comish could be viewed as innately rebellious. The result provides us with a new scholarly perspective on the otherwise well-worn territory of the 1640s. The material is presented with panache andStoyle's depth of learning is lightly worn. There is the added bonus of appendices of reprinted original documents. These illustrate the main themes of the book and have potential scope as a teaching tool. The structure as a series of linked essays has some flaws for there is some repetition of facts in different chapters. More than once hurling is 236 Reviews mentioned as a Cornish sport but w e leam little more about it. Perhaps as a result of the essay format there is no bibliography. The book contains extensive discussion of Cornish early m o d e m literary characters. This reviewer's own favourite section is Chapter 7, where Stoyle looks at the Cornish patriot, William Scawen. But here w e have indications that Stoyle is lapsing into nostalgia. For example, 'Behind Scawen's scholarly cadences, it seems fair to conclude, one may still catch the voice of a vanished people whispering to us across the centuries' seems tinged with romanticism. Stoyle has charted with assurance the political landscape of early modem Cornwall but the social and economic elements are more lacking. As an exploration of nationalism, this is a traditional treatment of identities and we leam more about battles than culture. M y earlier reference to Comishman was deliberate because one would search hard in this book to find any indication of what the identity of the Cornish w o m a n might be. I was left wondering how Cornish identity was played out at the level of the parish. While Stoyle's previous book Loyalty and Locality explored the implications of the distinct cultures of parishes in Devon, seemingly just over the border we are able to talk about a regional identity encompassing the whole of Cornwall. There is no doubt that Devon cannot be considered to lie within the 'Celtic fringe' as Cornwall does, but this reader would have been more satisfied with a more detailed treatment of these important differences. It seems surprising that an area within Cornwall like the Lizard peninsula would not constitute a region in itself. As...