Domesday BookCornwallSt Buryan
Cornwall · Local History

The History of St Buryan

A place in Cornwall with a history you can trace through the records: its entry in the 1086 Domesday Book, the archaeological finds and scheduled monuments around it, and the nearest Roman sites and battlefields. Everything below is drawn from the historical record.

In 1086, St Buryan was held by St Buryan, canons of.

The record

What the Domesday Book records for St Buryan

When William the Conqueror's commissioners surveyed St Buryan in 1086, they recorded a manor held by St Buryan, canons of. The same lord had held the land before the Norman Conquest of 1066.

The settlement was assessed at 1 hide for tax. There was land for 8 ploughs. The recorded population was 12 heads of household: 6 villagers and 6 smallholders. These are heads of household, so the settlement's true population was several times larger. The manor was valued at 10 shillings in 1086.

The record in full
Held in 1086 by
St Buryan, canons of
Held in 1066 by
St Buryan, canons of
Value in 1086
10 shillings
Taxable assessment
1 hide
Ploughland
land for 8 ploughs
Recorded population
6 villagers, 6 smallholders

The Domesday Book was the great survey of England ordered by William the Conqueror in 1085 and completed in 1086, the oldest surviving public record in the country. How the survey worked →

St Buryan was one of the settlements recorded in Cornwall in the 1086 survey. Cornwall in the Domesday survey →

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about St Buryan

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of St Buryan's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your St Buryan report
Or see a real report first
Archaeology

Archaeological finds near St Buryan

2,254 recorded finds have been logged within about 5 miles of St Buryan, reported by members of the public and entered in the national record of archaeological finds. They span these periods:

Neolithic: 1,398Roman: 219Mesolithic: 175Post medieval: 169Bronze age: 169Medieval: 84Iron age: 19Early medieval: 10Modern: 2Greek and roman provincial: 1
Landscape

The ground beneath St Buryan

The bedrock beneath St Buryan is Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Carboniferous To Permian (Permian).

Common questions

Questions about St Buryan

Was St Buryan in the Domesday Book?+
Yes. St Buryan was recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as a settlement in the historic county of Cornwall.
Who held St Buryan in 1086?+
In 1086, St Buryan was held by St Buryan, canons of.
Who held St Buryan before the Norman Conquest?+
Before the Conquest in 1066, St Buryan was held by St Buryan, canons of.
What was St Buryan worth in the Domesday Book?+
In 1086, St Buryan was valued at 10 shillings.
How many people lived in St Buryan in 1086?+
The 1086 survey recorded 12 people in St Buryan: 6 villagers and 6 smallholders.
What land did St Buryan have in 1086?+
The Domesday Book records St Buryan as having land for 8 ploughs.
Where is St Buryan today?+
St Buryan is a settlement in the historic county of Cornwall, England.
Aubrey Research

Discover St Buryan's Complete Historical Record

Aubrey's full report for this location includes every Domesday manor, the complete record of medieval lordship, archaeological context, and the story of how this settlement evolved from 1086 to the present day.

Start your Aubrey reportView a sample report
Covers any location in England, Scotland or Wales