Travel: Journey through Cornwall's iconic literary sites
Born in 1907, Daphne and her two sisters had a privileged childhood, growing up at the family home, Cannon Hall in Hampstead, but the family often trooped to Cornwall for holidays. 'The family started looking for a second home and zeroed in on Ferryside, the house that became their home in the waterside town of Fowey on Cornwall's south coast," says Viv Kelly, the proprietor of Old Bissick Mill, a charming B&B located in Ladock, about 18 miles from Fowey.
On learning of my plans to follow in du Maurier's footsteps, Kelly reveals that Ferryside is where the author wrote The Loving Spirit (1931), which was followed by 'moody and resonant" romantic stories set on the wild coast of Cornwall. These included Jamaica Inn (1936), a period piece set in Cornwall; Rebecca (1938), the Gothic mystery she's best known for; Frenchman's Creek (1941), a historical novel; My Cousin Rachel (1951), a mystery romance similar in theme to Rebecca, The Apple Tree (1952), a short story collection that included The Birds and Don't Look Now, a long story collection (1971); her autobiography Growing Pains (1977), and The Rendezvous and Other Stories (1980). Alfred Hitchcock made both Jamaica Inn and The Birds into films.
Du Maurier wrote a total of 38 books, but her Cornwall-based novels remain the most popular with readers. Topping the list is Rebecca, which showcases her love for atmospheric Cornwall and her own home. The sinister manor of Manderley, surrounded by wild woods and crashing seas, draws clear inspiration from Menabilly, the mansion near Fowey that du Maurier leased and lived in for over two decades.
'She came across it in a serendipitous way. During a visit to Fowey in 1926, she stumbled upon it while walking in the woods; it was set among thick trees and—like Manderley—had a long, sprawling driveway," says Ellen Porter, a server and fellow du Maurier fan at Brown Sugar, a popular coffee shop in Fowey.
We agree that her first sighting of Menabilly may have influenced her first lines about Manderley: 'There was Manderley, our Manderley, secretive and silent as it had always been, the grey stone shining in the moonlight of my dream, the mullioned windows reflecting the green lawns and the terrace."
Manderley was a character in its own right in Rebecca—gloomy, romantic, and full of secrets. I realise that Cornwall offered du Maurier more than just scenery—it provided history, folklore, and a sense of timelessness. Her fascination with the past, memory, and identity, often emerged through stories linked to Cornwall's layered history—and her own narratives.
Among the most famous of all du Maurier locations is Jamaica Inn, a former coach house and smugglers' den that dates back to 1750. The author landed up at the inn with a friend in 1930, after getting lost on a dark, foggy Bodmin moor.
In her diary, she later wrote, 'In the afternoon, we ventured out across the moors, desolate, (and) sinister, and foolishly (we) lost our way. To our horror, rain and darkness fell upon us…(by) a miracle we saw in the distance the light from Jamaica Inn."
In Growing Pains, decades later, she wrote of the inn: 'I thought of the travellers in the past who must have sought shelter there on wild November nights … the drinking deep and long, fights breaking out, the sound of oaths, men falling."
The inn and its surroundings fed directly into Jamaica Inn's tense, windswept setting, showing du Maurier's gift for transforming real places into vivid literary landscapes. The inn now offers a suite named after the author, showcasing her Sheraton writing desk and a small bowl of her favourite Glacier Mints.
'There's also a small du Maurier museum with three rooms of exhibits, including original letters from the Queen to Daphne and her husband, letters by Daphne to her best friend, numerous old photos, and more," Porter tells me.
In her later years, du Maurier moved to Kilmarth, a house that served as the inspiration for House on the Strand, published in 1969. Kelly tells me about another major influence: Frenchman's Creek, near Helford River. 'She visited it on her honeymoon, and the densely wooded banks later inspired her novel of the same name."
In Fowey, the Daphne du Maurier Literary Centre showcases exhibits and information on the author's life and legacy. Every year, the du Maurier Society hosts the du Maurier Fowey Literary Festival in May, the month of the author's birth. 'Not many people know that in 1967 she also penned a local history and travel guide," says Porter
Du Maurier's love for Cornwall shines through in her guide, Vanishing Cornwall. 'I walked this land with a dreamer's freedom and with a waking man's perception—places, houses whispered to me their secrets and shared with me their sorrows and their joys. And in return I gave them something of myself, a few words passing into the folk-lore of this ancient place."
The author's words made Cornwall more than a backdrop; they made the county central to the tension, mystery, and drama of her plots. As I walked in her footsteps—from Fowey's quiet streets to the windswept moors and hidden coves—I realised that Daphne du Maurier's Cornwall lives on, not only in geography, but in the minds of her fans who have long felt the pull of her haunting and enduring stories.
Teja Lele writes on travel and lifestyle.
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