Brisons

Coordinates: 50°07′13″N 5°43′20″W / 50.12039°N 5.72229°W

The Brisons
The Brisons during a southerly force 11 wind
The Brisons seen from Porth Nanven beach
The Brisons The Brisons shown within Cornwall
List of places UK Cornwall

The Brisons (Cornish: An Gribow, meaning the reefs) is a twin-peaked islet in the Atlantic situated 1 mile (1.6 km) offshore from Cape Cornwall in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.^[1]

The Brisons (the name is French: brisant, 'reef, breaker') are 22 m (72 ft) and 27 m (89 ft) high and are said to resemble General Charles de Gaulle lying on his back. The rocks are connected to Gribba Point (Cornish: Pen an Gribow, meaning head of the reefs) by the Guthen Gwidden reef (Cornish: Kudhen Gwydn, meaning white hidden one). The gap in the reef is called the Adgiwar Gap (Cornish: Aja Wer, meaning green gap). In 1878, an article in the Cornishman newspaper names the reef between the ″Brissons″ and the land as Bridges, and the reef had three gaps; the nearest known as Rose-an-pons.^[2]

In 1851, the 250 ton brig New Commercial was wrecked, striking the ledge between the Great and Little Brisons. A dramatic rescue of the surviving crew was attempted, resulting in the death of all but two of the members. As a result, the National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (later the RNLI) established a lifeboat in Sennen Cove in 1853, where one is still based today.^[3]

During "Cape sports" an annual water sports event based on the beach at Cape Cornwall, swimming races are conducted from the Brisons back to the beach.

References

1. Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 203 Land's End ISBN 978-0-319-23148-7
2. "A Contrast". The Cornishman. 8 August 1878. p. 7.
3. Leach, Nicholas (2014). Sennen Cove Lifeboats: An Illustrated History. The History Press. ISBN 0750955481.