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Cave or grotto

Merlin's Cave

Tintagel, Cornwall

A sea cave beneath Tintagel Castle, linked to Merlin and the infant Arthur.

Below the ruins of Tintagel Castle, a sea cave runs right through the headland, around 100 metres long. In Tennyson's Idylls of the King, waves wash the baby Arthur ashore here, where Merlin finds him.

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When
Legend
Where
50.6690, -4.7600
Group
Caves & grottoes

Visiting

Reached from Tintagel Haven beach at low tide only. Check tide times.

Cover of The Ledger of Lost Britain by Cale Mills
Read the full story in the book

The Ledger of Lost Britain

The Romans arrived in AD 43. For most people that is where the history of Britain begins. But by the time the legions landed, people had already been living on these islands for thousands of years. They had hunted, farmed, mined flint, dragged stones across the country, raised a hill by hand, and buried their dead in great tombs. They left no written words. What they left was the ground itself. Every place in this book can be visited, or has been dug up, or is in a museum.

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