STANDING proudly on Worvas Hill above St Ives, Knill's Monument – known locally as Knill's Steeple – is one of Cornwall's most distinctive landmarks, writes Cornish historian Barry West.

The granite obelisk, which commands sweeping views across St Ives Bay, was built in 1782 by John (Johannes) Knill (1733 to 1811), a customs officer, former mayor of St Ives.

Knill bought Worvas Hill in 1782 and spent the considerable sum of £226 building what was intended to be his mausoleum. Today, the monument stands within Knill's Monument Nature Reserve and is now an iconic historic landmark that can be seen from many miles away.Although it built as his final resting place, the mausoleum is empty.

However in 2011 Steve Brown aka (Bruno) and Barry West Cornish Historian from St Austell found opportunity to get inside through what is now a blocked doorway and did something that not even John Knill could achieve, they both got inside and were able to get some rare photographs.A moment they will always remember fondly.

After leaving St Ives for London to pursue a legal career, Knill became a member of Gray's Inn in 1782 and was called to the Bar in 1787. He died in London in 1811 and was buried at St Andrew's Church, Holborn, rather than in the monument he had built.

The three-sided structure bears inscriptions on each face. One face reads "Johannes Knill 1782.” Knill is best remembered not for the monument itself, but for the remarkable ceremony he devised. His will directed that every five years, on July 25 – the Feast of St James the Apostle – 10 girls under the age of 10, chosen from the daughters of St Ives tinners, fishermen and seamen, should dance around the monument dressed in white.

They were to be accompanied by two widows from those same trades, together with the Mayor of St Ives, the Vicar, the Customs Officer and a fiddler. The modern Knill Ceremony has been held every five years since 1825, with only a handful of interruptions. It remains one of Cornwall's most unique and enduring traditions, drawing hundreds of people to Worvas Hill to witness a ceremony found nowhere else in the country.

I have been visiting the steeple for over 30 years and have managed to attend the ceremony on each occasion it was held during that period.It is an important historical event at this most amazing part of St Ives with long sweeping views of the surrounding countryside and landscape.

The Knill ceremony in 2011
The Knill ceremony in 2011

The event is held on St James Day, my father Richard’s birthday who has made a special trip from the Midlands to attend again this year, so has an extra special meaning for us as a family. I hope this tradition and community based custom will continue as it helps us us better understand our heritage and those who have gone before us.