The germans came over here at the request of the queen because of the lack of experiance of the english at mining and smelting
In 1555, during the reign of Mary (1553-58) the government gave permission for a German mining engineer, Burchard Cranych, to search for copper in Cornwall. What he found was hopeful, but the enterprise was not a success. A few years later, in the early part of Elizabeth 1’s reign (1558-1603), a company called the Mines Royal was set up specifically to search for, mine and smelt any metallic ores as yet undiscovered and exploited. The company was incorporated by the crown in 1564. with a board of half English and half German directors and managers. The German Daniel Hochstetter came to Cornwall to direct operations. but once again they were not successful.. Twenty years later a more determined attempt was made, and this time there were definite areas of success. Ulrich Frosse, another German mining engineer, led the work and copper was discovered in the cliffs at St. Ives, St. Just, Illogan, St. Agnes and Zennor. Other copper lodes were discovered at Marazion and in an old tin mine at St. Hilary, just along the coast. However, despite the fact that copper was his main interest, Frosse spent most of his time mining for lead and silver at Treworthie mine, between St. Cuthbert and Perranzabuloe. Lead was also mined at Portleven. Many of these mines had originally been worked by Hochstetter and Cranych, and Frosse reopened them. Although some German miners worked in Cornwall, most were sent by Mines Royal to Keswick to open up the copper mines there, where the whole operation from mining and dressing to smelting worked well. The Cornish ore was sent to Neath, where Mines Royal had a smelter, although some is believed to be part-smelted in Cornwall.
Interestingly in 1608, when the new King, James 1 (1603-25), wanted skilled miners to develop the Scottish silver mines, he bypassed the German miners employed by the Mines Royal at Keswick and brought in Cornishmen despite the mush greater distance they would have to come from.
:thumbsup:
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.