The name of the village derives from Bottreaux Castle, a 12th-century fortress, of which little survives. There is no church in Boscastle but there are churches at Forrabury and Minster. Boscastle harbour is a natural inlet protected by two stone harbour walls built in 1584 by Sir Richard Grenville. The oldest part of Boscastle surrounds the harbour; more modern residential building extends up the valleys of the Rivers Valency and Jordan.