Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England.

The name Falmouth is of English origin. (Present-day Cornish language enthusiasts translate it as Aberfal or Aberfala based on Welsh precedents.) It is claimed that an earlier Celtic name for the place was Peny-cwm-cuic (which translates to English as 'head of the creek') which is the same as the anglicised "Pennycomequick" district in Plymouth.

Falmouth was where Henry VIII built Pendennis Castle to defend Carrick Roads in 1540. The main town of the district was then at Penryn. Sir John Killigrew created the town of Falmouth shortly after 1613.

In the late 16th century, under threat from the Spanish Armada, the defences at Pendennis were strengthened by the building of angled ramparts. During the Civil War, Pendennis Castle was the second to last fort to surrender to the Parliamentary Army.