Moors and Vale
Where the southern fringes of the North York Moors meet the Vale of Pickering we find the lovely historic towns of Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside and Pickering and numerous pretty villages such as Thornton-le-Dale.
From 1974 until 2023 this area, with the Vale of Pickering at its heart, formed part of an administrative district called Ryedale that was one of a number of districts within the county of North Yorkshire.
In earlier times Ryedale had been the name of a wapentake that encompassed a smaller area within what was then the North Riding of Yorkshire. To the east of Ryedale was the wapentake of Pickering Lythe.
Within the moors the little valleys of the River Rye, River Seph, River Seven and River Dove are secluded and sparsely populated dales that cut their way southward before entering the broad Vale of Pickering. Where the moors meet the vale the hills are called the Tabular Hills which stretch from Black Hambleton in the Hambleton Hills near Sutton Bank eastward to Scarborough.
The Vale of Pickering itself below the Tabular Hills is essentially a drainage basin of low-lying farmland that was historically a marshy area. Even today there are numerous drainage ditches and boggy lands called ‘carrs’.
The Vale of Pickering was formed from a post-glacial lake known to geologists as ‘Lake Pickering’. On its north side the vale is bounded by the Tabular Hills of the North York Moors and on its south side to the south east of Malton are the gentle hills of the Yorkshire Wolds. To the west of Malton and also bordering the vale are the Howardian Hills, a southward extension of the Hambleton Hills. Like the neighbouring Castle Howard, they are named from the Howard family.
At the far eastern end of the Vale of Pickering the land rises near Scarborough cutting the vale off from the sea which might otherwise be the expected natural outlet for the drainage system. Central to this drainage and most prominent of the rivers in the vale is the River Derwent that rises in the moors north west of Scarborough.
From these moors only six miles from the coast, the fledgling River Derwent takes flight on its journey south east but near the twin villages of East and West Ayton, just inland from Scarborough it counter-intuitively twists westward away from the coast with its way blocked by the higher ground of the Scarborough area. South west of Scarborough, the course of the Derwent enters the Vale of Pickering. From a few miles south of the Aytons the Derwent historically formed the traditional old boundary between the East Riding and North Riding of Yorkshire.
The south-flowing rivers of the North York Moors above Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside and Pickering all effectively feed the River Derwent within the vale.
The most significant of these moorland rivers is the River Rye which joins the Derwent in the Vale of Pickering near Malton. After it is joined by the Rye the Derwent flows south-west, cutting through the Howardian Hills at Kirkham Gorge. Eventually at Drax near Selby it enters the River Ouse, ultimately destined for the Humber estuary.
Derwent means ‘oak river’ and has the same name and meaning as the River Derwent in north west Durham; the River Derwent in Derbyshire and the River Derwent of Cumbria that flows into Lake Derwentwater.
Ryedale and Bilsdale
The River Rye is the most westerly of the moorland rivers destined for the Vale of Pickering. It rises in the North York Moors, somewhere between the Hambleton Hills and the Cleveland Hills to the east of Osmotherley.
The Rye heads south through the moors forming the actual moorland dale of Ryedale passing close to the tiny village of Hawnby before it is joined by the River Seph that forms the neighbouring valley of Bilsdale.
A little further up Bilsdale to the north is a side valley called Fangdale Beck that rises near the Bilsdale transmitter. The transmitter mast here was first built in 1969 for BBC television broadcasts to the northern parts of North Yorkshire and for those parts of County Durham that were poorly served by reception from Pontop Pike. The original Bilsdale mast was replaced by a new transmitter following a fire in August 2021.
Further north, also in Bilsdale, the River Seph is fed by the Raisdale and Tripsdale Becks. These are streams that begin their course in the northern part of the North York Moors not far from the town and villages of Stokesley, Chop Gate and Urra up in the Cleveland district of Yorkshire.
Returning to the River Rye, south of Hawnby the Rye flows on towards Helmsley before entering the flat Vale of Pickering, ultimately joining the River Derwent near Malton. The vale was the heartland of the former administrative district of North Yorkshire known as Ryedale.
Rievaulx Abbey
The stunning Rievaulx Abbey in the Rye Valley between Hawnby and Helmsley was founded in 1132 by Cistercian monks from Clairvaulx in France. It was the first Cistercian abbey in Yorkshire and was established on land granted by Walter l’Espec.
In the same way that Jervaulx Abbey in Wensleydale means ‘Ure Valley’, Rievaulx is literally Old French for ‘Rye valley’ and its abbey is one of the most impressive ruined monasteries in the North, particularly due to its location in the wooded valley of the Rye.
Rievaulx, like many other Yorkshire monasteries remained in use until the Dissolution of the Monasteries during the reign of Henry VIII.
Overlooking the abbey ruins is Rievaulx Terrace, an impressive example of eighteenth century landscaping that provides excellent views of this historic site. The terrace, with its eighteenth century Tuscan temple, belonged to the estate of nearby Duncombe Park, near Helmsley, just to the south east, and now belongs to the National Trust.
Between 1147 and 1177 Rievaulx Abbey was situated close to another Cistercian abbey that was only two miles away in the moors to the west at a site now called Old Byland. Monks at Old Byland were said to be confused by the tolling of the bells at Rievaulx and eventually moved to a new site at Byland near Coxwold.
To the north of the River Rye, half way between Rievaulx and Duncombe Park, is a farm called Griff Farm near which is the site of a deserted medieval village called Griff. The name Griff simply derives from ‘gryfja’ (grove) meaning ‘narrow valley’ and is a reference to the River Rye here.
Helmsley and Duncombe Park
Helmsley is a pretty Ryedale market town situated on the edge of the North York Moors. Its most notable features are Helmsley Castle and the nearby stately home of Duncombe Park.
Built in the twelfth century by Walter l’Espec and rebuilt by Robert de Roos around 1200, Helmsley Castle is situated near the western end of Helmsley Market Place and near the edge of the Duncombe Park estate.
The castle was dismantled in 1644 after surrendering to the onslaught of the Parliamentary General, Sir Thomas Fairfax, during the Civil War. It was then patched up and occupied for a time by the Second Duke of Buckingham later in the century. Helmsley Castle is now a property of English Heritage and a regular stage for tourist-based events.
Following the death of the Second Duke of Buckingham in 1687, the castle was bought by a wealthy London banker called Sir Charles Duncombe. A Lord Mayor of London in 1708, Duncombe died in 1711 and the estate then passed to his nephew-in-law, Thomas Brown, who changed his name to Duncombe.
The castle was left to ruin but around 1718 Thomas employed the Yorkshire architect William Wakefield of Easingwold to build a great house called Duncombe Park on a site with great views overlooking both Helmsley Castle and Rievaulx Abbey.
There has often been a debate over whether or not Sir John Vanbrugh had a part in the design and construction of Duncombe Park and there is certainly much that is Vanbrugh in style. Sadly, a significant part of the original mansion was destroyed by a fire on January 11, 1879 but a portion of the house was rebuilt.
Consisting of the main house and two later wings by Charles Barry, Duncombe Park is still the home of the Duncombe family and has a super location above the town and castle of Helmsley, high above the valley of the River Rye.
The grounds of the estate cover 450 acres including parkland, gardens and a nature reserve. Also within the grounds we find the National Centre for Birds of Prey where tickets can be purchased to explore the grounds and gardens.
There are several way-marked walks and discovery trails including an exploration of the Rye valley and there are some excellent views. There are two ‘temples’ that feature in the grounds. The temple to the south is built in Tuscan style and the other, to the north, is built in the Ionic style of architecture. They are situated at either end of a slightly curving terrace bordered by trees to the east of the house.
The Duncombes became a very influential family in the area and were created Lords Feversham in 1826. Today, the head of the family is titled Baron Feversham.
A statue of one of Duncombe family, the second Lord Feversham, sculpted by Matthew Noble, stands at the centre of Helmsley’s market place where it is set within a prominent monument dating to 1867.
The monument might be mistaken for an ornate market cross but there is in fact an actual market cross close by near the town hall.
The town of Helmsley itself is a quite charming place of grey and red-roofed houses, some Georgian and some earlier.
There are interesting inns; a sixteenth century timber-framed house and a pretty stream called the Borough Beck that flows in a neat channel through the heart of the town.
The old Helmsley Town Hall on the west side of the market place, near the market cross, only dates to 1901. It now incorporates Helmsley Community Library.
As well as the large market place, the streets and roads at the heart of the old town include Castlegate, Bridge Street, Canons Garth, Borogate, Bondgate, Stone Garth, Pottergate, Eastgate, Ryegate and the strangely named Baxtons Sprunt. Alongside the market place is the Black Swan Hotel of Georgian origin.
Parked-up motorcyles are often a feature of the market place at Helmsley as the town is a popular centre for gatherings of friendly bikers out and about enjoying the neighbouring moorland roads and scenery.
The prominent church of All Saints, Helmsley’s parish church, just behind the market place is mostly Victorian. It was built by the architects Banks & Barry in 1866, although the style is thirteenth century. Some parts of the church are genuinely thirteenth century and Norman, including a Norman chancel arch.
The A170 road from Helmsley heads east towards the towns of Kirkbymoorside and Pickering along the northern fringe of the Vale of Pickering. This road enters Helmsley from the south after crossing the River Rye.
A mile and a half along the A170 to the south of Helmsley is the village of Sproxton. The little church at Sproxton is of the seventeenth century and dedicated to St Chad. It was historically a chapel. The name of this village may derive from an Old Swedish or Old Frisian personal name Sprok which means ‘brittle’.
Following the A170 for six miles west of Sproxton will take us to Sutton Bank where the road makes a rapid descent as the North York Moors meets the Vale of Mowbray. From there the road continues onward to Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe and Thirsk.
Ampleforth and Oswaldkirk
The village of Ampleforth lies to the south east of Sproxton with the charming villages of Byland and Coxwold to its west and south west. Ampleforth’s name means ‘ford where sorrel grows’. The old village of Ampleforth is a pretty place, situated along a long main street with a Norman church dedicated to St Hilda, just to its south.
To the west of Ampleforth village towards Coxwold is the village of Wass and the nearby Byland Abbey that dates back to medieval times. Just to the east of Ampleforth is Ampleforth College and Ampleforth Abbey which belong to a more recent century.
Ampleforth College is a famous Roman Catholic ‘public’ school, which is of course in fact a private school. The college and abbey trace their origins to English Benedictine monks from Dieulourard in Lorraine who settled at Ampleforth in 1802. Dieulourard itself was originally established by Benedictine monks from England back in 1619.
The monks returned to England to escape the Revolution in France, departing from the Gallic shores in 1793 and finally settling at this beautiful spot in northern Yorkshire, where they enlarged an existing house on the site that dated from the 1780s.
The abbey church at Ampleforth was initially built by Charles Hansom in 1857 who also worked on Ushaw in County Durham but the first church was subsequently replaced by the huge new Gothic style church designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. The new church was commenced in 1922 and completed in 1961. At the western end of the monastery is Alban Roe House which dates from 1916 and serves as a visitor centre, shop and tearoom for visitors to the abbey.
The first building for the school that came to be Ampleforth College was constructed in the early 1860s with several new wings and additions built during the twentieth century.
Some of the furniture in Ampleforth College library was made by the ‘mouseman’ furniture designer Robert Thompson of Kilburn.
The village of Oswaldkirk to the east of Ampleforth is named from a church dedicated to St Oswald, who was probably the saint who was also the Anglo-Saxon King of Northumbria, though there was more than one St Oswald.
An Anglo-Saxon cross shaft incorporated into the masonry suggests there was a church here in Anglo-Saxon times when Yorkshire formed part of Northumbria. Parts of the church are Norman but much is a Victorian restoration. Oswaldkirk Hall in the village is of Georgian origin as too is the local pub, ‘The Malt Shovel’.
East Gilling
The village of Gilling (also known as East Gilling or Gilling East) is situated along with Gilling Castle to the south east of Ampleforth and south of Oswaldkirk. East Gilling should not be confused with the village of Gilling near Richmond which is sometimes known as Gilling West or West Gilling.
East Gilling church, dedicated to the Holy Cross dates in part to 1200 and includes monuments to the Fairfax family within. The Fairfax name is also commemorated in the name of the village pub, the Fairfax Arms.
The impressive Gilling Castle, a private abode, is situated on a hill overlooking East Gilling and began as a tower house built by Thomas Etton sometime in the fourteenth century. Later in 1492 it passed to the Fairfax family and remained in their hands until 1793.
Most of the castle of today dates from their period of occupancy. Part of the castle was purchased by Ampleforth College as a preparatory school. An interesting gallery from the castle can be seen at Barnard Castle’s Bowes Museum in County Durham.
Hovingham
East of Gilling is the lovely village of Hovingham which is home to Hovingham Hall. The hall was built in 1760 by a Surveyor General to George III, called Sir Thomas Worsley.
The site of a Roman villa was found within the grounds of the house during the eighteenth century but there is nothing to be seen today.
Hovingham church, dedicated to All Saints is a church of the 1860s except for the church tower which dates to Anglo-Saxon times. Also found here is an Anglo-Saxon cross and a possible Anglo-Saxon altar.
Hovingham lies on a Roman Road leading east to Malton along which we pass the villages of Fryton, Slingsby, Barton-le-Street, Appleton-le-Street, Amotherby, Swinton and Broughton before reaching Malton.
Amotherby and Slingsby are Viking place-names that respectively belonged to Vikings called Eymundr and Sleng. Amotherby has a mostly Norman church containing Anglo-Danish sculpture from the late Viking age. Slingsby is home to the ruins of Slingsby Castle which was in fact a Jacobean manor house built for Sir Charles Cavendish in the 1620s.
Appleton-le-Street and Barton-le-Street (‘apple farm’ and ‘barley farm’) are English place-names to which the French element ‘-le-‘ has been added. Both places refer to the ‘street’, a common feature of place-names situated upon a Roman road. Other such examples include Chester-le-Street in County Durham. Closer to Hovingham is the tiny hamlet of Wath where the Roman road crosses the Wath Beck. ‘Wath’ was a Viking word for a ford.
Stonegrave and Nunnington
To the north of Hovingham are the villages of Stonegrave and Nunnington. Stonegrave is the smaller and more southerly of the two. There is some debate about the name but ‘stone grove’ seems apt with stone cliffs exposed behind the village houses that overlook the church in the grove below. Stonegrave church has an exterior of the 1860s but the interior is part-Norman. Known as Stonegrave Minster, a sign near its entrance notes that the first church was founded here before AD 757.
An Anglo-Saxon cross and a carved Anglo-Danish slab certainly point to the early origins of the site. The village is situated on the north side of a stream called Holbeck and to the west are the villages of Oswaldkirk and East Gilling.
Nunnington, to the north of Stonegrave, is situated on the south bank of the River Rye. The mostly thirteenth century church in the village is dedicated to All Saints and St James.
The church has a tower of around 1672, and a Norman nave and chancel but the site includes Anglo-Saxon sculptures that again, as at Stonegrave, point to earlier origins.
Nunnington Hall, a National Trust property lies on the east side of Nunnington village alongside the bank of the River Rye. It is a Tudor manor house built in 1655 by Ranald Graham. Nearby are almshouses of the seventeenth century.
An earlier occupant of the hall was Robert Huickes who was a physician to Henry VIII and later to Elizabeth I. It was Robert who had the unenviable task of informing the Queen that she was unable to have children.
Running parallel to the River Rye, just north of Nunnington, is the River Riccal that joins the Rye two miles to the east of the hall. Riccal’s name means ‘Rye Calf’, calf being a name for a small island near a larger one. Numerous ‘islands’ are still formed here in the flat boggy land between the Rye and the Riccal. The Riccal should not be confused with the village of Riccall near Selby.
Slightly east of the Riccal-Rye confluence, the Rye is joined by the River Dove near Salton and a little over a mile to the south east it is then joined by the River Seven (that is ‘Seven’ and not ‘Severn’). The Seven joins the Rye near Brawby and Great Barugh. From here the Rye heads towards the River Derwent near Malton.
Salton is home to a significant Norman church dedicated to St John of Beverley which survives despite suffering a fire during the twelfth century not long after it was built. The name of Salton derives from sallow (or willow trees) which thrive in wet meadowland conditions near rivers.
North west of Nunnington is Harome on the north side of the River Riccal south east of Helmsley. It has a nineteenth century church (1862) dedicated to St Saviour. Harome is variously recorded as ‘Harun’, ‘Harem’ and ‘Harum’ at the time of the Domesday Book (1086) and means ‘amongst the stones’. It is thought the place may be one of the origins for the surname Heron (de Hairun), although this particular surname is now most closely associated with Northumberland.
Beadlam and St Gregory’s Minster
North of Harome, along the A170 to the east of Helmsley, are the villages of Beadlam and Nawton. Nawton derives from ‘Naghleton’ and the first part of the name is from a Viking personal name ‘Nagli’ combined with the Anglo-Saxon ‘ton’ meaning ‘farm’. Beadlam comes from the Anglo-Saxon ‘Bothl-um’ which means ‘at the buildings’. Interestingly, the remains of Beadlam Roman villa can be seen to the west of the village where the River Riccal crosses beneath the A170. Perhaps these are the ‘buildings’ referred to in the place-naming of Beadlam.
A little south of the A170 to the east of Nawton and Bedlam is the tidy village of Wombleton which has a name that includes an old Anglo-Saxon personal name Wynnbeald. He presumably owned the village in times long past.
East of Wombleton and Nawton, the A170 crosses the Hodge Beck that flows southward down from the moors forming Kirkdale. To the south of the A170 the beck passes near the farming settlement of Welburn and the Jacobean Welburn Hall before joining the River Dove near Great Edstone. Upstream to the north of the A170, the Hodge Beck is crossed by the disused Kirkdale Viaduct that once carried a railway line across the beck.
A little further upstream to the north along the beck is the lovely St Gregory’s Minster that sits alongside the western bank of the beck. This is a lovely secluded spot. St Gregory’s began as a late Anglo-Saxon church with later additions dating from Norman times onwards.
Above the doorway of the church is a really fascinating gem, a sundial of the Anglo-Saxon era with an inscription that says this church was constructed in the time of King Edward (the Confessor) and Earl Tostig which places the origin of the sundial and establishment of the church at around 1060.
Above the dial are the words ‘THIS IS DÆGES SOL MERCA’ which translates as ‘this is day’s sun mark’. The words in the semi-circle below read ‘ÆT ILCUM TIDE’ (‘at every time’). Below this is written ‘+ & HAWARD ME WROHTE & BRAND PRS’ which means ‘Haward me wrought and Brand (the) priest’ who were seemingly two men involved in the foundation and construction of the church.
The words in the carved panels either side of the dial record that Orm, the son of Gamal bought St Gregory’s Minster when it was all fallen and broken and then had the minster built anew. The inscription further notes that Orm dedicated the church to Christ and St Gregory in Edward’s day as king when Tostig was Earl (of Northumbria).
Kirkbymoorside
Along the A170 east of of the Hodge Beck, we find the beautiful little market town of Kirkbymoorside which like Helmsley to the west and Pickering to the east, is a good centre for exploring Ryedale, the North York Moors and the Vale of Pickering. There are several features of interest in the town.
At the heart of Kirkbymoorside is the Market Place, consisting of a wide street, with other old streets at the centre including Church Street, Crown Square, Percy End and Tinley Garth. To the north of the town centre are Castlegate and Dale End.
Castlegate leads to the site of Kirkbymoorside’s long-gone castle where there are scant traces of a moat. The castle had belonged to the Stuteville family in Norman times. The parish church that gives its name to Kirkbymoorside (‘Kirk-by’ is Viking for ‘church village’) is situated along Church Street. The ‘Moorside’ element of the town’s name describes Kirkbymoorside’s situation on the edge of the North York Moors where streams enter the low lying Vale of Pickering.
Dedicated to All Saints, Kirkbymoorside’s parish church is of Norman and medieval origin, but a range of Anglo-Saxon Christian sculptures found here point to there being an earlier church.
The eastern end of the church was constructed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the early 1870s but incorporates a Norman chancel window. Other religious buildings in the town include a Congregational Chapel that dates from 1793 and a Methodist Chapel of 1860.
The prominent tollbooth building in the market place, dating perhaps to around 1700 is thought to incorporate stones from Kirkbymoorside’s long-gone castle. To the rear of the tollbooth is Crown Square where we find the old market cross (or Buttercross) that is thought to be of seventeenth century origin.
Across the market place street directly opposite the toll booth is the Kings Head Hotel and next door is a notable house in which the colourful courtier, George Villiers (1628-1687), the Second Duke of Buckingham died.
A favourite of King Charles II, Villiers was one of the most powerful figures in the country in his time, wielding huge political influence and power during King Charles’ reign. He was the son of George Villiers (1592-1628), First Duke of Buckingham, who had likewise been a powerful ‘favourite’ during the reigns of James I and Charles I. The first Duke was assassinated when the younger Villiers was only seven months old.
The younger Villiers, whose connection to this part of Yorkshire came from his marriage to Anne, a daughter of the 3rd Lord Fairfax, was very much involved in the political intrigues of the time but fell out of favour with Charles II and subsequently stripped of his powers.
Villiers had retired from politics by the reign of King Charles II’s successor, King James II and came into ownership of Helmsley Castle which he partly restored. He died on April 16, 1687 at the house in Kirkbymoorside (now known as Buckingham House) which was home to one of his tenants. The duke died after catching a chill while out hunting in the nearby moors.
Buckingham is sometimes said to have died penniless but this seems to have been far from the case, although his wealth was not near as great as during the height of his power. He was given a grand burial in Westminster Abbey.
Further down the street to the south of Buckingham House and the Kings Head are the George and Dragon inn and the Black Swan inn which, like the Kings Head, are establishments of character. The Black Swan features an interesting timber-framed porch that is dated 1632.
Hutton-le-Hole and Lastingham
East of Kirkbymoorside the little River Dove is crossed by the A170 at Kirby Mills near Keldholme. The Dove flows southward coming down from the North York Moors. An upper part of this river valley in the moors is called Ferndale and is famed for its springtime daffodils that have earned it the name ‘Dale of the Daffodils’.
South of the A170, within the Vale of Pickering the River Dove passes close to the village of Great Edstone after which it is joined by the Hodge Beck and continues onward to join the River Rye south of Salton.
North of the A170, a road from Keldholme heads up the dale of the River Dove onward to the pretty villages of Hutton-le-Hole and Lastingham up in the moors.
Hutton-le-Hole’s name means ‘high farm near the hollow’ (the hollow being the ‘Hole’ of the name). The village is situated in something of a dip in which we find the Hutton Beck, flowing through the village in a very picturesque way. The village was formerly known as ‘Heg Hoton’ – a heg being land enclosed for hunting.
The Hutton Beck flows south through the moors to the east of the River Dove but it is not a tributary of that river. To the south Hutton Beck becomes the Catter Beck and makes its own way into the Vale of Pickering, joining the River Seven south of Sinnington.
Hutton-le-Hole is a rather beautiful moorland village brimming with character. Features of note include the old school of 1875 with its prominent bell turret. The village is also the home to the Ryedale Folk Museum, a great starting point to find out about the history and heritage of the area.
The ‘Le-Hole’ of the name was added by the Norman French to distinguish Hutton from other northern Huttons of which there are many. Hutton-le-Hole should not be confused with the former coal mining town of Hetton-le-Hole in County Durham.
Across the River Dove west of Hutton-le-Hole is the pretty village of Gillamoor with a good viewpoint nearby. The name Gillamoor seems to mean ‘expanse of land belonging to the Getlingas’ a people who are also thought to be remembered in the name of East Gilling. It is likely a tribal or kinship name, a kind of place-name sometimes referred to as a ‘folk name’.
Gillamoor is home to a nineteenth century church dedicated to St Aidan, built in 1802 and restored in 1880. The village pub is called the Royal Oak. Further to the west is the village of Fadmoor, about half way between the River Dove and the Hodge Beck.
To the north of Hutton-le-Hole, the Blakey Ridge road across the moors eventually takes us to Castleton in Eskdale after passing the Blakey Ridge Lion Inn and Young Ralph’s Cross. However, we will now return south to Hutton-le-Hole.
East of Hutton-le-Hole, in between the valley of the River Dove and the River Seven is the village of Lastingham. It is situated on the Lastingham Beck that feeds the River Seven to the east.
Lastingham was the site of a monastery founded by St Cedd in AD 654, that was destroyed by the Danes in the ninth century.
A Norman church was founded on the site by Stephen, the abbot of Whitby, but around 1088 the monks abandoned the site and moved to St Mary’s Abbey in York.
The crypt of the Norman foundation lies beneath Lastingham’s church of St Mary, which dates from the thirteenth century, although the tower is of the fifteenth century.
Going deeper into the moors still, four miles to the north along and up the dale of the River Seven we find the hamlet of Rosedale Abbey. It was the site of a Cistercian nunnery in the twelfth century that was destroyed by Scots in 1322.
Now following the valley of the Seven southward from Lastingham, we have the village of Appleton-le-Moors to the west of the river valley. It is situated on a long main street called Headlands Road. There are several pleasing Georgian houses of stone in this village and a church called Christ Church dating from the 1860s.
Over to the east of the River Seven is the village of Cropton where there are traces of a Norman motte and bailey castle with commanding views of Rosedale. The nearby church, dedicated to St Gregory dates from the 1840s.
To the south of Cropton and Appleton-le-Moors the River Seven reaches the A170 near the village of Sinnington. Early spellings of this village name point to its name being a reference to the River Seven (Syfeningtun) and the people who resided in its valley. South of the A170 as we enter the Vale of Pickering, the River Seven joins the River Rye near Brawby and Great Barugh.
Pickering
East of Sinnington the town of Pickering is approached along the A170 after passing the villages of Wrelton, Aislaby and Middleton. Wrelton, bypassed on the north side of the A170 may derive from ‘wearg-hyll-tun’ meaning ‘felon’s hill farm’ and was perhaps the site of a gallows in early times. Aislaby on the A170 just to the east has a Viking name and means farm or village belonging to Aslak.
Next along the A170 from Aislaby is Middleton, a larger village with a main street bordered on its south side by several long strips of land that were land plots dating back to medieval times and now form household gardens.
The church at Middleton, on the north side of the road is dedicated to St Andrew. Much of this church is Norman but the tower is Anglo-Saxon. Like many historic churches in this part of Yorkshire, St Andrew’s was a site for Anglo-Danish cross sculptures. Immediately east of Middleton we reach the town of Pickering.
Pickering means the people of Picer or Picere and is either an old personal name for an Anglo-Saxon, or an unknown tribal name that could mean the dwellers at the edge of the ‘pic’ or hill. A similar place-name is Dickering in the East Riding of Yorkshire that is thought to mean ‘dwellers at the edge of the dyke’.
Pickering is surname as well as a place-name but the place-name came first. The first record of Pickering as a surname was a person called Reginald de Pickering in 1165. The surname means ‘from Pickering’ and many people with this surname can now be found in places far beyond Yorkshire.
The town of Pickering gives its name to the Vale of Pickering that lies between the Yorkshire Wolds to the south and North York Moors to the north. The coast and the town of Scarborough can be found on the eastern flank of the vale.
The Vale of Pickering is primarily drained by the River Derwent. Flowing south for a short distance it comes within a few miles of Scarborough on the coast but surprisingly flows west, even though the east coast is only a few miles away. A man-made sea-cut or canal does however link the upper part of the river with the sea at Scalby on the northern side of Scarborough via the Scalby Beck.
Pickering Castle lies on the north side of Pickering town overlooking the Pickering Beck. It is thought to have been originally built by William the Conqueror but the earliest parts of the castle date from between 1180 and 1300. Historically, the castle belonged to the Earls of Lancaster.
Pickering Railway Station in Park Street is the southern terminus of the North York Moors Railway, a heritage railway, thought to be the busiest heritage railway line in the world. Served by both steam locomotives and heritage diesel locomotives, the railway is owned by a charity called the North York Moors Historical Railway Trust. The station at Pickering features a 1930s theme and includes a tearoom and visitor centre.
North of Pickering the railway follows the course of the Pickering Beck upstream where we find railway stations at Levisham and Newtondale Halt (a request stop). Further north across the moors the next railway stations are at Goathland and Grosmont, from where visitors may continue north along the Esk Valley line to Whitby.
Roads head out across the moors from Pickering too. From Park Street, passing Pickering Station and Pickering Castle, a road heads north. Initially within Pickering this road is called Undercliffe and lies within the deep ravine of Pickering Beck with the castle high on the cliff above.
Lockton, Levisham, Hole of Horcum
Leaving Pickering and heading northward, the street called Undercliffe becomes Yatts Road as it heads across the moors to the west of the beck. The main settlement along this route is the village of Newton-on-Rawcliffe about four miles north of Pickering.
A further four miles to the north we can see traces of the Wheeldale Roman Road complete with drainage ditches and its hard core set within the bleak moorland. English Heritage who maintain the road do say that the road is “probably Roman but possibly later or earlier”.
Another route north from Pickering across the moors is the A189 road to Whitby with the Pickering Beck valley to its west and the valley of the Thornton Beck (heading for Thornton-le-Dale) to the east. Along this road about seven miles slightly north east of Pickering we reach the lovely moorland villages of Lockton and Lewisham.
The moorland area surrounding these two villages is rich in prehistory with numerous clusters of scattered tumuli and entrenchments as well as three remaining standing stones of a stone circle at Blakey Topping, about two and a half miles north east of Lockton towards Flylingdales.
Lockton has a name that means ‘Loca’s Farm’. The little church dedicated to St Giles looks like a Victorian restoration but much is still medieval including the fifteenth century tower.
Levisham, Lockton’s twin across the deep valley of the Levisham Beck to the north west is reached by an undulating road. There are two churches at Levisham. One is dedicated to St John the Baptist and dates from the 1880s but the other older church, dedicated to St Mary, is set away from the village to the south, where it nestles in the valley bottom. An Anglo-Danish gravestone slab here features the head of a dragon or serpent of some kind.
About two miles north of Lockton along the A189 motorists can use the car park at Saltergate to take in the neighbouring view of the Hole of Horcum, a natural feature formed by the gouging of a glacier. The second part of the name is from ‘cumb’ or ‘combe’ meaning a declivity or ‘cwm’.
The first part of the name is from an old Anglo-Saxon word ‘horh’ meaning ‘filthy’. This word also occurs in the name of Urra, a farming hamlet between Stokesley and Chop Gate. The name of Urra derives from ‘horh-howe’ meaning ‘filth hill’.
Northward along the A189 from the Hole of Horcum we pass the Fylingdale RAF base and early warning station if we are to continue the journey north to Whitby. However, here we will return southward where the Thornton Beck valley takes to Thornton-le-Dale, Pickering’s eastern village neighbour.
Thornton-le-Dale
Two miles east of Pickering on the A170 Scarborough road is Thornton-le-Dale (or Thornton Dale) which is often described as the ‘prettiest village in Yorkshire’ or at least one of the prettiest.
Thornton has a fourteenth century church dedicated to All Saints. Opposite the church is a rectory of 1839 and nearby is Thornton Hall. The former almshouses in the village date to 1657 and were bestowed by Lady Lumley.
Thornton is a lovely village often providing inspiration for artists. It is certainly a very lovely place though there are of course many other pretty villages in Yorkshire for competition.
North East of Thornton-le-Dale the wide expanses of the Forestry Commission’s Dalby Forest occupy the moorlands stretching eastward to merge with Langdale, Wykeham and Broxa Forests that host the upper reaches of the River Derwent north west of Scarborough.
East of Thornton-le-Dale are a series of villages strung out along the A170 road to Scarborough, namely Wilton; Allerston; Ebberston; Snainton; Brompton-by-Sawdon; Ruston; Wykeham; Hutton Buscel and finally West and East Ayton that are separated by the River Derwent where it is crossed by the A170.
Slightly south east of the Aytons is the village of Seamer and just to the east, the town of Scarborough itself. South of here and strung out along the A64 on the south side of the Derwent are the villages of Folkton, Flixton, Sherburn, Rillington and Scagglethorpe, all historically in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Along the A64 heading west we will eventually cross the River Derwent back into the old North Riding and into the historic town of Malton.
Malton
Malton, known as ‘The Food Capital of Yorkshire’ almost forms, along with neighbouring Norton, to its south, three towns in one. The three places are Old Malton and Malton on the north side of the River Derwent and the town of Norton-on-Derwent over on the south side of the river.
Norton, like the villages of Scagglethorpe and Rillington to its east was historically an East Riding town, while Malton (and Old Malton) belong to the North Riding, being north of the River Derwent. However, Malton Railway station is just across the River Derwent in the town of Norton. It is perhaps confusing that Norton which means ‘North-Farm’ is actually the place south of the river.
Malton is situated on raised land above the Vale of Pickering and occupies an area that seems to have been an important place of settlement going back to prehistoric times. It was the site of a Roman fort called Derventio that lies in ‘New Malton’ (Malton) on the north side of the river.
Early spellings of Malton include Maaltun and Mialtun but there are a wide variety of early forms and place-name experts believe it was originally ‘maethel-tun’ which in the language of the Anglo-Saxons is thought to mean the ‘place of speech’, suggesting that it was some sort of meeting place – the location for a moot. It is thought that the word ‘maethel’ came to be confused with a Viking word meaning ‘middle’, so that Malton was thought to mean ‘middle’ place.
After the Norman Conquest Malton belonged to the De Vesci family who built a castle on part of the site of the Roman fort. The De Vescis also held the castle at Alnwick in Northumberland.
Malton castle was superseded by a Jacobean (early seventeenth century) mansion that was built on its site for the Eure family but it was pulled down in 1674 with only the wall and impressive battlemented and extraordinary large lodge house still remaining.
The lodge stands at what was the south west corner of the eight acre Roman fort of Derventio but there are very few traces of the Roman site. Malton’s Orchard Field marks the site of part of the Roman fort’s north east corner.
As there are two Maltons, the distinction between Old and New Malton can be a little confusing but both places have a long history and it is the ‘New’ Malton that was the site of both the castle and Roman fort, but likely that Old Malton was the first place to be called Malton.
Nevertheless it seems that the De Vescis who owned the castle fortified the town of New Malton and built a wall around it to supplement the defences of the castle. In 1135, during the period of ‘the Anarchy‘ Malton Castle was captured by the Scots who came under attack from the army of Thurstan, the Archbishop of York. Thurstan who burned the town, destroyed Malton’s walled defences and besieged the castle.
The town and castle was subsequently rebuilt by Eustace Fitz John who inherited the manor through his De Vesci mother. It was Eustace who also founded the Gilbertine priory at Old Malton.
Malton has long been an important trading centre at the heart of a farming district and had also once been an important centre for the shipping trade back in the days of wooden sailing ships. Small sailing ships navigated here and the town was even the home to a shipbuilding industry as well as hosting breweries and flour mills powered by the river.
There are two interesting churches of medieval origin in the town. One is the church of St Michael in Malton’s Market Place. It is a Norman church with a ‘Perpendicular’ style tower of the later medieval era.
St Leonard is Malton’s other medieval church and is situated in Church Hill. Its recessed spire was added in the nineteenth century. Both St Michael and St Leonard’s churches were historically chapelries of the church at Old Malton that was associated with the Gilbertine monastery situated there.
Malton is also home to some interesting Non-Conformist churches including a Congregational Chapel (1815) and a Wesleyan Methodist Chapel (1811) both in Saville Street; a Baptist Chapel (1822) and Roman Catholic Church (1837) both in Wells Lane and a Friends’ Meeting House (Quakers) in Greengate.
The Market Place is home to the eighteenth century Town Hall with lots of other buildings of interest here as well as in the neighbouring streets of the town.
Streets at the heart of the old town include Market Street; the Shambles; Spital Street; Yorkersgate (where we find Malton Museum); Horsemarket Road; Newbiggin; Newgate; Castlegate; St Michael’s Street, Wheelgate and Finkle Street.
Old Malton and Eden Camp
Old Malton, to the north west of Malton is much smaller than Malton itself and has more of village feel, but the main street here is called Town Street so this too was once town. Old Malton was the site of the Gilbertine priory founded by Eustace Fitz John.
Parts of the very prominent church of St Mary are the most significant remains of the old priory. This church was once the main parish church for both the Maltons, with the two medieval churches in Malton itself being subordinate chapelries.
The church at Old Malton is still a large and significant edifice but was once much larger, in keeping with its status as the priory church.
Sadly, there are very few traces of the monastic establishment at the heart of which this church once stood. The priory of course fell victim to the reforming changes of Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the monasteries in the 1530s. Originally the monastery buildings stretched from the church down towards the river.
Eden Camp Museum is sited close to Old Malton just across the A64 to the north. It was the site of a Second World War prisoner camp. Most of the huts of the old prison camp have been converted into a museum portraying life during the war years. Eden Camp is one of Yorkshire’s most extensive visitor attractions.
The town of Pickering lies seven miles north across the Vale of Pickering north of Malton but the vale could just as easily be called ‘Vale of Malton’ as the most important watercourses converge in Malton’s vicinity. Near Eden Farm north of Eden Camp museum, the east flowing River Rye joins the south-west flowing River Derwent.
About three miles west of here the Rye itself has been joined by the River Seven and a further mile west the Rye is joined by the River Dove. All of these rivers have left their moorland beginnings far behind in this fenland landscape within the vale.
The A169 links the towns of Malton and Pickering and just north of Eden Farm where the road crosses the Rye, the Rye is joined from the north by Costa Beck that is fed in its upper reaches by Pickering Beck. Just east of the A169 are the little hamlets of Low Marishes and High Marishes named from neighbouring marshlands.
A little further north and west of the A169 close to where the Pickering and Costa Becks merge is Kirby Misperton and the Flamingo Land theme park established as a zoo by Edwin Pentland Hick in 1959. The village of Kirby Misperton incorporates the Viking name ‘Kirby’ (‘church-farm or church-village’). ‘Misperton’ may derive, if you pardon the pun, from a misspell of an old word ‘Mispel’ that means ‘Medlar tree’. West of Kirby Misperton, towards the River Seven are the villages of Great and Little Barugh, both deriving from ‘beorg’ an old word for a hill.
Castle Howard
Castle Howard is located near the Howardian Hills east of Malton and is one of Yorkshire’s great houses. It was built by Sir John Vanbrugh and was his first major project.
Charles Howard, the 3rd Earl of Carlisle chose Vanbrugh to build this great house – the largest house in Yorkshire. It was built to replace Henderskelfe Castle that had existed on this site until it burnt down in 1693.
The choice of Vanbrugh as architect was surprising as he was principally known as a playwright and only an amateur architect at the time. Vanbrugh chose Nicholas Hawksmoor as his Clerk of Works and together they formed a famous partnership.
Castle Howard was built between 1700 and 1726 and made Vanbrugh and Hawksmoor into hugely successful architects. Later they would also build the famous Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire for the Dukes of Marlborough.
Castle Howard is still in the hands of the Howard family today. The grounds of the house cover 1,000 acres including lakes, a walled garden, temples and the Atlas Fountain.
Architectural features within the grounds include Vanbrugh’s temple of Four Winds and Hawksmoor’s Mausoleum which is of church-like proportions. Castle Howard itself is one of the grand architectural wonders of Yorkshire.
To the north of Castle Howard is the village of Coneysthorpe on the road northward to Slingsby while to the west is the village of Terrington situated within the Howardian Hills. Both villages belong to the Castle Howard estate.
Coneysthorpe has a Danish Viking name which means ‘the king’s village’ incorporating the old Danish word ‘kunung’ meaning king. It was presumably a village held directly by the Danish kings of York. An attractive village facing a long green it is home to a late Georgian church dating from 1835.
Terrington, an Anglo-Saxon place-name which features a personal name of something along the lines of ‘Teofer’ is a particularly eye-catching village with a medieval church dedicated to All Saints.
Like Castle Howard, the Howardian Hills are named from the Howard family. They are modest hills compared to those of the North Yorkshire Moors but a place of beauty and create an almost continuous link with the Yorkshire Wolds to the south. Consisting of well-wooded rolling countryside the Howardian Hills are officially an area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB).
The River Derwent, heading in the direction of Stamford Bridge near York cuts through these hills to the south east of Malton. Here the valley plays host to the ruins of Kirkham Priory over on the old East Riding side of the River Derwent. The abbey was founded in 1125 by Augustinian canons.
Huttons Ambo on the North Riding bank of the Derwent north towards Malton refers to the combined villages of Low Hutton and High Hutton on opposite ‘steps’ or slopes, either side of a hill. Hutton means ‘hill village’ while ‘ambo’ is a word for a pulpit with steps at either side.
Six miles south-west of Malton on the edge of the Yorkshire Wolds we find the ruined church and hidden remains of the deserted medieval village of Wharram Percy.
Sheriff Hutton and Bulmer
The villages of Bulmer and Sheriff Hutton lie south-east of the Castle Howard estate and south of the Howardian Hills half way between Malton and the City of York. Sheriff Hutton is named because it was once held by Bertram Bulmer, the Sheriff of York who died in 1166. The castle here, situated on a moorland ledge can be seen from miles around.
The Bulmer family take their name from Bulmer which is a few miles north east of Sheriff Hutton towards Castle Howard. Bulmer (the village) means Bull’s mere, a lake frequented by a bull.
The church at Bulmer, dedicated to St Martin is Norman and built on the site of an earlier Anglo-Saxon church. Bulmer village gave its name to the Bulmer Wapentake, one of the ancient administrative divisions of Yorkshire. This wapentake (from a Viking word that described taking weapons to an assembly point for a meeting) encompassed places north of York such as Huntington, Haxby, Strensall, Huby, Easingwold and Raskelf.
Ansketil de Bulmer was the first recorded member of the Bulmer family who lived in the area in the twelfth century. Ansketil was the High Sheriff of the North Riding of Yorkshire. The surname Bulmer is the subject of much discussion as it is believed that they were an aristocratic family of Anglo-Saxon origin who retained their status after the invasion of the Normans. It is believed that the Bulmers were related to the Anglo-Saxon noble Liulf, who was the first member of a family called Lumley.
In those days the Lumleys were connected with Chester-le-Street in County Durham where a castle still bears their name. Liulf Lumley was murdered at Gateshead by the retainers of the first Norman Bishop of Durham called William Walcher in 1081. In later times the Lumleys were the Earls of Scarborough and have strong historic links with Ryedale.
The Bulmers are something of an enigma. They are thought to have continued as tenants of the Normans who inherited Liulf’s land in Yorkshire. Sometime in the twelfth century Ansketil Bulmer is said to have married the daughter of the Lord of Brancepeth Castle in Durham and their son Bertram Bulmer, who succeeded him as High Sheriff of Yorkshire inherited the property.
Later the Bulmers intermarried with the powerful Norman family called the Nevilles, who adopted the Bull’s head for their coat of arms and inherited Brancepeth Castle. Raby Castle, the other great Neville property in Durham may also have belonged to the Bulmers as the oldest Anglo-Saxon part of Raby Castle called the ‘Bulmer tower’ is inscribed with the initials ‘BB’ for Bertram Bulmer.
Later the Nevilles with their Bulmer blood would rise to great heights and produce non other than Warwick the Kingmaker who had strong historical associations with Middleham Castle in Wensleydale.
Sheriff Hutton Castle is thought to have been built by Bertram de Bulmer around 1140 and although today an inaccessible ruin, it is still an impressive site. Situated next to Castle Farm there is a public footpath around the perimeter of the castle. Note that after wet days this path can become extremely slippy on the south side of the castle where razor-sharp bramble bushes might protect you from slipping into the water-filled castle moat.
Sheriff Hutton village itself is situated upon a long Main Street with adjoining streets including Finkle Street. Towards the eastern side of the village is a village green and at the far eastern end of the village is Sherif Hutton church. The church is Norman and dedicated to St Helen and Holy Cross. It contains the effigy of a cross-legged fourteenth century knight thought to be Sir Edmund Thweng.
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