The Spirit of Christmas Past

Layham held a scarecrow festival this year with the theme of Dickens characters, and here are images from the ones near the church. The idea was raising funds for the church and I think about £200 was the total raised.

The Spirit of Christmas Past appropriately surrounded by mist one morning

The Old Curiosity Shop

 More of The Spirit of Christmas Past

Great idea and my only wish, in hindsight, was that I had photographed more of them. Ah well, another time!

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A quick look in Ripon Cathedral

Our last place to visit with Gra and Jane was Ripon, not far from our holiday home High Oak,  near Pickhill. 

The doorways in the West end - and I missed the splendid Gothic façade

I took very few images, which in hindsight was a mistake - I have learnt in the last few years what a wealth of history I have missed. A revisit is needed!
The Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Wilfrid, commonly known as Ripon Cathedral, is a cathedral in the North Yorkshire city of Ripon. Founded as a monastery by Scottish monks in the 660s, it was re-founded as a Benedictine monastery by St Wilfrid in 672

St Wilfrid, who built the stone church, with its still-surviving crypt, died in 710. Only four years later, an account of his life was written by a monk, known to us as Stephen of Ripon. He tells us that this was the first church to be built by Wilfrid, and that the church and its monastic community remained the favourite of all of his foundations. It was to Ripon that his body was brought after his death at Oundle, one of his later monasteries. In order to build it, Wilfrid followed a practice that he had observed in the great basilicas of Rome: he re-used Roman stone and Roman columns, in this case bringing them from the major Roman site of Aldborough (Isurium Brigantum), only a few miles away. The church was dedicated to St Peter, reflecting Wilfrid’s strong commitment to the Roman tradition of Christianity at a time when the Celtic tradition was still strong in Northumbria.
The cathedral is notable architecturally for its gothic west front in the Early English style, considered one of the best of its type, as well as the Geometric east window. The seventh-century crypt of Wilfrid's church is a significant example of early Christian architecture in England.

A new sculpture depicting the Virgin Mary holding the baby Jesus has been bequeathed to the Cathedral by Yorkshire artist and former mining engineer, Malcolm Brocklesby, who died in 2010. The piece, called ‘Madonna of the Cross’, shows the Virgin Mary dedicating her child to God. Her figure is integrated with the cross, but she is looking beyond Calvary to the Resurrection. It is hoped that the sculpture will become a focus for prayer requests. A second version of the sculpture was commissioned by English Heritage for Mount Grace Priory.

Ripon is famed for its misericords, dating from between c.1489 and 1494. Remarkably, despite the severe damage of the Civil War, when the medieval glass was destroyed, the misericords survived intact. 

(A misericord (sometimes named mercy seat, like the Biblical object) is a small wooden structure formed on the underside of a folding seat in a church which, when the seat is folded up, is intended to act as a shelf to support a person in a partially standing position during long periods of prayer)

Three hands can be detected in these masterpieces of the carvers’ art, and very unusually, for a period when carvers are commonly anonymous, it has been possible to determine that they were created by the workshop of the Bromflet family, known in the Ripon historical record along with other named local carvers from around this date. With characters in the dress of the time, they present moralistic scenes, mythological creatures, and some biblical and doctrinal episodes, with extraordinary vigour and power.

Wilfrid’s crypt reflects the ecclesiastical structures that he had seen on his travels to Rome and in Rome itself, no doubt also including the few catacombs that were accessible in the seventh century. We know that on his first visit, in c.655-56, he spent many months in devotion at the shrines of saints. By the time the crypt was built he had also spent a considerable amount of time in Gaul, which likewise had underground chambers for saints’ relics in some of the major churches. The crypt was built within an excavated pit, and then the upper church was built above, covering a larger area. Although the church and the crypt were connected by the entrance and exit passages, they were not structurally related: the crypt was not load-bearing and was a complete structure within itself. It is this structural integrity and independence that has allowed the crypt to survive intact, despite the various sequences of destruction and rebuilding that have taken place above ground.

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Malham Cove and Janet's Foss

A glorious day when we headed for Malham. This was another area of Yorkshire we had heard so much about and were excited to see if it lived up to our expectations. 

These were a couple of images as we walked from Malham village toward our first `port of call` - Janet's Foss.

Behind the lovely waterfall of Janet’s Foss is a cave, hidden by the falling water. This is the home of Janet – Queen of the Fairies.There’s another cave close by called Janet’s Cave which visitors often mistake for the fairy’s home but this was just an unmagical overnight shelter for travelers and itinerant workers in past times.

The pool below the falls was used as a sheep wash, the water thought to bless the sheep with good health. Charles Kingsley knew this place and its stories, and he drew inspiration for The Water Babies from here, Malham Tarn and Arncliffe .

It’s a gorgeous spot but was a bit of a focus for deranged Victorian fairy hunters. 

The famous Gordale Scar. One of the jewels in the crown of the National Park, this awesome hidden gorge at Gordale has wowed visitors for hundreds of years and inspired famous artists and writers.

The water that flows over the waterfalls at the heart of the ravine is rich in dissolved limestone. This has precipitated out onto the mossy rocks to create the soft tufa screen that is such a feature at Gordale.

A view of our destination as we neared the top of the cove.

The limestone pavements on the top of the cove. You do have to watch your step, or a twisted ankle will come your way!

Conditions for limestone pavements are created when an advancing glacier scrapes away overburden and exposes horizontally bedded limestone, with subsequent glacial retreat leaving behind a flat, bare surface. Limestone is slightly soluble in water and especially in acid rain, so corrosive drainage along joints and cracks in the limestone can produce slabs called clints isolated by deep fissures called grikes or grykes[2] (terms derived from a northern English dialect). If the grykes are fairly straight and the clints are uniform in size, the resemblance to man-made paving stones is striking, but often they are less regular. Limestone pavements that develop beneath a mantle of topsoil usually exhibit more rounded forms.

View from the top, down toward the road.

A gathering storm as we made our way back home.

.... passing another famous landmark on the way - Ribblehead Viaduct. Ribblehead viaduct is probably the most famous of the many feats of Victorian engineering along the stunning Settle to Carlisle railway line. Its iconic location in the middle of the Three Peaks makes it a popular photo stop. 

The viaduct was built between 1870 and 1874 with up to 1000 navvies working on the construction site. The viaduct is 400m (440 yards) long with 24 arches spanning across Batty Moss. During construction the navvies were housed in camps close to the viaduct – Sebastopol, Belgravia and Batty Wife Hole – some of which had schools, libraries and pubs.  

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Fountains Abbey in Studley Royal Park

Studley Royal Park including the ruins of Fountains Abbey is a designated World Heritage Site in North Yorkshire, England. The site, which has an area of 323 hectares (800 acres) features an 18th-century landscaped garden, some of the largest Cistercian ruins in Europe, a Jacobean mansion and a Victorian church designed by William Burges. It was developed around the ruins of the Cistercian Fountains Abbey which is one of the largest and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England. It is located approximately 3 miles (5 kilometres) south-west of Ripon in North Yorkshire, near to the village of Aldfield. Founded in 1132, the abbey operated for 407 years becoming one of the wealthiest monasteries in England until its dissolution in 1539 under the order of Henry VIII.

For a summary of its history visit this link. It is well worth a visit and we had a great day here.

View of the ruins from one of the weirs

Fountains Abbey Mill is the only 12th century Cistercian cornmill in Britain and one of a few 

surviving in Europe. It was built originally as a huge monastic watermill and granary, but in its time has also been a sawmill, a stone masons’ workshop and even a generating station for electricity. The building, which has been in continuous use for over 850 years, measures 110 feet in length and has three storeys. Throughout its existence the mill has remained in the same ownership as Fountains Abbey. It was spared at the Dissolution of the Abbeys in 1539 because it was able to generate an income for the estate, of £3 per year!

The monks' cellarium (where food was stored)

We walked around other parts of the Studley Royal Park and came across this bridge in what is known as the Seven Bridges Valley

The magnificent St Mary's Church is one of the finest examples of High Victorian Gothic Revival architecture in England. It was designed in the 1870s by the flamboyant architect William Burges. Set within Studley Royal Park, a World Heritage Site which also includes the ruins of Fountains Abbey, the church has been called Burges's 'ecclesiastical masterpiece'.

The church was built by the Marquess and Marchioness of Ripon following a tragic family death in 1870. Its extravagantly decorated interior is influenced by 13th century English Gothic styles and displays coloured marble, stained glass, a splendid organ, and painted and gilded figures in all their original glory.

St Mary's Church is owned by English Heritage and managed by the National Trust.

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Helmsley, Roseberry and Mount Grace Priory

What a sunrise we were greeted with today!. This the view from the kitchen window as we made an early morning cuppa.

If you were asked to imagine the perfect English market town, then it'd probably look a lot like Helmsley! There's the bustling market square, the dramatic castle ruins, the charming tea rooms, the inviting inns; all surrounded by mile after mile of the beautiful North York Moors. Indeed, the Cleveland Way and Ebor Way both begin from here.

We spent some of the morning here and had lunch in one of those tea rooms.

One of the first things which strikes you as you arrive at the town square is a statue of William Duncombe, 2nd Baron Feversham. He was an important figure in many ways, hence the honour of the statue.

Briefly: William Duncombe, 2nd Baron Feversham (14 January 1798 – 11 February 1867) was a British peer with a large estate in the North Riding of Yorkshire. He was prominent in the affairs of the Royal Agricultural Society and owner of a prize-winning herd of short-horn cattle. He served as a Tory Member of Parliament (MP) for the Riding from 1832 to 1841, after which he sat in the House of Lords, having succeeded to the title on the death of his father. From 1826 to 1831 he had sat as an Ultra-Tory MP. He was the first MP to support Richard Oastler's campaign for Factory Reform, and gave it unwavering support for the rest of his life; in 1847 he seconded the Second Reading in the Lords of the Factory Act of that year (the 'Ten-Hour Act').

History:

The first castle at Helmsley was probably built after 1120 by Walter Espec, the founder of Rievaulx Abbey and Kirkham Priory. The castle then passed into the hands of the Roos family, who held it from until 1508 and were responsible for building most of the surviving stonework.

The castle was only besieged once, during the Civil War. This three month siege, conducted by Sir Thomas Fairfax, ended in November 1644. The defences of the castle were then destroyed, but the mansion remained intact, and actually became the home of Fairfax's daughter Mary, and her husband George Villiers, Second Duke of Buckingham (1628-1687)

In 1689 the estate was purchased by Sir Charles Duncombe, a London goldsmith, from the Duke's trustees. After twenty years occupying the castle, he built Duncombe Park (1711-1713), and the castle went out of use.

Espec's castle would have been a wooden construction, and it was probably he who was responsible building the massive ditches and banks that surround the castle.

The first stone castle was built by Robert de Roos, lord of Helmsley from 1190 to 1227. This phase of the building included the stone walls surrounding the inner ward, the lower level of the great tower or keep, and the tower on the south west wall. The keep was later heightened, probably around 1300 and the original roof line is still visible on the inner wall of the keep. Finally the square turrets at the top of the keep were added during the fourteenth century. The D-shaped keep was probably designed as a compromise between the military desire for round turrets and the domestic need for space.

The barbican (the protected area between the inner and outer gates) was added during the mid to late thirteenth century, linking up with the probable wooden outer walls on the bank.

The domestic accommodation was modified during the Elizabethan period, when the south western tower and nearby buildings were remodeled by the Manners family. The south west range still retains its roof, as well as some of the Elizabethan plaster work.

This remarkably well-preserved 16th century, thatched cruck-framed house was once the local inn and very much the centre of Bilsdale life. It closed its doors for the last time in 1914 when the new Sun Inn was built next door and from then time has stood still. 

The North York Moors is the only area in the east of the country where fairly large numbers of cottages of cruck construction occur. Most have been altered in some way so looking after Spout House is very important. In 1982, the North York Moors National Park Authority took over its care and restored the building.

It has traditional flagged floors which are uneven in places. The steps to the upper floor are very steep. Doorways on the upper floor are low.

Don`t think I would have had a very comfortable sleep in this bed!

Loved the old range in the kitchen and the flagstone floor.

Then onto Roseberry Topping which is a distinctive hill in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated near Great Ayton and Newton under Roseberry. Its summit has a distinctive half-cone shape with a jagged cliff. Until 1912, the summit resembled a sugarloaf until a geological fault and possibly nearby alum and ironstone mining caused its collapse. The area immediately below the summit is still extensively pitted and scarred from the former mineworks.

The hill was perhaps held in special regard by the Vikings who settled in Cleveland during the early medieval period and gave the area many of its place names.

We decided to climb to the top, a not too strenuous task, but worth the view. A spur of the Cleveland Way National Trail runs up to the summit. The path has been a sight-seeing excursion route for centuries due to the views of the Cleveland area from the summit; as early as 1700, travellers were recommended to visit the peak to see "the most delightful prospect upon the valleys below to the hills above." 

And this is the view from the top.

A field vole spotted at the start of the climb

Mount Grace Priory, in the parish of East Harlsey, North Yorkshire, England, within the North York Moors National Park, is today the best preserved and most accessible of the ten medieval Carthusian houses (charterhouses) in England. Set in woodlands, it was founded in 1398 by Thomas Holland, 1st Duke of Surrey and it was the last monastery established in Yorkshire, and one of the few founded anywhere in Britain in the period between the Black Death (1349–50) and the Reformation. It was a fairly small establishment, with space for a prior and twenty-three monks.

Mount Grace Priory consisted of a church and two cloisters. The northern cloister had sixteen cells whilst the southern had five cells, Frater and Prior's house and the Chapter House. To the west stood the lay brothers' quarters and the guest house.

Unlike monks of other orders, who live in common, the Carthusians—to this day—live as hermits, each occupying his own cell (more like a small house), and coming together only for the nocturnal liturgical hours, and on Sundays and feast-days, in the chapel; the other hours are sung by each monk separately in his cell. Except for the singing of the liturgy and conversation "on grave subjects" during a weekly three-hour exercise walk, Carthusians are silent, and their diet is strictly vegetarian

Another interesting day with Graham and Jane, and so back to High Oak.

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High Oak in Yorkshire and onto Jervaulx Abbey

The holiday `cottage` we had chosen for this holiday was on a farm in Pickhill in North Yorkshire - one of the best we have stayed in. Great people, fabulous bungalow, great views.

View from the kitchen window

One of the aims for this holiday was to visit some of the historic ruins of Yorkshire, Jervaulx being fairly close to us, this was our first one to visit.

Jervaulx Abbey ruins in East Witton near the city of Ripon, was one of the great Cistercian abbeys of Yorkshire, England, dedicated to St. Mary in 1156. It is the country's largest privately owned Cistercian Abbey

The monastery was founded in 1156 as a daughter house of Byland Abbey. Apart from its historical significance and the beauty of the location, Jervaulx is known for its horticulture; over 180 varieties of wildflower grow in and on the abbey walls. 

Jervaulx was originally based at Fors, a few miles distant, but the land there proved to be poor for farming and the Cistercian monks moved to the current site. They were known for raising horses, and the abbey was the original home of Wensleydale cheese. 

The abbey was destroyed during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries, and the last abbot of Jervaulx was imprisoned in the Tower of London, where his signature can be seen, carved into the wall of his cell.

The abbey buildings were dismantled, but a large amount of the fabric and furnishings at Jervaulx made their way into parish churches throughout the Yorkshire Dales. Thus you can find a carved screen at Spennithorne, the grave of abbot Robert Thorneton (d. 1533) at Middleham, a gilded rood screen at Aysgarth, and window glass at Bedale church.

A very well kept site in beautiful surroundings. Perhaps needs a spring visit to get the best from the multitudes of wild flowers.

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Caernarfon Castle - on our way to Yorkshire

Having spent a few days in Anglesey, we moved on to our next week in Yorkshire. On the way, we stopped at Caernarfon Castle and spent some time exploring.

The site of this great castle wasn’t chosen by accident. It had previously been the location of a Norman motte and bailey castle and before that a Roman fort stood nearby. The lure of water and easy access to the sea made the banks of the River Seiont an ideal spot for Edward’s monster in masonry. 

The River Seiont is the great river that serves as a channel where many can enjoy paddling, a riverbank picnic and other family activities. Generally accessed from the town of Caernarfon, this river referred to locally as Afon Seiont and flows northward towards the Menai Strait 

Edward wasn’t one to miss on an opportunity to tighten his grip even further on the native population. The birth of his son, the first English Prince of Wales, in the castle in 1284, was a perfect device to stamp his supremacy. In 1969 the current Prince of Wales, HRH Prince Charles’s investiture took place here.

Most castles are happy with round towers, not Caernarfon! Polygonal towers were the order of the day, with the Eagle Tower being the most impressive of these. You will also note the colour-coded stones carefully arranged in bands. 

A brute of a fortress. Caernarfon Castle’s pumped-up appearance is unashamedly muscle-bound and intimidating. Picking a fight with this massive structure would have been a daunting prospect. By throwing his weight around in stone, King Edward I created what is surely one of the most impressive of Wales’s castles.

The Aber Suspension, Swing Bridge, is a pedestrian bridge across the River Seiont between the Watergate entrance to Caernarfon Castle and the Aber Foreshore. The current swing bridge was built in 1970.

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