97-645: The River Washburn is a river in Yorkshire , England . It originates high in the Yorkshire Dales and ends where it meets the River Wharfe . It lies within the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty . The earliest recorded form of the river's name was Walkesburn , from the early 12th century. The name is thought to come from an Old English personal name Walc , not otherwise recorded, so means "stream of
194-483: A Megalosaurus ), was discovered in April 2021. The fossil dates the dinosaur to living around 175 to 164 million years ago. Spurn is a peninsula that extends southwards from the south eastern edge of Holderness . It is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) long and in places is only 160 feet (50 m) wide. It is continually being eroded by the sea and also becomes a dumping ground for sand, pebbles and rocks washed down from further up
291-773: A cottage industry, centred on the old market towns moved to the West Riding where entrepreneurs were building mills that took advantage of water power gained by harnessing the rivers and streams flowing from the Pennines . The developing textile industry helped Wakefield and Halifax grow. The 19th century saw Yorkshire's continued growth, with the population growing and the Industrial Revolution continuing with prominent industries in coal, textile and steel (especially in Sheffield , Rotherham and Middlesbrough ). However, despite
388-437: A man named Walc". The river's source is at Washburn Head, just south of Stump Cross Caverns . From there it flows southwards via Thruscross Reservoir , Blubberhouses , Fewston Reservoir , Swinsty Reservoir and Lindley Wood Reservoir , before joining the River Wharfe just north-west of Pool-in-Wharfedale near Leathley . The Washburn has been dammed to a series of four reservoirs. Three were built to supply water to
485-573: A separate kingdom. The Wessex Kings of England were reputed to have respected the Norse customs in Yorkshire and left law-making in the hands of the local aristocracy. In the weeks leading up to the Battle of Hastings in 1066 AD, Harold II of England was distracted by pushing back efforts to reinstate the kingdom of Jorvik and Danelaw. His brother Tostig and Harald Hardrada , King of Norway , having won
582-571: A third of the population. When King Richard II was overthrown in 1399, antagonism between the House of York and the House of Lancaster , both branches of the royal House of Plantagenet , began to emerge. Eventually the two houses fought for the throne of England in a series of civil wars, commonly known as the Wars of the Roses . Some of the battles took place in Yorkshire, such as those at Wakefield and Towton ,
679-535: A trio of very prominent and popular summits (the Yorkshire Three Peaks ) which can be climbed in a challenging single day's walk. The highest point in the Yorkshire part of the Peak District is Black Hill (height 582 metres (1,909 ft)) on the border with historic Cheshire (which also forms the historic county top of that county). The hill ranges along the eastern side of Yorkshire are lower than those of
776-592: A vast expanse of the Yorkshire lowlands with the Pennines forming a backdrop. It was called the "finest view in England" by local author and veterinary surgeon James Herriot in his 1979 guidebook James Herriot's Yorkshire . The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds runs nature reserves such as the one at Bempton Cliffs with coastal wildlife such as the northern gannet , Atlantic puffin and razorbill . Spurn Point
873-506: Is a narrow 3-mile (4.8 km) long sand spit . It is a national nature reserve owned by the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and is noted for its cyclical nature whereby the spit is destroyed and re-created approximately once every 250 years. There are seaside resorts in Yorkshire with sandy beaches; Scarborough is Britain's oldest seaside resort dating back to the spa town -era in the 17th century, while Whitby has been voted as
970-541: Is also famous for the collapse of the Holbeck Hall Hotel near to Scarborough in 1993. After a prolonged rainfall, water had seeped into the earth which destabilised the ground underneath the hotel causing a landslide. Television cameras managed to capture the building falling onto the shoreline below. Part of the coastal geological make-up in North Yorkshire is Whitby Jet . Jet is a hard Lignite mineraloid that
1067-602: Is also known as the Holderness coast, from the area of East Yorkshire it adjoins. In 2016, Natural England announced the creation of a coastal path between Filey Brigg and Newport (Middlesbrough) Transporter Bridge. This will eventually link up with paths all around the coastline of England to become the England Coast Path. The section from Filey to Saltburn is in use as part of the Cleveland Way. The coastline between
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#17328441714741164-403: Is an area of Northern England which was historically a county . Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its original county town , the city of York . The south-west of Yorkshire is densely populated, and includes the cities of Leeds , Sheffield , Bradford , Doncaster and Wakefield . The north and east of
1261-600: Is evidence of past quarrying of local stone for buildings and walls. The river valley is crossed by the Harrogate Dales Way Link. The section of the river between Thruscross Reservoir and Fewston Reservoir is used for whitewater kayaking when water is released by Yorkshire Water . The Washburn Heritage Centre, adjacent to Fewston Church, opened in February 2011. Yorkshire Yorkshire ( / ˈ j ɔːr k ʃ ər , - ʃ ɪər / YORK -shər, -sheer )
1358-399: Is home to three of thirty-two nationally designated Heritage Coasts in England and Wales. The Heritage Coasts are so designated for their exceptional or very good scenic quality . The three sections on the Yorkshire coastline are (from north to south); The Heritage Coasts are designated by Natural England with the purpose of protecting the coastline, its environment and heritage. Part of
1455-498: Is not, as is sometimes claimed, the highest waterfall in England ( Hardraw Force in Wensleydale , also in Yorkshire, has a 30 metres (98 ft) drop for example). However, High Force is unusual in being on a major river and carries a greater volume of water than any higher waterfall in England. The highest mountains in Yorkshire all lie in the Pennines on the western side of the county, with millstone grit and limestone forming
1552-564: Is now York and renamed it Jórvík , making it the capital city of a new Danish kingdom under the same name. The area which this kingdom covered included most of Southern Northumbria, roughly equivalent to the borders of Yorkshire extending further West. The Danes went on to conquer an even larger area of England that afterwards became known as the Danelaw ; but whereas most of the Danelaw was still English land, albeit in submission to Viking overlords, it
1649-487: Is sometimes referred to as "God's own country". Yorkshire is represented in sport by Yorkshire County Cricket Club and Yorkshire Rugby Football Union . There are several ways of defining Yorkshire, including the historic county and the group of four modern ceremonial counties. The county boundaries were reasonably stable between 1182, when it ceded western areas to the new county of Lancashire, and 1889 when administrative counties were created, which saw some adjustments to
1746-601: Is supported by the fact that yew trees were once abundant in the area around York, and that the city was known for its skilled bow makers who used yew wood to make their bows. This became 'Eboracum' to the Romans , 'Eorfowic' to the Angles and then, most famously, 'Jorvik' to the Vikings . Secondly, and much less reliable, is that it may come from the Old English word "Eow", which referred to
1843-459: Is the main tributary flowing into Thruscross reservoir. Lindley reservoir maintains river flow, not public supply. Where the valley has not been flooded to make reservoirs, the sides are V-shaped. The valley floor consists of solid Millstone Grit overlain with till drift. The drainage can be described as slowly permeable and seasonally waterlogged. The bedrock is covered with fine loam over clay soils and some peat soils at higher elevations on
1940-511: Is to be found in the waters of the Yorkshire coast. Fishing fleets large and small are located at many of the ports on the coastline with Whitby, Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington being prime examples of ports which historically hosted larger fleets. Bridlington is the largest shell fishing port in the British Isles and exports its catches to the continent, most oftentimes being France, Italy and Spain. Smaller scale operations also exist such as
2037-541: The Battle of Fulford . The King of England marched north where the two armies met at the Battle of Stamford Bridge . Tostig and Hardrada were both killed and their army was defeated decisively. Harold Godwinson was forced immediately to march his army south, where William the Conqueror was landing. The King was defeated in what is now known as the Battle of Hastings , which led to the Norman conquest of England . The people of
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#17328441714742134-588: The Brigantes (known to be in the north and western areas of now Yorkshire) and the Parisi (present-day East Riding ). The Brigantes controlled territory that later became all of Northern England and more territory than most Celtic tribes on the island of Great Britain . Six of the nine Brigantian poleis described by Claudius Ptolemaeus in the Geographia fall within the historic county. The Parisi, who controlled
2231-668: The Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536 led to a popular uprising known as Pilgrimage of Grace , started in Yorkshire as a protest. Some Catholics in Yorkshire continued to practise their religion and those caught were executed during the reign of Elizabeth I . One such person was a York woman named Margaret Clitherow who was later canonised . During the English Civil War , which started in 1642, Yorkshire had divided loyalties; Hull (full name Kingston upon Hull ) famously shut
2328-707: The Esk drains eastwards directly to the North Sea without flowing into the Tees or the Humber estuaries. The Swale , Ure , Nidd , Wharfe , Aire , Calder and Don all end up flowing through the Humber. Even the River Derwent , which rises on the eastern edge of the North York Moors and reaches within 4 miles (6.4 km) of Scarborough turns westwards and then south to flow out through
2425-684: The North York Moors and Yorkshire Dales National Parks , and part of the Peak District National Park. Nidderdale and the Howardian Hills are designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty , as is the North Pennines (a part of which lies within the county). Spurn Point, Flamborough Head and the coastal North York Moors are designated Heritage Coast areas, and are noted for their scenic views with rugged cliffs such as
2522-691: The River Derwent rises on the North York Moors, flows south then westwards through the Vale of Pickering then turns south again to drain the eastern part of the Vale of York. It empties into the River Ouse at Barmby on the Marsh . In the far north of the county the River Tees flows eastwards through Teesdale and empties its waters into the North Sea downstream of Middlesbrough . The smaller River Esk flows from west to east at
2619-563: The Roman Empire from Eboracum for the two years before his death. Another emperor, Constantius Chlorus , died in Eboracum during a visit in 306 AD. Thereafter his son Constantine the Great , who became renowned for his acceptance of Christianity, was proclaimed emperor in the city. In the early 5th century, Roman rule ceased with the withdrawal of the last active Roman troops. By this stage,
2716-653: The Sea Life Centre at Scalby Mills , Scarborough Castle and Whitby Abbey which on its own attracts more than 150,000 visitors annually. Pleasure cruises are available from Bridlington and Scarborough to allow visitors to see the coast from the sea and for sea fishing tours. The coastline plays host to many beaches, be they sandy or rocky. As of 2016, just four of the beaches along the coast have been awarded Blue Flag status; Whitby West Cliff, Scarborough North Bay, Bridlington North Beach and Hornsea. Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council have responsibility for one of
2813-602: The governance section below. For most administrative purposes the county had been divided since the Middle Ages; the last county-wide administrative role was the Sheriff of Yorkshire . The sheriff had been a powerful position in the Middle Ages but gradually lost most of its functions, and by the twentieth century was a largely ceremonial role. It was abolished as part of the 1974 reforms to local government, which established instead high sheriffs for each modern county. Historically,
2910-522: The jet cliffs at Whitby, the limestone cliffs at Filey and the chalk cliffs at Flamborough Head. Moor House – Upper Teesdale, most of which is part of the former North Riding of Yorkshire, is one of England's largest national nature reserves . At High Force on the border with County Durham, the River Tees plunges 22 metres (72 ft) over the Whin Sill (an intrusion of igneous rock). High Force
3007-832: The Houses of York and Lancaster respectively, were combined to form the Tudor Rose of England. This rivalry between the royal houses of York and Lancaster has passed into popular culture as a rivalry between the counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire , particularly in sport (for example the Roses Match played in County Cricket ), although the House of Lancaster was based in York and the House of York in London. The English Reformation began under Henry VIII and
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3104-562: The Humber was a dangerous place in the First World War due to the presence of the German U-Boats . The U-Boats were responsible for sinking 220 vessels with torpedoes and mines. Many other ships were suspected of being sunk here but they cannot be accounted for. Between 1917 and 1918 eight U-Boats were sunk off the Yorkshire coast with 6 sites being known and the last two wrecks sites being located in 2003. The spit of land at Spurn Head
3201-505: The Humber. In response to flooding on the Derwent in 1799, a river was carved out from Mowthorpe to Scalby which allows floodwaters to drain to the sea, thereby sparing the riverside further downstream. The Sea Cut , as it is known, was completed in 1804 and roughly follows the route that waters used to drain eastwards towards the sea before the last Ice Age and the Derwent river headed inland. An average of 1.4 million people visit
3298-591: The Middle Ages the county was subdivided into smaller administrative areas; the city of York was a self-governing county corporate from 1396, and the rest of the county was divided into three ridings – North , East, and West . From 1660 onwards each riding had its own lord-lieutenant , and between 1889 and 1974 the ridings were administrative counties . There was a Sheriff of Yorkshire until 1974. Yorkshire gives its name to four modern ceremonial counties : East Riding of Yorkshire , North Yorkshire , South Yorkshire , and West Yorkshire , which together cover most of
3395-513: The North Sea. Alum used to be quarried at Ravenscar and the region adjacent to Easington in the East Riding has on shore natural gas processing plants. During the First World War, Skinningrove Iron Works manufactured High Explosives and Mustard Gas . To help protect it form aerial bombardment, a Sound Mirror was installed at Boulby (see Military history section). In more recent times, windfarms have been granted permission to be sited off of
3492-631: The North Yorkshire Coast every year and more people visit the Yorkshire Coast than any other part of England outside of London. The Lonely Planet Guides rate Yorkshire as a whole as third in its top ten global places, the only part of the United Kingdom to feature in the list. Besides noted attractions such as the beaches and seaside towns, other notable visiting spots on the coast include Bempton Cliffs , Flamborough Head , Hunt Cliff ,
3589-627: The North rebelled against the Normans in September 1069 AD, enlisting Sweyn II of Denmark . They tried to take back York, but the Normans burnt it before they could. What followed was the Harrying of the North ordered by William. From York to Durham , crops, domestic animals, and farming tools were scorched . Many villages between the towns were burnt and local northerners were indiscriminately murdered. During
3686-564: The Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") fought back, re-taking Yorkshire town by town, until they won the Battle of Marston Moor and with it control of all of the North of England . In the 16th and 17th centuries Leeds and other wool-industry-centred towns continued to grow, along with Huddersfield, Hull and Sheffield, while coal mining first came into prominence in the West Riding of Yorkshire . The wool textile industry, which had previously been
3783-693: The RNLI, the RBRB is a charity funded organisation that relies on voluntary staffing. The Humber Operations Centre of HM Coastguard is located in Bridlington. The shipping routes in the North Sea are some of the busiest in the world. Sea going vessels pass by the Yorkshire coast to access and leave the major ports in Hull, Grimsby, Immingham and at Teesport . The North Sea also sees plentiful sailings to and from oil and gas installations for supply. There are several lighthouses on
3880-556: The Romans enabled her to keep control of the kingdom; however, her former husband staged rebellions against her and her Roman allies. At the second attempt, Venutius seized the kingdom, but the Romans, under general Petillius Cerialis , conquered the Brigantes in 71 AD. The fortified city of Eboracum (now York) was named as capital of Britannia Inferior and joint capital of all Roman Britain . The emperor Septimius Severus ruled
3977-570: The Tees and the Humber. These are located at; The station at Humber is located on Spurn Point and is the only RNLI station in Britain that is manned full-time. Runswick Bay has its own rescue boat which was started in 1982. It was initiated after the RNLI lifeboat was moved up the coast to Staithes. The Runswick Bay Rescue Boat (RBRB) works closely with the RNLI and HM Coastguard to attend local incidents and also to get to places on this stretch of coastline that are inaccessible to larger rescue boats. Like
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4074-503: The Tyne to Flamborough Head admits that whilst towns such as Filey, Scarborough and Whitby should be protected, other settlements such as Robin Hood's Bay will see properties lost to coastal erosion. Robin Hood's Bay had concrete sea walls installed alongside its shoreline in 1973, but a report issued in 2014 stated that the structure was coming to the end of its design life. This stretch of coastline
4171-572: The United Kingdom's best beach, with a "postcard-perfect harbour". There are eight officially designated cities in Yorkshire: Bradford, Doncaster, Kingston upon Hull, Leeds, Ripon , Sheffield, Wakefield, and York. City status is formally held by the administrative territory rather than the urban area. Yorkshire Coast The Yorkshire Coast runs from the Tees estuary to the Humber estuary, on
4268-621: The Western Empire was in intermittent decline. After the Romans left, small Celtic kingdoms arose in the region, including the kingdoms of Deira to the east (domain of settlements near Malton on Derwent ), Ebrauc (domain of York) around the north and Elmet to the west. The latter two were successors of land south-west and north-east of the former Brigantia capital. Angles (hailing from southern Denmark and northern Germany, probably along with Swedish Geats ) consolidated (merging Ebrauc ) under Deira, with York as capital. This in turn
4365-447: The Yorkshire coast with many still active for shipping. Trinity House still operate Flamborough Head and Whitby remotely from their operating centre in Harwich , Essex . The list below includes only those with buildings still in situ, if not operating. Many beacons were located on the coast, especially during times of national crisis such as the threat of the Spanish Armada . The beacons were manned day and night with two people during
4462-409: The abbey ruins are and at Goldsborough near Lythe. The breakwater at South Gare in Redcar, was installed with gun defences in 1891. These were utilised in the First and Second World Wars. The radio and coastguard stations in Scarborough and Whitby were part of a targeted attack on 16 December 1914 by the German Navy during the First World War . Elsewhere, the stretch of coast between the Tees and
4559-450: The adjacent steel industry) and formerly had a steel works near to the beach for which a railway line was diverted in 1978. Skinningrove still has a specialist steel plate mill and Boulby Mine stretches 3.1 miles (5 km) under the north sea to win Potash, Polyhalite and as a secondary aggregate, Rock Salt. Another Potash and Polyhalite mine ( Woodsmith Mine ) is in preparation near to Whitby, which like Boulby will stretch out under
4656-476: The area that would become the East Riding, might have been related to the Parisii of Lutetia Parisiorum , Gaul (known today as Paris, France). Their capital was at Petuaria , close to the Humber Estuary. Although the Roman conquest of Britain began in 43 AD, the Brigantes remained in control of their kingdom as a client state of Rome for an extended period, reigned over by the Brigantian monarchs Cartimandua and her husband Venutius . The capital
4753-414: The area was invaded and conquered for short periods by England between 927 and 954 before eventually being annexed into England in 954. It was closely associated with the much longer-lived Kingdom of Dublin throughout this period. An army of Danish Vikings , the Great Heathen Army as its enemies often referred to it, invaded Northumbrian territory in 866 AD. The Danes conquered and assumed what
4850-731: The area was split between North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, which all kept the Yorkshire name. A large part of the east of the county went to the new county of Humberside , and an area in the north-east went to the new county of Cleveland . Some more rural areas at the edges of the historic county were transferred to County Durham, Cumbria , Lancashire and Greater Manchester , whilst South Yorkshire also included areas which had been in Nottinghamshire. Cleveland and Humberside were both abolished in 1996, since when there have been four ceremonial counties with Yorkshire in their names: East Riding of Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, which together cover most of
4947-426: The booming industry, living conditions declined in the industrial towns due to overcrowding. This saw bouts of cholera in both 1832 and 1848. However, advances were made by the end of the century with the introduction of modern sewers and water supplies . Several Yorkshire railway networks were introduced as railways spread across the country to reach remote areas. Canals and turnpike roads were introduced in
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#17328441714745044-431: The boundaries with County Durham, Lancashire and Lincolnshire. After 1889 there were occasional adjustments to accommodate urban areas which were developing across county boundaries, such as in 1934 when Dore and Totley were transferred from Derbyshire to Yorkshire on being absorbed into the borough of Sheffield. More significant changes in 1974 saw the historic county divided between several counties. The majority of
5141-446: The city of Leeds . The lower three ( Lindley Wood , Swinsty and Fewston ) were built at the end of the 19th century, while the fourth, Thruscross , was delayed until the 1960s. Fewston and Swinsty reservoirs have a surface area of around 1.6 square kilometres (0.62 sq mi) and a combined length of 4.1 kilometres (2.5 mi); Thackray Beck and Spinksburn Beck are major tributaries flowing into these reservoirs. Capelshaw Beck
5238-419: The coast. It was reported in early 2016, that the Associated British Ports control tower on the point is being re-located across the Humber Estuary to Grimsby due to progressive deterioration of the point. The coastline of Yorkshire has played (and still continues to play) host to some diverse industries. From north to south; Redcar has a major port, the deepest on the east coast of England (built to service
5335-422: The coastline with some being obvious from the shoreline (Teesside, Humber Gateway and Westermost Rough), whilst others (Heron Wind and Njord, Hornsea) are farther out to sea. There is also an onshore wind farm at Out Newton near to Easington comprising seven turbines. Fisheries have been an important part of the coastline's history which still continues today. Some of the world's best crab, lobster and shellfish
5432-408: The conquest, only Bridlington , Pocklington , and York continued at a prominent level. In the early 12th century, people of Yorkshire had to contend with the Battle of the Standard at Northallerton with the Scots . Representing the Kingdom of England led by Archbishop Thurstan of York , soldiers from Yorkshire defeated the more numerous Scots. The population of Yorkshire boomed until it
5529-408: The county are more sparsely populated, however the north-east includes the southern part of the Teesside conurbation, and the port city of Kingston upon Hull is located in the south-east. York is located near the centre of the county. Yorkshire has a coastline to the North Sea to the east. The North York Moors occupy the north-east of the county, and the centre contains the Vale of Mowbray in
5626-480: The county councils. During the Second World War , Yorkshire became an important base for RAF Bomber Command and brought the county and its productive industries into the cutting edge of the war, and thus in the targets of Luftwaffe bombers during the Battle of Britain . From the late 20th century onwards there have been a number of significant reforms of the local government structures covering Yorkshire, notably in 1968, 1974, 1986, 1996 and 2023, discussed in
5723-502: The day and three overnight. Each beacon consisted of three individual fires with the combination of one, two, or all three being lit signalling the perceived intention of invaders. For example, one fire might mean enemy ships sighted, two fire that the enemy intended to invade, and all three fires that an invasion was imminent. The coast of Yorkshire has been involved in military endeavours since Roman times. Roman signal stations were believed to have been installed at Whitby near to where
5820-416: The designation is the provision of a coastal footpath along the length of the Heritage Coast. The northernmost Heritage Coast has a footpath alongside its entire length (the seaward side of the Cleveland Way ). The North Yorkshire and Cleveland Heritage Coast designation does not include the coastal section around Whitby (Upgang Chine to Abbey Field) as it has been built on and developed. As can be seen from
5917-444: The east coast of England . The cliffs at Boulby are the highest on the east coast of England, rising to 660 feet (200 m) above the sea level. The North York Moors National Park extends up to the coastline and traverses 26 miles (42 km) of it between Boulby and Cloughton, taking in the historic fishing villages of Staithes , Runswick Bay and Robin Hood's Bay . The section of coastline south of Bridlington to Spurn Head
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#17328441714746014-436: The edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park and flows along Nidderdale before reaching the Vale of York and the Ouse. The River Wharfe , which drains Wharfedale , joins the Ouse upstream of Cawood . The Rivers Aire and Calder are more southerly contributors to the River Ouse and the most southerly Yorkshire tributary is the River Don , which flows northwards to join the main river at Goole . Further north and east
6111-399: The existence of many Celtic placenames in Yorkshire today, such as Kingston upon Hull and Pen-y-ghent . As well as the Angles and Geats, other settlers included Frisians (thought to have founded Fryston and Frizinghall ), Danes , Franks and Huns . At its greatest extent, Northumbria stretched from the Irish Sea to the North Sea and from Edinburgh down to Hallamshire in
6208-422: The families and subsequent descendants of Danish Vikings, the leadership of the kingdom nonetheless passed into Norwegian hands during its twilight years. Eric Bloodaxe , an ex-king of Norway who was the last independent Viking king of Jórvík, is a particularly noted figure in history, and his bloodthirsty approach towards leadership may have been at least partly responsible for convincing the Danish inhabitants of
6305-404: The former battery site now lies ruined or on the beach. The Royal Air Force installed RADAR and listening sites, bombing ranges and Air Force stations along the coast at Goldsborough , Ravenscar , Bempton , Carnaby , Cowden , and Holmpton The coastline in Yorkshire has been the setting for many feature films and TV programmes. These include; Of all the major rivers in Yorkshire, only
6402-598: The fringe of the moorland. The river valley has grassland that is intensively managed for livestock. There are also a range of field sizes, bounded by stonewalls that are often reinforced with post and wire fencing, plus some post and rail fencing. There are very large conifer forestry plantations around the reservoirs as well as at Beecroft Moor Plantation, with conifer shelterbelts at Carlhow Ridge Plantation. Deciduous tree clumps can be found around settlements. Ancient semi-natural woodland can still be seen at Blubberhouses , Folly Hall Wood, Hanging Wood and Ellers Wood. There
6499-439: The gates of the city on the king when he came to enter a few months before fighting began, while the North Riding of Yorkshire in particular was strongly royalist . York was the base for Royalists, and from there they captured Leeds and Wakefield only to have them recaptured a few months later. The royalists won the Battle of Adwalton Moor meaning they controlled Yorkshire (with the exception of Hull). From their base in Hull
6596-406: The geological map, the Yorkshire Coast is composed of shales, alluviums (sand, clay and gravel), oolites, limestones, mudstone, sandstones, ironstones and chalk. Typically, boulder clay is the section alongside the North Sea in the East Riding of Yorkshire and has been the most prone to coastal erosion . The Lost Towns of the Yorkshire Coast by Thomas Sheppard lists 30 settlements that were lost by
6693-441: The historic county. Yorkshire Day is observed annually on 1 August and is a celebration of the general culture of Yorkshire , including its history and dialect . Its name is used by several institutions, for example the Royal Yorkshire Regiment of the British Army, in sport, and in the media. The emblem of Yorkshire is a white rose , which was originally the heraldic badge of the British royal House of York . The county
6790-406: The historic county. There is a region called Yorkshire and the Humber which covers a similar area to the combined area of the four Yorkshire ceremonial counties, the exceptions being that the region excludes the parts of North Yorkshire which had been in Cleveland, but includes North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire (which had been in Humberside). Until 2009 some government powers in
6887-541: The late 18th century. In the following century the spa towns of Harrogate and Scarborough flourished, due to people believing mineral water had curative properties. When elected county councils were established in 1889, rather than have a single Yorkshire County Council, each of the three ridings was made an administrative county with its own county council, and the eight larger towns and cities of Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield, Hull, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sheffield and York were made county boroughs , independent from
6984-401: The latter of which is known as the bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil. Richard III was the last Yorkist king. Henry Tudor , sympathiser to the House of Lancaster, defeated and killed Richard at the Battle of Bosworth Field . He then became King Henry VII and married Elizabeth of York , daughter of Yorkist Edward IV , ending the wars. The two roses of white and red, emblems of
7081-470: The lobster and crab fishermen working on the shoreline at Hornsea. In the 20th and 21st century, the Hornsea shell fishermen have been in confrontation with the big oil and gas business along the East Riding section of the coast. They maintain that pipes, outfalls and underground gas storage works have all colluded to put their fishery at risk. The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has stations between
7178-473: The nickname of the Dinosaur Coast. Fossils can easily be found on the beaches at Whitby, Staithes and Runswick Bay with Britain's oldest dinosaur bone being found on Whitby beach in 2015. The bone fell out of a cliff face and after detailed analysis was found to be 176 million years old. A fossilized footprint of what was described as a 'Jurassic giant', and belonging to a meat eating dinosaur (possibly
7275-477: The north and the Vale of York in the south. The west contains part of the Pennines , which form the Yorkshire Dales in the north-west. The county was historically bordered by County Durham to the north, the North Sea to the east, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire , Derbyshire , and Cheshire to the south, and Lancashire and Westmorland to the west. It was the largest by area in the United Kingdom . From
7372-630: The northern boundary of Yorkshire was the River Tees , the eastern boundary was the North Sea coast and the southern boundary was the Humber Estuary and Rivers Don and Sheaf . The western boundary meandered along the western slopes of the Pennine Hills to again meet the River Tees. In Yorkshire there is a very close relationship between the major topographical areas and the geological period in which they were formed. The Pennine chain of hills in
7469-721: The northern foot of the North York Moors to reach the sea at Whitby . To the east of the Yorkshire Wolds the River Hull flows southwards to join the Humber Estuary at Kingston upon Hull . The western Pennines are drained by the River Ribble which flows westwards, eventually reaching the Irish Sea close to Lytham St Annes . The countryside of Yorkshire has been called " God's Own County " by its inhabitants. Yorkshire includes
7566-524: The region to accept English sovereignty so readily in the years that followed. After around 100 years of its volatile existence, the Kingdom of Jorvik finally came to an end. The Kingdom of Wessex was now in its ascendancy and established its dominance over the North in general, placing Yorkshire again within Northumbria , which retained a certain amount of autonomy as an almost-independent earldom rather than
7663-475: The region were devolved to the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly ; since 2009 the region has been used primarily for presentation of statistics. Yorkshire is so named as it is the shire (administrative area or county) of the city of York , or York's Shire. The word "York" has an interesting etymology, first it is believed to have originated from the Celtic word "Eburakon", which means "Place of yew trees ". This theory
7760-649: The rivers in the Ouse system is the River Swale , which drains Swaledale before passing through Richmond and meandering across the Vale of Mowbray . Next, draining Wensleydale , is the River Ure , which the Swale joins east of Boroughbridge . Near Great Ouseburn the Ure is joined by the small Ouse Gill Beck, and below the confluence the river is known as the Ouse. The River Nidd rises on
7857-502: The sea. They were early form of RADAR being able to detect ships and aircraft up to 25 miles away. During the Second World War, the Yorkshire coast was fortified with pillboxes and tank traps on the shoreline and anti-aircraft and anti-shipping batteries installed at Ringborough. The Ringborough Battery was constructed in 1943 on what was then near to the coast line at East Garton. It has been subject to coastal erosion and most of
7954-413: The sections between Hornsea and Mappleton and from Withernsea to the south. Many towns along the coast have installed defences to stop the sea claiming the land, but in some areas, the sea is taking the land and oftentimes is depositing it further down on Spurn Head. Both Withernsea and Whitby have used Norwegian rocks as sea defences. The Shoreline Management Plan 2, which covers the coastline from
8051-442: The south. Scandinavian York (also referred to as Jórvík ) or Danish/Norwegian York is a term used by historians for the south of Northumbria (modern-day Yorkshire) during the late 9th century and first half of the 10th century, when it was dominated by Norse warrior-kings; in particular, used to refer to York , the city controlled by these kings. Norse monarchy controlled varying amounts of Northumbria from 875 to 954, however
8148-401: The time his book was published in 1912. Kilnsea Parish Church was destroyed by coastal erosion in 1830. It had been noted that the sea was eating away at the coastline before the last burial in 1823. In 1824, services in the church were stopped and 6 years later, the church and many of the dwellings around it had been lost. Erosion rates are now averaging 11 feet (3.5 m) per year on
8245-544: The two estuaries was historically made up of the East and North Ridings of Yorkshire . From 1974 to 1996, the coast consisted administratively of Cleveland's Langbaurgh district, North Yorkshire and Humberside . Since 1996, the area has been governed by Redcar and Cleveland , North Yorkshire and East Riding of Yorkshire councils. The following is a list of settlements on the Yorkshire coast from north to south. The italicised places are notable coastal points. The Yorkshire coast
8342-755: The underlying geology and producing distinctive layered hills. The county top is the remote Mickle Fell (height 788 metres (2,585 ft) above sea level) in the North Pennines southwest of Teesdale, which is also the highest point in the North Riding. The highest point in the West Riding is Whernside (height 736 metres (2,415 ft)) near to Ingleton in the Yorkshire Dales. Together with nearby Ingleborough (height 723 metres (2,372 ft)) and Pen-y-Ghent (height 694 metres (2,277 ft)), Whernside forms
8439-536: The west is of Carboniferous origin. The central vale is Permo-Triassic . The North York Moors in the north-east of the county are Jurassic in age while the Yorkshire Wolds to the south east are Cretaceous chalk uplands. Yorkshire is drained by several rivers. In western and central Yorkshire the many rivers flow into the River Ouse which reaches the North Sea via the Humber Estuary . The most northerly of
8536-406: The west. The highest point of the North York Moors is Urra Moor (height 454 metres (1,490 ft)). The highest point of the Yorkshire Wolds , a range of low chalk downlands east of York, is Bishop Wilton Wold (height 246 metres (807 ft)), which is also the highest point of the East Riding. The view from Sutton Bank at the southeastern edge of the North York Moors near Thirsk encompasses
8633-468: The winter that followed, families starved to death and thousands of peasants died of cold and hunger. Orderic Vitalis estimated that "more than 100,000" people from the North died from hunger. In the centuries following, many abbeys and priories were built in Yorkshire. Norman landowners increased their revenues and established new towns such as Barnsley , Doncaster , Hull , Leeds , Scarborough and Sheffield , among others. Of towns founded before
8730-465: The yew tree ( Taxus Baccata ). Yew trees were highly valued in ancient times for their durable wood, which was used for making bows, spears, and other tools. Over time, the word evolved into "York", and it eventually came to refer to the city of York in England. Either way, it is an evolved word for the magical 'Yew' tree. Early inhabitants of what became Yorkshire were Hen Ogledd Brythonic Celts (old north British Celts), who formed separate tribes,
8827-409: Was between the north and west ridings Isurium Brigantum (near Aldborough ) civitas under Roman rule. Initially, this situation suited both the Romans and the Brigantes, who were known as the most militant tribe in Britain. Queen Cartimandua left Venutius for his armour bearer, Vellocatus , setting off a chain of events that changed control of the region. Cartimandua's good relationship with
8924-475: Was first discovered in 1871 when wild boar tusks and deer antlers were found in the sand. Storms in March 2018 revealed the extent of the ancient forest with petrified tree stumps being exposed to the open air on Redcar Beach when a combination of the storm and low tides removed all the sand from the beach. The coastline in Yorkshire is home to some of the world's best Jurassic and Cretaceous geology which has given it
9021-502: Was grouped with Bernicia , another former Celtic - Brigantes kingdom that was north of the River Tees and had come to be headed by Bamburgh , to form Northumbria . Elmet had remained independent from the Germanic Angles until some time in the early 7th century, when King Edwin of Northumbria expelled its last king, Certic, and annexed the region to his Deira region. The Celts never went away, but were assimilated. This explains
9118-669: Was hit by the Great Famine of 1315. It did not help that after the English defeat in the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, the Scottish army rampaged throughout northern England, and Yorkshire was no exception. During The Great Raid of 1322 , they raided and pillaged from the suburbs of York, even as far as East Riding and the Humber. Some like Richmond had to bribe the Scots to spare the town. The Black Death then reached Yorkshire by 1349, killing around
9215-760: Was in the Kingdom of Jórvík that the only truly Viking territory on mainland Britain was ever established. The Kingdom prospered, taking advantage of the vast trading network of the Viking nations , and established commercial ties with the British Isles , North-West Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Founded by the Dane Halfdan Ragnarsson in 875, ruled for the great part by Danish kings, and populated by
9312-441: Was militarised in 1805 during Napoleonic times. In 1914 when Britain went to war against Germany , Spurn was upgraded with a railway being built to bring in supplies and ammunition. The headland was used for military purposes during the Second World War and was finally de-militarised in 1959. Sound Mirrors were built at Kilnsea, Boulby and Redcar in 1916. The concrete blocks had a hollowed out dish shape that pointed out towards
9409-464: Was wood from Monkey Puzzle and Chilean Pine trees laid down 185 million years ago in the Jurassic era. Jet is found on the beaches in the area and its popularity during the 19th century was down to Queen Victoria who wore Jet jewelry as part of her mourning dress for Prince Albert . A 7,000-year old petrified forest stretches along the coastline south from Hartlepool and along Redcar Beach. It
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