Anglophile Friday - Skipton Castle Revisited

 Entrance to Skipton Castle

 It's only 43 miles from York to Skipton
So many places within a relatively short drive from York
would fall into the 'Must See' category

The following text is taken from Skipton Web:

"Skipton is a country market town, up in the Pennines, at the southern base of the Yorkshire Dales. It's a small, friendly town with a population of around 16,000. It has history, a castle, cobbled streets, ducks and canal boats. It's a pretty town to walk around, and gets thousands of visitors.

The name Skipton comes from the Saxon word for sheep - the town really began as a trading centre for sheep and wool. The canal came and went, the mills came, and now it's a big tourist centre for people passing through to see the Yorkshire Dales. The biggest employers in Skipton nowadays are HML and the Skipton Buiding Society. Formerly kingsley Cards was one of the main employers but has closed down and the mill converted to apartments.

Skipton Map 1757 photo credit

"Skipton 'The Gateway to the Dales' was probably originally just a sheep farm, back before the Norman Conquest. In Airedale, the settlement commanded the Craven Gap, the best passage through the Pennines, and so grew in importance to become the main market town of Craven, and a major trading post for livestock. 

The town of Skipton was granted to Robert Romillie after the Norman Conquest, who built the first Skipton Castle, and some parts of the building are still original.

Skipton supported the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses, and was on the Royalist side in the Civil War. After the battle of Marston Moor in July 1644, Skipton was the only Royalist stronghold left in the north. The castle was under siege for over a year until December 1645, when a surrender was negotiated. 

Cromwell had the roof of the castle removed, but it was replaced just 10 years later, on condition that the new roof was not strong enough to hold cannons. Lady Anne Cliford planted a yew tree in the conduit court of the castle, in 1659, to mark the restoration of the castle. It's still there. 

She also had the Clifford family's motto carved over the main gateway entrance to the castle: 'Desormais' which apparantly means 'henceforth'. [See First Photo] Skipton Castle is well preserved, and a very popular tourist attraction.

Clifford Family Coat of Arms

 Checking out the Dungeon

At least the prisoners had room service...such as it was .

'Slighting' the original castle wall

A Narrowboat and a couple friendly natives

"Britain's longest inland waterway (127 miles) was opened in 1816. The Leeds Liverpool Canal took 46 years to build, and finally came in at five times the original budget. The first part to open was the lock-free section from Skipton to Bingley, in 1773. The canal was busy all through the nineteenth century and carried stone, coal and other goods. 

The canal passes right through the centre of Skipton, and at the canal basin there is a junction with the Springs Branch (Lord Thanet’s) Canal. Only half a mile long but a beautiful stretch of canal that winds around the back of Skipton Castle, acting as a moat, and until 1946 was used to transport limestone from a quarry higher up the hill. The old chute where the stone was loaded into the barges can still be seen."

Some day I'm going to live on one of these for a summer!

or buy a ticket for a 30 minute ride from the canal basin to Skipton Castle?

Border Collies are everywhere in Yorkshire,

especially visible in the gift shops. This shop was on the castle grounds.

I can't believe I came away from there without at least one of these cute little figurines.

Ah yes, I remember now...it was the discouraging price tag.

But I get to see our Border Collie grandpuppy quite often,

and she's the real thing!

For more photos of Skipton, check out the Gallery at Skipton Web.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

***

'Rugged Denim'

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This post is linked to:
'The Places You'll Go' 

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