House of Lords
The House of Lords known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is else by heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster; the full name of the house is the Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. Unlike the elected House of Commons, members of the House of Lords are appointed; the membership of the House of Lords is drawn from the peerage and is made up of Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal. The Lords Spiritual are 26 bishops in the established Church of England. Of the Lords Temporal, the majority are life peers who are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister, or on the advice of the House of Lords Appointments Commission. However, they include some hereditary peers including four dukes. Membership was once an entitlement of all hereditary peers, other than those in the peerage of Ireland, but under the House of Lords Act 1999, the right to membership was restricted to 92 hereditary peers.
Since 2008, only one of them is female. While the House of Commons has a defined number of seats membership, the number of members in the House of Lords is not fixed; the House of Lords is the only upper house of any bicameral parliament in the world to be larger than its lower house. The House of Lords scrutinises bills, it reviews and amends Bills from the Commons. While it is unable to prevent Bills passing into law, except in certain limited circumstances, it can delay Bills and force the Commons to reconsider their decisions. In this capacity, the House of Lords acts as a check on the House of Commons, independent from the electoral process. Bills can be introduced into the House of Commons. While members of the Lords may take on roles as government ministers, high-ranking officials such as cabinet ministers are drawn from the Commons; the House of Lords has its own support services, separate from the Commons, including the House of Lords Library. The Queen's Speech is delivered in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament.
In addition to its role as the upper house, until the establishment of the Supreme Court in 2009, the House of Lords, through the Law Lords, acted as the final court of appeal in the United Kingdom judicial system. The House has a Church of England role, in that Church Measures must be tabled within the House by the Lords Spiritual. Today's Parliament of the United Kingdom descends, in practice, from the Parliament of England, though the Treaty of Union of 1706 and the Acts of Union that ratified the Treaty in 1707 and created a new Parliament of Great Britain to replace the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland; this new parliament was, in effect, the continuation of the Parliament of England with the addition of 45 MPs and 16 Peers to represent Scotland. The House of Lords developed from the "Great Council"; this royal council came to be composed of ecclesiastics and representatives of the counties of England and Wales. The first English Parliament is considered to be the "Model Parliament", which included archbishops, abbots, earls and representatives of the shires and boroughs of it.
The power of Parliament grew fluctuating as the strength of the monarchy grew or declined. For example, during much of the reign of Edward II, the nobility was supreme, the Crown weak, the shire and borough representatives powerless. In 1569, the authority of Parliament was for the first time recognised not by custom or royal charter, but by an authoritative statute, passed by Parliament itself. During the reign of Edward II's successor, Edward III, Parliament separated into two distinct chambers: the House of Commons and the House of Lords; the authority of Parliament continued to grow, during the early 15th century both Houses exercised powers to an extent not seen before. The Lords were far more powerful than the Commons because of the great influence of the great landowners and the prelates of the realm; the power of the nobility declined during the civil wars of the late 15th century, known as the Wars of the Roses. Much of the nobility was killed on the battlefield or executed for participation in the war, many aristocratic estates were lost to the Crown.
Moreover, feudalism was dying, the feudal armies controlled by the barons became obsolete. Henry VII established the supremacy of the monarch, symbolised by the "Crown Imperial"; the domination of the Sovereign continued to grow during the reigns of the Tudor monarchs in the 16th century. The Crown was at the height of its power during the reign of Henry VIII; the House of Lords remained more powerful than the House of Commons, but the Lower House continued to grow in influence, reaching a zenith in relation to the House of Lords during the middle 17th century. Conflicts between the King and the Parliament led to the English Civil War during the 1640s. In 1649, after the defeat and execution of King Charles I, the Commonwealth of England was declared, but the nation was under the overall control of Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, S
Yorkshire
Yorkshire, formally known as the County of York, is a historic county of Northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Due to its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have been subject to periodic reform. Throughout these changes, Yorkshire has continued to be recognised as a geographical territory and cultural region; the name is familiar and well understood across the United Kingdom and is in common use in the media and the military, features in the titles of current areas of civil administration such as North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and East Riding of Yorkshire. Within the borders of the historic county of Yorkshire are vast stretches of unspoiled countryside; this can be found in the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors and with the open aspect of some of the major cities. Yorkshire has been named "God's Own County" or "God's Own Country"; the emblem of Yorkshire is the White Rose of the English royal House of York, the most used flag representative of Yorkshire is the White Rose on a blue background, which after nearly fifty years of use, was recognised by the Flag Institute on 29 July 2008.
Yorkshire Day, held annually on 1 August, is a celebration of the general culture of Yorkshire, ranging from its history to its own dialect. Yorkshire is covered by different Government Office Regions. Most of the county falls within Yorkshire and the Humber while the extreme northern part of the county, such as Middlesbrough, Redcar and Startforth, falls within North East England. Small areas in the west of the county are covered by the North West England region. Yorkshire or the County of York was so named as it is the shire of York's Shire. "York" comes from the Viking name for Jórvík. "Shire" is from scir meaning care or official charge. The "shire" suffix is locally pronounced /-ʃə/ "shuh", or /-ʃiə/, a homophone of "sheer". Early inhabitants of Yorkshire were Celts, who formed two separate tribes, the Brigantes and the Parisi; the Brigantes controlled territory which became all of the North Riding of Yorkshire and the West Riding of Yorkshire. The tribe controlled most of Northern England and more territory than any other Celtic tribe in England.
That they had the Yorkshire area as their heartland is evident in that Isurium Brigantum was the capital town of their civitas under Roman rule. Six of the nine Brigantian poleis described by Claudius Ptolemaeus in the Geographia fall within the historic county; the Parisi, who controlled the area that would become the East Riding of Yorkshire, might have been related to the Parisii of Lutetia Parisiorum, Gaul. 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; this situation suited both the Romans and the Brigantes, who were known as the most militant tribe in Britain. Queen Cartimandua left her husband Venutius for his armour bearer, setting off a chain of events which changed control of the region. Cartimandua, due to her good relationship with the Romans, was able to keep control of the kingdom.
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 was named as capital of Britannia Inferior and joint capital of all Roman Britain; the emperor Septimius Severus ruled 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; this saw his son Constantine the Great, who became renowned for his contributions to Christianity, proclaimed emperor in the city. In the early 5th century, the Roman rule ceased with the withdrawal of the last active Roman troops. By this stage, the Western Empire was in intermittent decline. After the Romans left, small Celtic kingdoms arose in the region, including the Kingdom of Ebrauc around York and the Kingdom of Elmet to the west. Elmet remained independent from the Germanic Northumbrian Angles until some time in the early 7th century, when King Edwin of Northumbria expelled its last king and annexed the region.
At its greatest extent, Northumbria stretched from the Irish Sea to the North Sea and from Edinburgh down to Hallamshire in the south. Scandinavian York or Danish/Norwegian York is a term used by historians for the south of Northumbria during the period of the late 9th century and first half of the 10th century, when it was dominated by Norse warrior-kings. Norse monarchy controlled varying amounts of Northumbria from 875 to 954, however the area was invaded and conquered for short periods by England between 927 and 954 before being annexed into England in 954, it was associated with the much longer-lived Kingdom of Dublin throughout this period. An army of Danish Vikings, the Great Heathen Army as its enemies referred to it, invaded Northumbrian territory in 866 AD; the Danes conquered and assumed what 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 equivalent to the borders of Yorkshire extending further West.
The Danes went on to conque
Marlborough, Wiltshire
Marlborough is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Wiltshire on the Old Bath Road, the old main road from London to Bath. It boasts the second-widest high street in Britain, after Stockton-on-Tees; the town is on the River Kennet, 24 miles north of Salisbury and 10 miles south-southeast of Swindon. The earliest sign of human habitation is a 62-foot-high prehistoric tumulus in the grounds of Marlborough College. Recent radiocarbon dating has found it to date from about 2400 BC, it is of similar age to the larger Silbury Hill about 5 miles west of the town. Legend has it that the Mound is the burial site of Merlin and that the name of the town comes from Merlin's Barrow. More plausibly, the town's name derives from the medieval term for chalky ground "marl"—thus, "town on chalk"; however more recent research, from geographer John Everett-Heath, identifies the original Anglo-Saxon place name as Merleberge, with a derivation from either the personal name of Mærle combined with beorg, or meargealla beorg: hill where gentian grows.
On John Speed's map of Wiltshire, the town's name is recorded as Marlinges boroe. The town's motto is Ubi nunc sapientis ossa Merlini. Further evidence of human occupation comes from the discovery in St Margaret's Mead of the Marlborough Bucket, an Iron Age burial bucket made of fir wood with three iron hoops, a top bar and two handles. Roman remains and the large Mildenhall Hoard of coins have been found two miles to the east of Marlborough, at Mildenhall. A Saxon settlement grew up around The Green and two early river crossings were made at Isbury Lane and Stonebridge Lane. In 1067 William the Conqueror assumed control of the Marlborough area and set about building a wooden motte-and-bailey castle, sited on the prehistoric mound; this was completed in around 1100. Stone was used to strengthen the castle in around 1175; the first written record of Marlborough dates from the Domesday Book in 1087. William established a mint in Marlborough, which coined the William I and the early William II silver pennies.
The coins display the name of the town as Maerleber. He established the neighbouring Savernake Forest as a favourite royal hunting ground and Marlborough castle became a Royal residence. Henry I observed Easter here in 1110. Henry II stayed at Marlborough castle in talks with the King of Scotland, his son, Richard I gave the castle to his brother John, in 1186. King John was spent time in Marlborough, where he established a Treasury. In 1204 King John granted Charter to the Borough which permitted an annual eight-day fair, commencing on 14 August, the vigil of the Feast of the Assumption of Our Lady, in which "all might enjoy the liberties and quittances customary in the fair at Winchester", he established that weekly markets may be held on Wednesdays and Saturdays. These continue to this day. Henry III was married here. Henry III held Parliament here, in 1267; this seven-hundred-year-old law states that no-one shall seize his neighbour's goods for alleged wrong without permission of the Court. Apart from Charters, it is the oldest statute in English law.
The castle remained Crown property. Edward VI passed it to the Seymour family, his mother's relatives. In 1498 Thomas Wolsey was ordained priest in St Peter's church, he rose to become a cardinal and Lord Chancellor. In 1642 Marlborough's peace was shattered by the English Civil War; the Seymours held the Castle for the King but the town was for Parliament. With his headquarters in nearby Oxford, King Charles had to deal with Marlborough. "A Town the most notoriously disaffected of all that Country, saving the obstinacy and malice of the inhabitants, in the situation of it unfit for a garrison... this place the King saw would prove an ill neighbour to him, not only as it was in the heart of a rich County, so would straighten him, infest his quarters." The King sent Lord Digby to take the town who left Oxford, the head of four hundred horses, 24 November 1642. When he arrived, he chose to parley first, thus giving the inhabitants a chance to prepare defences and to recruit troops, they mustered about seven hundred poorly armed men.
At this point, the town issued a reply to Digby: "The King's Majesty, providing he were attended in Royal and not in war like wise, should be as welcome to that town as was Prince to People. After some early skirmishes, Royalist troops infiltrated the town down its small alleyways; the town was captured and looted and many buildings were set ablaze. One hundred and twenty prisoners were marched in chains to Oxford; the town was abandoned by the King and took no further part in the war. On 28 April 1653 the Great Fire of Marlborough started in a tanner's yard and spread eventually after four hours burning the Guildhall, St Mary's Church, the County Armoury, 244 houses to the ground. During the rebuilding of the town after the Great Fire, the high street was widened and is claimed to be the widest in England though the actual widest is in Stockton-on-Tees; this wide street allows ample space for the local market. Fire swept through the Town again in 1679 and ag
Thomas Brudenell-Bruce, 1st Earl of Ailesbury
Thomas Brudenell-Bruce, 1st Earl of Ailesbury KT, styled The Honourable Thomas Brudenell until 1747 and known as The Lord Bruce of Tottenham between 1747 and 1776, was a British courtier. Born Thomas Brudenell, he was the youngest son of George Brudenell, 3rd Earl of Cardigan and Lady Elizabeth Bruce, he was the younger brother of George Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu, James Brudenell, 5th Earl of Cardigan and the Honourable Robert Brudenell. He was educated at Winchester College. In February 1747, aged 17, he succeeded his uncle, the 4th Earl of Elgin and 3rd and last Earl of Ailesbury, as 2nd Baron Bruce of Tottenham according to a special remainder in the letters patent. In 1767 he assumed by Royal licence the additional surname of Bruce. Lord Bruce served as a Lord of the Bedchamber to King George III, was in May 1776 Governor to the Prince of Wales and Prince Frederick. In June 1776 he was created Earl of Ailesbury, in the County of Buckingham, a revival of the earldom which had become extinct on his uncle's death.
He subsequently served as Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire from 1780 to 1782, as Lord Chamberlain to Queen Charlotte from 1780 to 1792 and as Treasurer to Queen Charlotte from 1792 to 1814. On 29 November 1786 he was made a Knight of the Order of the Thistle. Lord Ailesbury married firstly, Susanna Hoare, daughter of the banker Henry Hoare and widow of Viscount Dungarvan, on 17 February 1761, they had five children: Lady Caroline Anne Brudenell-Bruce, died unmarried. George Brudenell-Bruce, Lord Bruce, died unmarried. Lady Frances Elizabeth Brudenell-Bruce, married Sir Henry Wright-Wilson, MP for St Albans. Hon. Charles Brudenell-Bruce, died in infancy. Charles Brudenell-Bruce, 1st Marquess of Ailesbury. Susanna, Countess of Ailesbury, died on 4 February 1783. Lord Ailesbury married as his second wife Lady Anne Elizabeth Rawdon, eldest daughter of John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira, on 14 February 1788. There were no children from this marriage, she died on 8 January 1813. Lord Ailesbury died at Seamore Place, London, in April 1814, aged eighty-four.
He was succeeded in the earldom by his third but only surviving son, created Marquess of Ailesbury in 1821. Correspondence and papers papers miscellaneous correspondence 1753-1809 1796-1807 correspondence with Duke of Buccleuch 196-1807 Letters to Sir R J Buxton correspondence with Lord Elgin 1766-68 - ten letters to Lord Rockingham. Debrett, John. Peerage of Great Britain and Ireland. Vol.1/2. Adamant Media Corp. Ailesbury, Marquess of; the History of Savernake Forest. Henning, duke. Thorne, ed. History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1790-1820. Boydell & Brewer. Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Thomas Brudenell-Bruce, 1st Earl of Ailesbury Ailesbury Brudenell Bruce
Earl of Cardigan
Earl of Cardigan is a title in the Peerage of England held by the Marquesses of Ailesbury, used as a courtesy title by the heir apparent to that Marquessate David Brudenell-Bruce, Earl of Cardigan, son of the 8th Marquess. The Brudenell family descends from Sir Robert Brudenell, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1520 to 1530, his great-grandson, Sir Thomas Brudenell, was created a Baronet in the Baronetage of England, styled "of Deene in the County of Northampton", on 29 June 1611. On 26 February 1628, he was raised to the Peerage of England as Baron Brudenell, of Stanton Wyvill in the County of Leicester, on 20 April 1661 he was further honoured when he was made Earl of Cardigan in the Peerage of England. On his death, the titles passed to his son, the 2nd Earl, on the 2nd Earl's death to his grandson, the 3rd Earl, the 2nd Earl's only son, Lord Brudenell, having predeceased his father; the 3rd Earl's eldest son George, the 4th Earl, married Lady Mary Montagu, daughter of John Montagu, 2nd Duke of Montagu, succeeded to the Montagu estates on his father-in-law's death in 1749, including the Lordship of Bowland.
He assumed. In 1766, he was created Marquess of Monthermer and Duke of Montagu in the Peerage of Great Britain, revivals of the titles which had become extinct on his father-in-law's death in 1749. Montagu's only son and heir, John Montagu, Marquess of Monthermer, had been created Baron Montagu, of Boughton in the County of Northampton, in the Peerage of Great Britain in 1762, a revival of another title held by his maternal grandfather. However, Lord Monthermer died childless in 1770; the barony of Montagu died with him. In 1786, the Duke of Montagu was created Baron Montagu, of Boughton in the County of Northampton, in the Peerage of Great Britain, with remainder to the younger sons of his daughter, Lady Elizabeth Montagu, wife of Henry Scott, 3rd Duke of Buccleuch. On the Duke's death in 1780, the marquessate and dukedom became extinct while he was succeeded in the barony of Montagu according to the special remainder by his grandson, Henry Scott; the earldom, barony of Brudenell and baronetcy passed to the Duke's younger brother, the 5th Earl, who on 17 October 1780 had been created Baron Brudenell, of Deene in the County of Northampton, in the Peerage of Great Britain, in his own right.
However, he died childless in 1811. He was succeeded in the remaining titles by his nephew, the 6th Earl, only son of the Honourable Robert Brudenell, third son of the 3rd Earl; the 6th Earl's only son, James, 7th Earl, gained fame for his role in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. He was childless and on his death in 1868 the titles were inherited by his second cousin, George, 2nd Marquess of Ailesbury, grandson of Thomas Brudenell, the fourth and youngest son of the 3rd Earl. Thomas had succeeded his maternal uncle, the 3rd Earl of Ailesbury and 4th Earl of Elgin, in 1747 as Baron Bruce, of Tottenham in the County of Wilts, had in 1766 assumed the surname "Brudenell-Bruce", had in 1776 been created Earl of Ailesbury in the Peerage of Great Britain; the 1st Earl of Ailesbury was succeeded by his son, the 2nd Earl of Ailesbury, who in 1821 had been created Viscount Savernake, of Savernake Forest in the County of Wilts, Earl Bruce, of Whorlton in the County of York, Marquess of Ailesbury, in the County of Buckingham.
He was succeeded by the aforementioned 2nd Marquess of Ailesbury and 8th Earl of Cardigan. For further history of the titles, see Marquess of Ailesbury; the Earldom remains united with the Marquessate of Ailesbury. The Earldom remains visible, however, as it is used as a courtesy title by the heirs apparent to the Marquessate; the family seat Deene Park was not united with the marquessate but was passed down to Commodore Lord Robert Thomas Brudenell-Bruce, second surviving son of the 3rd Marquess. Lord Robert's son George inherited the family seat along with the family's remaining estates in Leicestershire and Northamptonshire and reverted the family name back to "Brudenell" by Royal Licence. Deene Park is the residence of George's grandson Robert Brudenell. Thomas Brudenell, 1st Baron Brudenell Thomas Brudenell, 1st Earl of Cardigan, 1st Baron Brudenell Robert Brudenell, 2nd Earl of Cardigan, 2nd Baron Brudenell. Styled Lord Brudenell between 1661 and 1663, he was the son of Thomas Brudenell, 1st Earl of Cardigan, Mary Tresham, daughter of Sir Thomas Tresham.
He succeeded his father in the earldom in 1663. Lord Cardigan converted to Roman Catholicism, he was twice married, firstly to the Hon. Mary Constable, daughter of Henry Constable, 1st Viscount of Dunbar. After her death he married, Anna Savage, daughter of Thomas Savage, 1st Viscount Savage, of Rocksavage. There were children from both marriages, his daughter Mary married William Hay, 4th Earl of Kinnoull, his daughter Anna married Francis Talbot, 11th Earl of Shrewsbury. Anna, Countess of Cardigan, died in June 1696. Lord Cardigan died in July 1703, aged 96, was succeeded in the earldom by his grandson George, his son from his second marriage, Lord Brudenell, having predeceased him. Francis Brudenell, Lord Brudenell, he married Frances, daughter of James Savile, 2nd Earl of Sussex, had two sons and James (died 1746
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon, surcoat, or tabard. The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement which in its whole consists of shield, supporters and motto. A coat of arms is traditionally unique to an individual person, state, organization or corporation; the Roll of Arms is a collection of many coats of arms, since the early Modern Age centuries it has been a source of information for public showing and tracing the membership of a noble family, therefore its genealogy across time. The ancient Greek hoplites used individual insignia on their shields; the ancient Romans used similar insignia on their shields. Heraldic designs came into general use among western nobility in the 12th century. Systematic, heritable heraldry had developed by the beginning of the 13th century. Who had a right to use arms, by law or social convention, varied to some degree between countries. Early heraldic designs were personal. Arms become hereditary by the end of the 12th century, in England by King Richard I during the Third Crusade.
Burgher arms are used in Northern Italy in the second half of the 13th century, in the Holy Roman Empire by the mid 14th century. In the late medieval period, use of arms spread to the clergy, to towns as civic identifiers, to royally chartered organizations such as universities and trading companies; the arts of vexillology and heraldry are related. The term coat of arms itself in origin refers to the surcoat with heraldic designs worn by combattants in the knightly tournament, in Old French cote a armer; the sense is transferred to the heraldic design itself in the mid-14th century. Despite no widespread regulation, heraldry has remained consistent across Europe, where tradition alone has governed the design and use of arms; some nations, like England and Scotland, still maintain the same heraldic authorities which have traditionally granted and regulated arms for centuries and continue to do so in the present day. In England, for example, the granting of arms has been controlled by the College of Arms.
Unlike seals and other general emblems, heraldic "achievements" have a formal description called a blazon, which uses vocabulary that allows for consistency in heraldic depictions. In the present day, coats of arms are still in use by a variety of institutions and individuals: for example, many European cities and universities have guidelines on how their coats of arms may be used, protect their use as trademarks. Many societies exist that aid in the design and registration of personal arms. Heraldry has been compared to modern corporate logos; the French system of heraldry influenced the British and Western European systems. Much of the terminology and classifications are taken from it. However, with the fall of the French monarchy there is not a Fons Honorum to enforce heraldic law; the French Republics that followed have either affirmed pre-existing titles and honors or vigorously opposed noble privilege. Coats of arms are considered an intellectual property of municipal body. Assumed arms are considered valid unless they can be proved in court to copy that of an earlier holder.
In the heraldic traditions of England and Scotland, an individual, rather than a family, had a coat of arms. In those traditions coats of arms are legal property transmitted from father to son. Undifferenced arms are used only by one person at any given time. Other descendants of the original bearer could bear the ancestral arms only with some difference: a colour change or the addition of a distinguishing charge. One such charge is the label, which in British usage is now always the mark of an heir apparent or an heir presumptive; because of their importance in identification in seals on legal documents, the use of arms was regulated. This has been carried out by heralds and the study of coats of arms is therefore called "heraldry". In time, the use of arms spread from military entities to educational institutes, other establishments. In Scotland, the Lord Lyon King of Arms has criminal jurisdiction to control the use of arms. In England, Northern Ireland and Wales the use of arms is a matter of civil law and regulated by the College of Arms and the High Court of Chivalry.
In reference to a dispute over the exercise of authority over the Officers of Arms in England, Arthur Annesley, 1st Earl of Anglesey, Lord Privy Seal, declared on 16 June 1673 that the powers of the Earl Marshal were "to order and determine all matters touching arms, ensigns of nobility and chivalry. It was further declared that no patents of arms or any ensigns of nobility should be granted and no augmentation, alteration, or addition should be made to arms without the consent of the Earl Marshal. In Ireland the usage and granting of coats of arms was regulated by the Ulster King of Arms from the office's creation in 1552. After Irish independence in 1922 the office was still working out of Dublin Castle; the last Ulster King of Arm
Skelton, York
Skelton is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of the City of York, in North Yorkshire, England. It is 4 miles north northwest of the city of York, west of Haxby, on the east bank of the River Ouse. Skelton covers 977.3 hectares. Skelton was made a conservation area in 1973; the village name began as the Anglo-Saxon'Shelfton' –'the settlement on high ground'– becoming the present'Skelton' under the invading Danes. The village, along with nearby Overton, is mentioned in the Domesday Book. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 1,640, reducing to 1,549 at the 2011 Census. Between 1974 and 1996 it was in the Ryedale district and prior to 1974 in the historic North Riding of Yorkshire. Skelton is mentioned in the Domesday Book. Skelton Grange was built by the Place family in the 18th century and rebuilt after fire in 1866.'The Grange' was sold in 1981 due to a lack of funds for upkeep. It was demolished by a local property developer for a large housing development on the site.
The York Corporation bought Fairfield House on the opposite side of the main Road in 1918 and opened it as a tuberculosis sanatorium in the following year. It is now a hotel. Skelton is part of the Unitary Authority of the City of York Council; as of 2010 the Ward of Skelton and Clifton Without is represented by Councillors Richard Moore and Irene Waudby of the local Liberal Democrat Party and by Joe Watt of the local Conservative party. Skelton Parish Council is elected by the residents of the parish to administer local matters and consists of nine Councillors. In 1890 its population was recorded as 313. By 1901 the village was recorded as comprising 2473 acres with a population of 270 having varied over the previous hundred years between 203 and 367. In 1951 the population was still only about 481 but expanded rapidly. In 2001 the population stood at 1,640; the village was agricultural in nature, but is now residential with a small commercial district to the south west of the village. Local Services consist of a Post Office and General Store, one Public House and one Social Club, a Doctor's Surgery.
The old village centre stands on a deposit of boulder clay, taking this part to a height some 25 metres above sea level, 10 metres more than the remainder of the village, on strong clay, resting on gravel and sand. Within the settlement are several ponds, indicating a high water-table; the flora and fauna was documented in two surveys, one in 1956 and in 1971. In and around the village the surveys identified 100 species of bird, 328 species of trees and plants, 8 different ferns, 31 different types of moss, 9 fungi and amphibians including frogs, the Warty or Crested Newt and the Smooth Newt. Recorded were 21 species of mammals including the Whiskered Bat and the Long-Eared Bat; the bats and the Crested Newts in the village are protected species. In the village open spaces have been cared for by the Parish Council and local volunteer groups and include The Green, Crooking Green, Orchard Field, The Pasture, Skelton Pond, the open spaces at Sycamore Close and Brecksfield; the long, narrow plot boundaries extending back from the older houses are an example of the typical medieval pattern of'toft and croft' agriculture.
The main road which runs to the west of the village was a turnpike and in the last century became a major trunk route the A19. There were attempts to turnpike the York-Northallerton road that passed through Skelton in 1749, but these failed; the scheme was revived in 1752 when the York Corporation sought that no gate should be nearer to York than the north end of Skelton, that the section of the road nearer York should be repaired first. The Turnpike Trust was established in 1753; the trust was renewed in 1778, 1794, 1808, 1830, by the Continuance Acts until 1874. The village is served by four bus services as part of the York to Easingwold route, two further services as part of the York to Thirsk route, one local service to York. A school was built in 1872, it accommodated 120 children, had an average attendance of about half that number. Now primary education is catered for at Skelton Community Primary School located in Brecksfield; the village is within the Local Education Authority catchment area for Vale of York Academy on Rawcliffe Drive in nearby Clifton Without.
The Church of St Giles known as All Saints, dates from 1247, having been restored between 1810 and 1818 by Henry Graham and in 1863 by Ewan Christian. It is a Grade I listed building; the register dates from the year 1538. Local tradition maintains that it was built, in 1227, with the stones that remained after the building of the south transept of York Minster; the church is thus sometimes called "Little St Peter's". There is some truth in this as the following extract from Archbishop Grey's roll shows that its building took place previous to the year 1247: "Confirmation of a donation to the chapel of Skelton. To all, etc; the donation which our beloved son in Christ, Master E. Hagitur, treasurer of York, made to John de l'Edes, clerk of the chapel of Skelton, considering it to be agreeable and satisfactory to us, we confirm the same by our Pontifical authority, desiring the said treasurer, his successors, to pay annually the sum of 20d. to this parson. In witne
