Middleham
North Yorkshire
The small town is at the edge of lower Wensleydale and near the end of Coverdale.
It is situated 16 miles east of Northallerton, 8½ miles south-south-west of Richmond, 7½ miles north-west of Masham and 2 miles south-south-east of Leyburn.
Today the attractive town is one of mainly Georgian construction, including many buildings which are now listed. They are arranged principally around its medieval market place where earlier buildings would have stood at the time the town's dominating Middleham Castle was still lived in.
The future king acquired the castle and other Neville lands after the Earl of Warwick died in 1471. He married the Earl of Warwick's daughter Anne Neville the following year after her brief first marriage to Edward, Prince of Wales, which ended with his death in battle at Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. Richard and Anne's son Edward was born at the castle and died there as a young boy less than a year after Richard and Anne had become King and Queen in 1483.
The castle itself dates from the late 12th century, although earthworks of an earlier 11th century timber castle remain at a different site, William's Hill, further up the hillside from the later castle.
A little nearer to the castle than the Market Cross is the Swine Cross where livestock markets were held.
The parish church, dedicated to St Mary and St Alkelda, dates mainly from the 14th century with later additions. The church was granted collegiate status by Richard, Duke of Gloucester.
Middleham has become one of the best known centres in the North of England for the training of racehorses, with hundreds of horses in training at around 15 stables in the area. A Middleham Open Day is organised in March by the Racing Welfare charity, allowing visits to the yards.
Find out more about the open day at the
Middleham Open Day website.
Town features
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Locations of toilets and opening times can be found at this North Yorkshire Council - Public toilets web page.
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Travel
Bus travel
The town has an infrequent bus service.
Places to visit
Richmond Castle
Tower Street, Richmond, North YorkshireOne of the finest and most complete Norman castles in Britain, around which the town of
More information at these
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Find on map:
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Middleham Castle
Castle Hill, Middleham, North YorkshireMiddleham has substantial remains of a castle built in stages between the 12th and 15th centuries, including a late 12th century keep which is one of the largest hall keeps in the country. Ditch and timber defences were not replaced with the low stone curtain wall until the early 14th century. It is notable as the place where, in the 1460s, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who later became King Richard III, spent several years of his youth under the guardianship of his cousin Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. During the War of the Roses, King Edward IV was imprisoned at Middleham Castle for a short time in 1469. The castle is managed by English Heritage.
More information at these
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Find on map:
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Bolton Castle
Castle Bolton, near Redmire, North YorkshireOne of Britain's best-preserved medieval castles was built as one of the finest homes in the land and is still in the ownership of a descendant of the castle's original owner. With a commanding view over Wensleydale, the castle is situated near Redmire, about 5 miles west of
More information at the
Bolton Castle website.
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Find on map:
Bolton Castle
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Easby Abbey
Easby, near RichmondSituated about 1.5 miles from the centre of Richmond beside the River Swale, Easby Abbey has some magnificent and quite substantial stonework remaining from its refectory, gatehouse and canon's dormitory. The abbey was founded in 1152 and was of the Premonstratensian order. As with most monasteries it was a target of Henry VIII and soon after its supression in 1536 most of its buildings were stripped for stone or demolished. Within the abbey complex is the Parish Church of St Agatha, founded before the abbey and still in use as a church today. Inside are 13th century wall paingtings and a fragment of 12th century glass. The abbey church, however, was mostly demolished after the supression. The abbey is managed as a free entry site by English Heritage.
Find out more at the
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Find on map:
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The Wensleydale Railway
A railway service into Wensleydale running from Scruton and Leeming Bar, near the
Further information at the
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Aysgarth Falls
AysgarthAysgarth Falls have been a much-visited Wensleydale beauty spot and a tourist attraction for more then two centuries. The River Ure falls down a series of rocky steps near to the village of
Find
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Hardraw Force
Hardraw, near HawesSituated about a mile north of
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Richmondshire Museum
Ryder's Wynd, RichmondThe museum is just a short walk from the Market Place in
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Dales Countryside Museum
Station Yard, Burtersett Road, HawesThe Dales Countryside Museum is located at the former Victorian station in
Find out more at the
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Yorkshire Dales National Park
The western half of Richmondshire is all within the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Emergency services
North Yorkshire Police ![](blobs/tiny/http.gif)
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service
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Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
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Local government
Civil parish council
Middleham Town CouncilProvides some local services in the area.
Link to council website:
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Unitary authority
The North Yorkshire Council is a new unitary authority formed from the previous County Council from April 1, 2023. It covers the existing county duties including highways, schools, libraries and transport planning over an area of 3,109 square miles while also taking over the responsibilities of the seven huge district authorities also created in 1974 — Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby — these including local planning, waste collection, street cleaning, parks and car parks, housing and markets serving a population of around 615,500*.
Councillors were elected to the County Council in 2022 and continue as councillors of the new North Yorkshire Council unitary authority. There have been a few by-elections to fill councillor vacancies since then.
Places in
North Yorkshire
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Link to council website:
North Yorkshire Council
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Political composition:
CI = Conservative & Independent NY Ind = North Yorkshire Independents group LC = Labour & Cooperative
Composition and groupings - source North Yorkshire Council (February 2024)
Strategic authority
York and North Yorkshire Combined AuthorityThe York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority was created in December 2023 combining the unitary authority of York and the unitary authority of North Yorkshire — that created in April 2023 after the abolition of the county authority and its seven district authorities. The combined authority will run some functions under the new mayor elected in May 2024 as part of the government's so-called "Devolution deal" which ties the availablity of funding to the new governance arrangements. As well as having powers over housing development, transport and boosting skills and education across the 3,214 square miles of York and North Yorkshire, the elected mayor also takes on the role and functions of the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner across the area.
Elected mayor:
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Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner North YorkshireCovers the county of
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Parliamentary constituency
Richmond and NorthallertonElected MP: