York City Wall 2018 02 15 #4

No visit to York would be complete without a walk around the City Walls. At 3.4 kilometres long, the beautifully preserved walls are the longest medieval town walls in England. About 2.5 million people walk along all or part of the City walls each year, enjoying some amazing views. The completion of the entire circuit will take approximately 2 hours. There are five main bars or gateways, one Victorian gateway, one postern (a small gateway) and 45 towers.

 

York City Walls

The city or ‘bar’ walls of York are the most complete example of medieval city walls still standing in England today. Beneath the medieval stonework lie the remains of earlier walls dating as far back as the Roman period.

 

The Roman walls survived into the 9th century when, in AD 866, York was invaded by the Danish Vikings. The Vikings buried the existing Roman wall under an earth bank and topped with a palisade – a tall fence of pointed wooden stakes.

 

The wooden palisade was replaced in the 13th and 14th centuries with the stone wall we see today.

 

The medieval city walls originally included 4 main gates or ‘bars’ (Bootham Bar, Monk Bar, Walmgate Bar and Micklegate Bar), 6 postern or secondary gates and 44 intermediate towers. The defensive perimeter stretched over 2 miles encompassing the medieval city and castle.

 

By the late 18th century, however, the walls were no longer required as defences for the city and had fallen into disrepair. In 1800, the Corporation of York applied for an Act of Parliament to demolish them. In addition to the poor condition of the walls at the time, the narrow gateways of the bars were inconvenient and the walls themselves hindered the city’s expansion.

 

Many other cities, including London, were removing their outdated, medieval city walls at this time. In York, however, the city officials met with fierce and influential opposition and by the mid-nineteenth century the Corporation had been forced to back down.

 

Unfortunately, the call for preservation came too late for some parts of the walls – the barbicans at all but one of the gateways (Walmgate Bar) had been torn down along with 3 postern gates, 5 towers and 300 yards of the wall itself.

 

Since the mid-nineteenth century the walls have been restored and maintained for public access, including the planting of spring flowers on the old Viking embankment. Today the walls are a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade 1 listed building.

 

Bootham Bar

There has been a gateway here for nearly 2000 years - Bootham Bar is on the site of one of the four main entrances to the Roman fortress.

The existing structure is not Roman but it has been around for quite a while. The archway itself dates from the 11th century and the rest of the structure is largely from the 14th century. In 1501 a door knocker was installed as Scots were required to knock first and seek permission from the Lord Mayor to enter the city.

The bar was damaged during the siege of York in 1644. Like Micklegate Bar, it was sometimes used to display the heads of traitors, the heads of three rebels opposing Charles II’s restoration were placed here in 1663.

Bootham Bar was the last of the gates to lose its barbican, demolished in 1835.

 

Fishergate Bar

1315AD - 1487AD

Fishergate Bar is one of six gateways in the city walls. It faces South towards Selby. Nearby used to be the large flooded area known as the King’s Fishpond.

‘Barram Fishergate’ is the first documented reference to the bar, in 1315. A central stone above the archway reveals the date of the current bar. It contains the York coat of arms and an inscription which reads:

‘A.doi m.cccc.lxxx.vii Sr Willm Tod knight mayre this wal was mayd in his days lx yadys’

This tells us that sixty yards of the wall, including the bar, was built in 1487 under Sir William Tod, mayor of York.

But just two years later, in 1489, Fishergate Bar suffered considerable damage in the Yorkshire peasants’ revolt against Henry VII. The rebels burned the gates of the bar after murdering the Earl of Northumberland. The gateway was bricked up soon after and wasn’t re-opened until 1834, to give better access for the cattle market.

 

Micklegate Bar

Micklegate Bar was the most important of York’s four main medieval gateways and the focus for grand events. The name comes from 'Micklelith', meaning great street.

It was the main entrance to the city for anyone arriving from the South. At least half a dozen reigning monarchs have passed through this gate and by tradition they stop here to ask the Lord Mayor's permission to enter the city.

The lower section of the bar dates from the 12th century, the top two storeys from the 14th. The building was inhabited from 1196. Like the other main gates, Micklegate Bar originally had a barbican built on the front, in this case demolished in 1826.

For centuries the severed heads of rebels and traitors were displayed above the gate, the many victims include Sir Henry Purcey (Hotspur) in 1403 and Richard, Duke of York in 1460. The last of the severed heads was removed in 1754.

 

Monk Bar

Monk Bar is the largest and most ornate of the bars, it dates from the early 14th century. It was a self-contained fortress, with each floor capable of being defended. On the front of the bar is an arch supporting a gallery, including 'murder-holes' through which missiles and boiling water could be rained down upon attackers.

Monk Bar has the city’s only working portcullis, in use until 1970. Like the other main gateways, Monk Bar originally had a barbican on the front. This was demolished in 1825.

The rooms above the gateway have had various uses over the years, including as a home and as a jail for rebellious Catholics in the 16th century.

 

The Red Tower

1490AD - 1491AD

The Red Tower, built in 1490, forms the only brick section of York’s famous city walls. Because it was built of brick its construction did not sit well with the local stone masons. So much so that it was the cause of dispute, and even murder.

The masons who worked on the majority of York’s walls and buildings were unhappy about the employment of tilers to build the Red Tower; their unhappiness led to them attempting to sabotage the building of the tower. The tilers had to ask for protection from the city council to stop the masons from threatening them and breaking their tools.

This protection made little difference, however. In 1491, the tiler John Patrik was murdered. Two leading masons, William Hindley and Christopher Homer, were charged with the murder but quickly acquitted.

The first recorded use of the name “The Red Tower” was in 1511, presumably in reference to its red brick colour rather than its bloody past.

Despite forming an important and unique part of the city walls, the Red Tower fell quickly into disrepair. It had to be repaired multiple times, notably in 1541 and 1545, and was in ruins by 1736. It was roughly restored in 1800 and became known as ‘Brimstone House’ – probably a reference to its former use as a manufactory for gunpowder. It has two storeys, and a garderobe. The way that the tower appears now is thanks to G F Jones’ restorations in 1857-8.

 

Walmgate Bar

Walmgate Bar is the most complete of the four main medieval gateways to the city, it is the only bar to retain its barbican, portcullis and inner doors.

Its oldest part is a 12th century stone archway, the walled barbican at the front dates from the 14th century, the wooden gates from the 15th century and the timber-framed building on the inside from the 16th century.

It was burned by rebels in 1489 and battered by cannon during the siege of 1644.

 

Baile Hill

William the Conqueror ordered two castles to be built in York, one on either side of the River Ouse.

They formed a defensive system in response to the recent violent unrest.

'York Castle' was later reinforced and eventually rebuilt in stone and so now appears much more substantial. But originally both castles were of a similar size and layout.

Baile Hill is the name given to all that remains of York's other castle. It was the man-made mound, or motte, of the castle.

Excavations in 1979 revealed remains of timber buildings and a strong fence at the summit of the mound, together with a staircase up one side. The surrounding bailey was defended by a bank of earth built on top of the original Roman city wall.

 

Barker Tower

This river-side tower was built in the 14th century. It was positioned at the boundary of the medieval city-centre and, in conjunction with Lendal Tower on the opposite bank, was used to control river traffic entering the city. A great iron chain was stretched across the river between the two towers and boatmen had to pay a toll to cross it. The chain also served as a defence for the city. As early as 1380 Thomas Smyth was named as the tower’s ‘keeper of the chain’.

For boats coming downstream it would be the second toll in quick succession; St Mary's Abbey had its own tower and toll collection system a little further up the river.

 

Barker tower was leased for long periods to various ferrymen (and at least one woman) who ran passengers across the Ouse until Lendal Bridge was built in 1863. The ferry ran 'in summer and winter, fair weather and foul, Sundays and weekdays'.

 

The ferry was put out of business when Lendal Bridge opened in 1863. The tower has had plenty of other uses over the years, including as a mortuary for a brief time in the 19th century.

 

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