UK - Explore York - Yorkshire's Historic City

Roman Wall,York Minster, Shambles - Oldest Shopping Street in UK

Feb 9, 2009 Cathy Smith

The Romans invaded Britain in 43AD. Moving north in 71AD they built a walled fortress to house a legion, or about 5,000 men. This was the birth of the city of York.

There isn’t much left of the original Roman walls. By the time the Danish invaders arrived in 86, they were in bad shape. The Danes demolished all the towers except one and restored the walls. What you see today dates mainly from the 12th-14th century.

The British City of York - Walking the Roman Wall

Bootham Bar takes you around the back of the Minster. As it winds its way around the town and you look down at the road below you come across old houses with very tall chimneys, local shops, parking lots, supermarkets, in fact all the trappings of a busy small town. (To get an idea of what might have been happening on these streets around twelve hundred years ago, when the Vikings took over, visit the Jorvic Exhibition.)

The British City of York - The Minster

York Minster is one of the largest Medieval Gothic churches in the world. It took 250 years to build and is staggering beautiful. Its stonework looks as fresh as it must have been on the day of its consecration in 1472.

Don’t miss Evensong, held at 5:15pm, 4pm on Sundays. Often the choristers are children. They file into the Minster dressed in red and white gowns. What a fabulous experience to hear these angelic young voices soar up to the medievale arches of the minster. The sweetness of the young voices brings tears of emotion. Talk about lifting the soul! Whatever the religious beliefs are of the visitors who attend Evensong, the beauty of the singing and the chanting, cannot help but stir the human spirit.

The British City of York - The Shambles

Today the term ‘Shambles’ is often used to describe something that is in a mess, i.e. “This place is a shambles!” But originally this was the name given to streets which mainly contained butchers’ shops and slaughter houses. The York Shambles is possibly the oldest in Britain and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086,

The meat was served from open windows and the streets were deliberatly narrow in order to keep the meat out of the sun’s rays. In 1872 there were 26 butchers in the street, today there is one. Nowadays the Shambles is one of the best shopping streets in York, with restaurants antiques stores, tea rooms, gift shops, art galleries and bookshops. In other words, something for everyone

The British City of York - Shrine of Margaret Clitherow

One place on the Shambles that is far removed from mammon and can easily be missed, is the Shrine of Margaret Clitherow - a small patch of tranquility on this popular street. Go inside, there is no entrance fee, It is a small, simple chapel. Margaret lived in the Shambles in the 16th century. She was a Catholic convert at a time when Catholicism had been outlawed by King Henry the 8th. She held masses in her home and hid priests in her house. Eventually she was arrested and charged with the crime of harbouring Roman Catholic priests. Her martyrdom was particularly gruesome - she was ordered to be crushed to death by the placing of large rocks on her body until she died.

Much more to see and do on your York holiday.

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