Last updated on September 3rd, 2024 at 09:49 am
The Ryedale village of Sheriff Hutton is unlikely to be on most people’s tourist trails. Yet it is a reminder, if one is needed, that history, like love, is all around us. Frankly, the first I heard of the place was when reading about the dreadful wars of the fifteenth century and learning that the powerful Neville family had one of their grand castles there. It beggars belief how many castles there are – or have been – in Britain. Before you try and find out, I wouldn’t rely on arbitrary figures suggested after a simple search on the Internet – and it depends what you mean by ‘castle’, of course. Anyway, along with the serious fortresses at Raby and Middleham, Sheriff Hutton was part of the Neville power-base in the north of England. Like most castles, it is a ruin now but, unlike Raby and Middleham, it is not open to the public as a visitor attraction. It is a romantic-looking ruin, though, and to the determined heritage-hunter, these things are always worth a look.
However, this was not the first Sheriff Hutton castle. The remains of a rectangular ringwork fortification lie in the nearby churchyard of St Helen and the Holy Cross. This may have been built by one Ansketil de Bulmer – who possibly had Saxon heritage – sometime after the Norman Conquest. Alternatively, it may have been constructed a little later, during the period known as ‘the Anarchy’ (1138-53), when England was torn by war between the forces of King Stephen and Empress Matilda. In any case, the fact that Ansketil and then Bertram de Bulmer (probably Ansketil’s son) were Sheriffs of York was enough to add the ‘Sheriff’ prefix to the fairly common Old English (Anglo-Saxon) village name, Hutton, meaning a farmstead (tun) on a ridge or spur of land (hoh). The Nevilles acquired Sheriff Hutton by marriage and John Neville built the stone castle in the late 14th century, which was complete by 1398. John Neville’s great-grandson was Richard, the 16th Earl of Warwick, (1428-71), known as ‘Kingmaker’ and at one time the most influential noble in the land.
Sheriff Hutton and Middleham were Warwick’s principal bases in the north of England. After the Earl’s death in 1471 at the Battle of Barnet, Sheriff Hutton was seized by the crown and granted to Edward IV’s youngest brother, Richard Plantagenet, Duke of Gloucester, who in 1483 became Richard III. In fact, the Earl of Warwick was a cousin as well as guardian to the young Richard. So Richard would have known Sheriff Hutton quite well as a boy. As a grown man and Duke of Gloucester, he effectively ruled the north of England for his older brother, presiding over the King’s Council of the North, established initially at Sheriff Hutton, and had responsibility as Warden of the Western March for guarding the border with Scotland.
The Norman church of St Helen and the Holy Cross is just down the road from the castle. Resting against the wall in the north-east corner is the worn and mutilated effigy of a boy, formed of bone-white alabaster. The features have long gone, but he wears a coronet, a long, belted, robe and the cenotaph beneath – it is not a tomb – is richly carved with angels and heraldic devices. The effigy, so ‘tis said, is a representation of the young Edward of Middleham, son of Richard III and his Queen, Anne Neville, daughter of the Earl of Warwick. Born in 1473, Edward is thought to have been a sickly child. He was invested as Prince of Wales at York Minster in 1483, but died at Middleham in 1484, possibly of tuberculosis. His parents were in Nottingham at the time and were distraught with grief. The story is that they hastened north as soon as word of their son’s death reached them, Edward was brought south to Sheriff Hutton to meet them and then laid to rest in Neville family chapel on the south side of the church. That’s the tale, but there is no proof that this is Edward’s effigy – or, indeed, that the poor lad was buried in Sheriff Hutton at all; more likely, he was buried at Middleton. So who does this sad monument really represent? At some point, it has been very badly treated. It is now generally thought to represent a young Neville, Ralph, who died sometime around 1436.
While we’re in the church, though, there’s another, much larger, effigy nearby. This is of a mail-clad fully-armoured knight, with shield and sword. We know this is represents Sir Edmund Thweng of Cornborough Manor, who died in 1344. Some accounts suggest he died at ‘the Battle of Stirling’, but the only notable Battle of Stirling I’m aware of is the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297. This was a famous Scottish victory during which Edmund’s uncle Marmaduke acquitted himself well, so I’m thinking that people are getting the two of them mixed-up. It’s a fine monument, anyway, if a little past its best.
Richard III, of course, famously perished at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. Sheriff Hutton Castle periodically hosted the Council of the North after Richard III’s death and, in 1525, Henry VIII gave it to his illegitimate son Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Warden-General of the Marches. As a centre of local government, the castle had a staff of 142 at that time, in addition to the 100 servants in the Duke’s retinue. Despite needing repairs, the castle was described by John Leyland in 1534 as ‘princely’. It was a rectangular castle with an outer court and gardens, built as a grand home rather than a purely functional fortress. By the early 17th century, it was in a state of decay and is now in private hands, part of a large farm. However, limited accommodation and wedding facilities are now on offer (website link below).
It has long been a habit of mine, when driving a reasonable distance, to take the opportunity to divert to interesting, and sometimes obscure, places along the way. So I had to be somewhere and on this occasion calculated that I’d have time to ‘have a quick look’ at Sheriff Hutton on the way. After all, because you can’t actually visit the castle, I reasoned that it couldn’t take long. Now, I have organised a great many large projects in my working life and have always urged colleagues and clients to remember the 6 Ps – vernacular version “Proper Planning Prevents P*** Poor Performance”. I’d then follow that up with the reminder that “no plan survives contact with the enemy”. Of course, I set out on my little expedition slightly later than intended. The plan was already unravelling. Secondly, getting across Yorkshire is never swift – the roads simply do not allow it. Still, when I reached Sheriff Hutton, I had about an hour to spare; time enough, surely? Due to a combination of necessity and optimism, I stopped at a delightful delicatessen in Sheriff Hutton, for comfort and coffee. It was a buzzy kind of place; people were having business meetings there and it sold a wonderful selection of tasty-looking treats. Alas, the coffee took longer than anticipated and was so hot I had to leave half of it. Even so, I didn’t need a whole hour – did I? I almost sprinted down the aisle of the church – close to disrespectful, even for an old agnostic. I then pulled up near the castle, to scout out somewhere to take a couple of good shots before heading on my way. This is when the fact that I had ignored my own advice really mattered. There was a footpath round the castle that I hadn’t expected. It was a lovely day and the path was irresistible. But it looked a little muddy. No problem! Dashing back to the car, I quickly changed into an old pair of trainers, carefully rolled up my reasonably respectable trouser legs and must have cut an incongruous figure, clad in a tailored single-breasted jacket over a smart shirt, camera slung round my neck, picking my way across the field next to the brimming old moat, or ditch. Actually, it wasn’t too bad until I reached the point of no return, where the path resembled no man’s land on the Western Front, without the soldiers and explosives. I straddled the path, one foot either side in an effort to avoid the worst, legs gradually extending to a ridiculous angle as the mud widened. I slipped, wildly clutching for slimy fence posts, but more often grabbling brambles or barbed-wire. By the time I got back to the car, the caked mud had rendered my trainers unrecognisable and extended several inches around each foot, like muddy snow-shoes and turning my walk-trot into an amusing, ungainly, waddle. In order to avoid mud-creep, I had to perform a couple of neat pirouettes in the road whilst changing shoes, but managed to convert back to the required sartorial elegance relatively painlessly. I won’t dwell on the tractor whose considerate driver pulled out in front of me as I drove out of the village, and who irritatingly chugged along at 20mph , refusing to let me pass.
So much for not obeying my own lessons. The castle was beautiful, though. And evocative. Imagine it as the hub of local power, rather than a picturesque ruin. And I made it to where I needed to be with 10 minutes to spare. Here’s Sheriff Hutton Castle’s website.
HaHaHa I love your description of walking in the mud.
I try to avoid walking in mud, it is a hangup from my school days. I couple of memorable incidents!
Thanks, CP. I have schoolday memories of cross country runs through bogs – but we were dressed appropriately!
The old castle does really make for a lovely ruin.
It does!
Hi Mike, Nice post! I’m not usually one for ruins, but I love the look of these castle ruins. Wouldn’t you love to have seen it in all its glory? It still looks rather majestic sitting on the plateau as it is. You got some good pictures! I love that Norman church, too, with its pretty clock over the door.
Just wanted to let you know that I finished your book last week. I really enjoyed it!! Once I got past the prehistoric era and the very early peoples, it moved a lot faster for me. Roman Britain was interesting (they were amazing builders and engineers weren’t they?) but once I got to the reign of Elizabeth I, the book fairly flew for me. I was surprised, and pleased, to see how much of Britain’s history I had already been exposed to through other reading and television.
Congratulations on getting your first book out there, Mike!! I certainly hope there will be a Part 2! 🙂 I’ve enjoyed your blog friendship, and as you’ve said to me on occasion, “Keep blogging.” Take care and have a good week!
Denise
Hi Denise. I love a good ruin and, fortunately, so does Mrs Britain! 🙂 I was lucky with the light that day. Thank you so much for buying the book in the first place, and for your very kind comments. If you have the time and energy to leave a review on Amazon, that would be great – unknown authors are so dependent on reviews. All the best, Mike.
A very enjoyable post, Mike. I have made a few visits to places on my way to an appointment and I usually regret it, as the place is so much more interesting than I imagined. You were very fortunate with the weather and local amenities, the photos are excellent as always and the castle ruins extremely attractive.
I was certainly very lucky that day, Clare!
Two questions:
1. What is a ‘Ryedale’…?
I know quite little about the North of England – sorry! XD
2. Are those fake flowers on the effigy or real ones?
I’m driving myself scatty trying to decide! I kind of hope they’re fake cos real lillies aren’t something I’m a fan of – not least b/c they’re poisonous to cats.
…I realise this is an odd comment. And I’m good with that! XD
Two answers: 🙂
1 – Ryedale is a district of North Yorkshire, around the Howardian Hills and southern part of the North Yorks Moors.
2. I think they were real. I was wondering why I hadn’t seen any cats…
We like the odd comment – thank you ; please do it again!
Ha, odd comments are my specialty 😉
Oh dear! Sorry about the muddy path … but an interesting post and great photographs.
All the best Jan
Hah – so YOU caused the muddy path!? No worries, Jan 🙂
Very nice item about that old Neville stronghold. As an interested reader from the Netherlands, I was wondering what the official English view of Richard III would be nowadays. The evil Shakespeare figure or the completely rehabilitated hero of Josephine Tey’s book “Daughter of Time”?
Thank you very much. And also thank you for being an interested reader from the Netherlands – I need more of those! I don’t think there is an official view of dear old Uncle Richard and I’m certainly no expert. That said, in the context of the times and given he had both motive and opportunity, I shouldn’t be at all surprised if he bumped the young lads off – they were a threat. Does that make him a bad person, or a medieval monarch? 🙂
Every day’s a school day on ABAB 🙂
Haha!
I’ll bet that you hadn’t anticipated quite the amount of research this detour would incur. very well done. I liked your last section describing your process. I think you might rival my risky escapades.
I always underestimate the research, Derrick! Just like I underestimated the mud.
Interesting, hadn’t heard of this place, though I’ve been to Middleham. Like Eunice, 8 had a good chuckle at your muddy path story!
Good – we aim to generate a chuckle or two 🙂
Quite the adventure, Mike. I always learn something new from you. Today I learned (among other more cerebral things) to a) carry back-up shoes and b) avoid muddy paths. I think the barbed wire and brambles were just unavoidable after that! I’m glad you survived with your humour in full gear (though I suspect at the moment it might have been a wee bit lagging!)
All told with a healthy dose of poetic licence, Jeanie; except for the historic bits, of course!
Hi Mike – when I posted my A-Z Castle series in 2012 somewhere I have a ‘count of the castles’ … but can’t find it today … probably buried under a mound of mud. Those walks … great exercise – but keeping clean is nearly impossible. The poor young chap dying so young – yet remembered anonymously for ever. That period of history has almost escaped me – except for the headlines … Council of the North, Lord of the North and some of the rulers/nobles … each little snippet will add to my meagre jigsaw puzzle … lots more pieces needed for the brain. Great fun to read … and I love the history – cheers Hilary
Glad you enjoyed, Hilary! Yes – depends whether you include hill forts, Victorian fortifications, army camps, stately homes that began life as castles – etc etc!
I am a ‘newby’ here, and have so enjoyed your familiar warm ‘tones’.
Another Historic Day yesterday leaving the EU, which will provide historians with lots of ‘facts’ to sift through, which the coined phrase ‘Fake News’ will provide plenty of.
Best wishes
Shirley Taylor
Hi – welcome Shirley! Glad you like the tones and hope you visit often. Yes, historic times; but then they always are!
Wow, those ruins look absolutely gorgeous
They were irresistible!
Great photos, and it is a relief to see that I am not the only one to take lopsided pictures!
Thank you; there’s always a place for the lopsided photo!
“Yet it is a reminder, if one is needed, that history, like love, is all around us.” – Nice. 🙂 Great pictures and write up. I thought you’d like to know I very much enjoyed my visit to Bletchley!
Tongue firmly in cheek for the love part 🙂 Look forward to reading your take on Bletchley! And other things!
Another interesticng post
Thank you! I do try…
The only thing I know about Sheriff Hutton is that there is, or was, a camp site there. The castle looks intriguing however and I’m sorry but I had to laugh at your encounter with the mud, in fact I’m still giggling now 🙂
I didn’t spot the camp site, but I’m delighted the article it made you giggle! We aim to please 🙂
Which is when you noticed the splatters of mud all up your back!
Ah, no Peter – that came later, when I made my getaway on the bike without mudguards!
Another terrific blog post. I have never heard about an Empress Matilda! So much to learn on this planet. This sentence, in particular, sums up why I am enjoying your blog posts so much: “Yet it is a reminder, if one is needed, that history, like love, is all around us.” What a lovely sentence and perspective and reminder!!! Thank you, as always, for sharing your enthusiasm and knowledge and humor and humanity with the rest of us.
Thanks, Will – I do appreciate that! Matilda and Stephen had a falling-out over which of them should rule. All pretty pointless, really 🙂