| Wensley | |
|---|---|
 | |
.svg)  Wensley Location withinNorth Yorkshire | |
| Population | 151 (2011 census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SE092895 |
| • London | 200 mi (320 km) SSE |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LEYBURN |
| Postcode district | DL8 |
| Police | North Yorkshire |
| Fire | North Yorkshire |
| Ambulance | Yorkshire |
| 54°18′06″N1°51′31″W / 54.30175°N 1.85862°W /54.30175; -1.85862 | |
Wensley is a small village andcivil parish inNorth Yorkshire, England. It consists of a few homes and holiday cottage, an inn, a pub and a historic church.[2] It is on theA684 road 1 mile (1.6 km) south-west of the market town ofLeyburn. TheRiver Ure passes through the village.
Theetymology of the name ultimately originates either from a compound of anOld English form of the godWoden (attestedWedneslegc. 1212, earlierWodnesleie, seeWednesday), and the Old Englishleah meaning wood or meadow.[3] Another possible route for the first part is the personal nameWændel.[4] Wensley gives its name to the daleWensleydale.[5]
From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the district ofRichmondshire, it is now administered by the unitaryNorth Yorkshire Council.
For a century after its charter in 1202, Wensley had the only market in the dale and this continued into the 16th century. Plague struck Wensley in 1563,[6] some surviving villagers fled toLeyburn, but the village recovered a century later whenCharles Paulet builtBolton Hall in 1678 and becameDuke of Bolton.[7] Bolton Hall, is now 1.2 miles (1.9 km) from the heart of Wensley, nearPreston-under-Scar, Richmondshire; it was rebuilt after a fire in 1902.[8]
Wensley'sHoly Trinity Church dates to 1300 and is a Grade Ilisted building.[9] It is now redundant and cared for by theChurches Conservation Trust.[10] It was featured as the wedding venue ofJames and Helen Herriot in the 1978BBC television seriesAll Creatures Great and Small, in the episode "The Last Furlong".[11][12]
Wensley's railway station is now closed. It was situated 1-mile (1.6 km) to the north between Wensley andPreston-under-Scar, on theWensleydale Railway line which still passes the village.
Leyburn Old Glebe nature reserve lies about 440 yards (400 m) east of the village.
Ernie Gillatt, a footballer active in the 1920s, was born in Wensley.[13]
Media related toWensley at Wikimedia Commons