There are several ways of defining Yorkshire, including the historic county and the group of four modern ceremonial counties. The county boundaries were reasonably stable between 1182, when it ceded western areas to the new county of Lancashire,[7] and 1889 when administrative counties were created, which saw some adjustments to the boundaries with County Durham, Lancashire and Lincolnshire.[8][3] After 1889 there were occasional adjustments to accommodate urban areas which were developing across county boundaries, such as in 1934 whenDore andTotley were transferred from Derbyshire to Yorkshire on being absorbed into the borough of Sheffield.[9]
More significant changes in 1974 saw the historic county divided between several counties. The majority of the area was split between North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, which all kept the Yorkshire name. A large part of the east of the county went to the new county ofHumberside, and an area in the north-east went to the new county ofCleveland. Some more rural areas at the edges of the historic county were transferred to County Durham,Cumbria, Lancashire andGreater Manchester, whilst South Yorkshire also included areas which had been in Nottinghamshire.[10]
The four ceremonial counties with Yorkshire in their names
Cleveland and Humberside were both abolished in 1996, since when there have been fourceremonial counties with Yorkshire in their names: East Riding of Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, which together cover most of the historic county.[11]
There is aregion calledYorkshire and the Humber which covers a similar area to the combined area of the four Yorkshire ceremonial counties, the exceptions being that the region excludes the parts of North Yorkshire which had been in Cleveland, but includesNorth East Lincolnshire andNorth Lincolnshire (which had been in Humberside). Until 2009, some government powers in the region were devolved to theYorkshire and Humber Assembly; since 2009 the region has been used primarily for presentation of statistics.[citation needed]
Yorkshire is so named as it is theshire (administrative area or county) of the city ofYork, or York's Shire. The wordYork is believed to have originated from theBrittonic wordEburākon, which means 'place ofyew trees'. This theory is supported by the fact that yew trees were once abundant in the area around York, and that the city was known for its skilledbowyers who used yew wood to make their bows. This becameEboracum to theRomans,Eorfowīc to theAngles and then, most famously,Jórvík to theVikings.[12][13]
By the late Iron Age, the inhabitants of what became Yorkshire wereHen OgleddBrythonicCelts (old north British Celts), who formed separate tribes, theBrigantes (known to be in the north and western areas of historic Yorkshire) and theParisi (present-dayEast Riding). The Brigantes controlled territory that later became all ofNorthern England and more territory than most Celtic tribes on the island ofGreat Britain. Six of the nine Brigantianpoleis described byClaudius Ptolemaeus in theGeographia fall within the historic county.[14][15]
The Parisi, who controlled the area that would become the East Riding, might have been related to theParisii ofLutetia Parisiorum,Gaul (known today asParis in France).[16] Under Roman rule, their capital was atPetuaria (modernBrough), close to the Humber Estuary.
Although theRoman conquest of Britain began in AD 43, the Brigantes remained in control of their kingdom as aclient state ofRome for an extended period, reigned over by the Brigantian monarchCartimandua and her husbandVenutius. Initially, this situation suited both the Romans and the Brigantes, who were known as the mostmilitant tribe in Britain.[17]
Disputes between the two rulers, however, culminated in Cartimandua delivering the defeated British warlordCaratacus to Roman authority and her leaving Venutius for his armour bearer,Vellocatus. Cartimandua's positive relationship with the Romans allowed her to maintain control of the kingdom evan as Venutius staged a rebellion against her and her Roman allies.[18] On his second attempt, however, during the AD 69Year of the Four Emperors, Venutius managed to seize control of the Brigantes, leading to the Roman conquest of Yorkshire, under generalPetillius Cerialis, in AD 71.[19]
Another emperor,Constantius Chlorus, died in Eboracum during a visit in 306 AD. Thereafter his sonConstantine the Great, who became renowned for his acceptance of Christianity, was proclaimed emperor in the city.[23] In the early 5th century,Roman rule ceased with the withdrawal of the last active Roman troops. By this stage, the Western Empire was in intermittent decline.[22]
After the Romans left, small Celtic kingdoms arose in the region, including the kingdoms ofDeira to the east (domain of settlements nearMalton onDerwent),Ebrauc (domain of York) around the north andElmet to the west. The latter two were successors of land south-west and north-east of the formerBrigantia capital.
Angles (hailing from southern Denmark and northern Germany, probably along with SwedishGeats[24]) consolidated (mergingEbrauc) under Deira, with York as capital. This in turn was grouped withBernicia, another formerCeltic-Brigantes kingdom that was north of theRiver Tees and had come to be headed byBamburgh, to formNorthumbria.[25][26] Elmet had remained independent from theGermanic Angles until some time in the early 7th century, when KingEdwin of Northumbria expelled its last king, Certic, and annexed the region to his Deira region. The Celts never went away, but were assimilated. This explains the existence of many Celtic placenames in Yorkshire today, such asKingston upon Hull andPen-y-ghent.[27]
Scandinavian York (also referred to asJórvík) orDanish/Norwegian York is a term used by historians for the south ofNorthumbria (modern-day Yorkshire) during the late 9th century and first half of the 10th century, when it was dominated by Norse warrior-kings; in particular, used to refer toYork, the city controlled by these kings.
Norse monarchy controlled varying amounts of Northumbria from 875 to 954, however the area was invaded and conquered for short periods byEngland between 927 and 954 before eventually being annexed into England in 954. It was closely associated with the much longer-livedKingdom of Dublin throughout this period.
Coin from Eric Bloodaxe's reign
An army ofDanishVikings, theGreat Heathen Army[31] as its enemies often referred to it, invaded Northumbrian territory in 866 AD. The Danes conquered and assumed what is now York and renamed itJórvík, making it the capital city of a new Danish kingdom under the same name. The area which this kingdom covered included most of Southern Northumbria, roughly equivalent to the borders of Yorkshire extending further West.[32]
The Danes went on to conquer an even larger area of England that afterwards became known as theDanelaw; but whereas most of the Danelaw was still English land, albeit in submission to Viking overlords, it was in theKingdom of Jórvík that the only truly Viking territory on mainland Britain was ever established. The Kingdom prospered, taking advantage of the vasttrading network of the Viking nations, and established commercial ties with theBritish Isles, North-West Europe, theMediterranean and the Middle East.[33]
Founded by the DaneHalfdan Ragnarsson in 875,[34] ruled for the great part by Danish kings, and populated by the families and subsequent descendants of Danish Vikings, the leadership of the kingdom nonetheless passed into Norwegian hands during its twilight years.[34]Eric Bloodaxe, an ex-king of Norway who was the last independent Viking king of Jórvík, is a particularly noted figure in history,[26] and his bloodthirsty approach towards leadership may have been at least partly responsible for convincing the Danish inhabitants of the region to accept English sovereignty so readily in the years that followed.
After around 100 years of its volatile existence, the Kingdom of Jorvik finally came to an end. TheKingdom of Wessex was now in its ascendancy and established its dominance over the North in general, placing Yorkshire again withinNorthumbria, which retained a certain amount of autonomy as an almost-independentearldom rather than a separate kingdom. The WessexKings of England were reputed to have respected the Norse customs in Yorkshire and left law-making in the hands of the local aristocracy.[35]
The people of the North rebelled against the Normans in September 1069 AD, enlistingSweyn II of Denmark. They tried to take back York, but the Normans burnt it before they could.[36] What followed was theHarrying of the North ordered by William. From York toDurham, crops, domestic animals, and farming tools werescorched. Many villages between the towns were burnt and local northerners were indiscriminately murdered.[37] During the winter that followed, families starved to death and thousands of peasants died of cold and hunger.Orderic Vitalis estimated that "more than 100,000" people from the North died from hunger.[38]
The population of Yorkshire boomed until it was hit by theGreat Famine of 1315.[39] It did not help that after the English defeat in theBattle of Bannockburn in 1314, the Scottish army rampaged throughout northern England, and Yorkshire was no exception. DuringThe Great Raid of 1322, they raided and pillaged from the suburbs of York, even as far as East Riding and the Humber. Some, like Richmond, had to bribe the Scots to spare the town. TheBlack Death then reached Yorkshire by 1349, killing around a third of the population.[39]
When KingRichard II was overthrown in 1399, antagonism between theHouse of York and theHouse of Lancaster, both branches of the royalHouse of Plantagenet, began to emerge. Eventually the two houses fought for the throne of England in a series of civil wars, commonly known as theWars of the Roses. Some of the battles took place in Yorkshire, such as those atWakefield andTowton, the latter of which is known as the bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil.[42]Richard III was the last Yorkist king.
Henry Tudor, sympathiser to the House of Lancaster, defeated and killed Richard at theBattle of Bosworth Field. He then became KingHenry VII and marriedElizabeth of York, daughter of YorkistEdward IV, ending the wars.[43] The two roses of white and red, emblems of the Houses of York and Lancaster respectively, were combined to form theTudor Rose of England.[b][44] This rivalry between the royal houses of York and Lancaster has passed into popular culture as a rivalry between the counties of Yorkshire andLancashire, particularly in sport (for example theRoses Match played inCounty Cricket), although the House of Lancaster was based in York and the House of York in London.
Hand-drawn map of Yorkshire by Christopher Saxton from 1576
During theEnglish Civil War, which started in 1642, Yorkshire had divided loyalties;Hull (full nameKingston upon Hull) famously shut the gates of the city on the king when he came to enter a few months before fighting began, while theNorth Riding of Yorkshire in particular was stronglyroyalist.[46][47] York was the base for Royalists, and from there they captured Leeds andWakefield only to have them recaptured a few months later. The royalists won theBattle of Adwalton Moor meaning they controlled Yorkshire (with the exception of Hull). From their base in Hull the Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") fought back, re-taking Yorkshire town by town, until they won theBattle of Marston Moor and with it control of all of theNorth of England.[48]
In the 16th and 17th centuries Leeds and other wool-industry-centred towns continued to grow, along with Huddersfield, Hull and Sheffield, while coal mining first came into prominence in theWest Riding of Yorkshire.[49] Thewool textile industry, which had previously been a cottage industry, centred on the old market towns moved to theWest Riding where entrepreneurs were building mills that took advantage of water power gained by harnessing the rivers and streams flowing from thePennines. The developingtextile industry helpedWakefield andHalifax grow.[50]
The 19th century saw Yorkshire's continued growth, with the population growing and theIndustrial Revolution continuing with prominent industries in coal, textile and steel (especially inSheffield,Rotherham andMiddlesbrough). However, despite the booming industry, living conditions declined in the industrial towns due to overcrowding. This saw bouts ofcholera in both 1832 and 1848.[51] However, advances were made by the end of the century with the introduction of modernsewers andwater supplies. SeveralYorkshire railway networks were introduced as railways spread across the country to reach remote areas.[52]
TheLNER Class A4 4468Mallard built inDoncaster is the current confirmed record holder as the fastest steam locomotive at 203 km/h (126 mph) on 3 July 1938.
When elected county councils were established in 1889, rather than have a single Yorkshire County Council, each of the three ridings was made anadministrative county with its own county council, and the eight larger towns and cities of Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield, Hull, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sheffield and York were madecounty boroughs, independent from the county councils.[54]
From the late 20th century onwards there have been a number of significant reforms of the local government structures covering Yorkshire, notably in 1968, 1974, 1986, 1996 and 2023, discussed in thegovernance section below. For most administrative purposes the county had been divided since the Middle Ages; the last county-wide administrative role was theSheriff of Yorkshire. The sheriff had been a powerful position in the Middle Ages but gradually lost most of its functions, and by the twentieth century was a largely ceremonial role. It was abolished as part of the 1974 reforms to local government, which established insteadhigh sheriffs for each modern county.[10]
Historically, the northern boundary of Yorkshire was theRiver Tees, the eastern boundary was theNorth Sea coast and the southern boundary was theHumber Estuary andRivers Don andSheaf. The western boundary meandered along the western slopes of thePennine Hills to again meet the River Tees.[56]
In Yorkshire there is a very close relationship between the majortopographical areas and the geological period in which they were formed.[56] The Pennine chain of hills in the west is ofCarboniferous origin. The central vale isPermo-Triassic. TheNorth York Moors in the north-east of the county areJurassic in age while theYorkshire Wolds to the south east areCretaceous chalk uplands.[56]
Yorkshire is drained by several rivers. In western and central Yorkshire the many rivers flow into theRiver Ouse which reaches the North Sea via theHumber Estuary.[57] The most northerly of the rivers in the Ouse system is theRiver Swale, which drainsSwaledale before passing throughRichmond and meandering across theVale of Mowbray. Next, drainingWensleydale, is theRiver Ure, which the Swale joins east ofBoroughbridge. NearGreat Ouseburn the Ure is joined by the small Ouse Gill Beck, and below the confluence the river is known as the Ouse. TheRiver Nidd rises on the edge of theYorkshire Dales National Park and flows alongNidderdale before reaching theVale of York and the Ouse.[57] TheRiver Wharfe, which drainsWharfedale, joins the Ouse upstream ofCawood.[57] The RiversAire andCalder are more southerly contributors to the River Ouse and the most southerly Yorkshire tributary is theRiver Don, which flows northwards to join the main river atGoole. Further north and east theRiver Derwent rises on the North York Moors, flows south then westwards through theVale of Pickering then turns south again to drain the eastern part of the Vale of York. It empties into the River Ouse atBarmby on the Marsh.[57]
In the far north of the county the River Tees flows eastwards throughTeesdale and empties its waters into the North Sea downstream ofMiddlesbrough. The smallerRiver Esk flows from west to east at the northern foot of the North York Moors to reach the sea atWhitby.[57] To the east of the Yorkshire Wolds theRiver Hull flows southwards to join the Humber Estuary atKingston upon Hull.
Thomas LangdaleA Topographical Dictionary of Yorkshire; containing the names of all the towns, villages, hamlets, gentlemen's seats, &c. in the county of York. A brief history of places most remarkable for antiquities; biographical notices of eminent persons, &c. Northallerton: Printed by J. Langdale, 1822
The highest mountains in Yorkshire all lie in thePennines on the western side of the county, withmillstone grit andlimestone forming the underlying geology and producing distinctive layered hills. The county top is the remoteMickle Fell[66] (height 788 metres (2,585 ft) above sea level) in the North Pennines southwest of Teesdale, which is also the highest point in the North Riding. The highest point in the West Riding isWhernside (height 736 metres (2,415 ft)) near toIngleton in the Yorkshire Dales. Together with nearbyIngleborough (height 723 metres (2,372 ft)) andPen-y-Ghent (height 694 metres (2,277 ft)), Whernside forms a trio of very prominent and popular summits (theYorkshire Three Peaks) which can be climbed in a challenging single day's walk. The highest point in the Yorkshire part of the Peak District isBlack Hill (height 582 metres (1,909 ft)) on the border with historic Cheshire (which also forms the historic county top of that county). The hill ranges along the eastern side of Yorkshire are lower than those of the west. The highest point of the North York Moors isUrra Moor (height 454 metres (1,490 ft)). The highest point of theYorkshire Wolds, a range of low chalk downlands east of York, isBishop Wilton Wold (height 246 metres (807 ft)), which is also the highest point of the East Riding. The view fromSutton Bank at the southeastern edge of the North York Moors nearThirsk encompasses a vast expanse of the Yorkshire lowlands with the Pennines forming a backdrop. It was called the "finest view in England" by local author and veterinary surgeonJames Herriot in his 1979 guidebookJames Herriot's Yorkshire.[67]
There are eight officially designatedcities in Yorkshire: Bradford, Doncaster, Kingston upon Hull, Leeds,Ripon, Sheffield, Wakefield, and York. City status is formally held by the administrative territory rather than the urban area.
(Note that all cities/historic capitals also appear in bold.) The five largest settlements across the four ceremonial counties of Yorkshire as of the 2021 UK census, of which four are cities. – Red. The other four Yorkshire cities, and the two settlements which had capital status during historic Roman, Parisi or Viking rule (York, Brough). – Purple. The two newest towns across the four Yorkshire ceremonial counties, granted town status in 2016 (Eastfield) and 2022 (Sherburn in Elmet) respectively, and the new planned urban settlement of Waverley. – Green. The most recent settlement in Yorkshire to bedowngraded from town status following a scandal (in 2016),[83] albeit the two contiguous villages still function in the same manner as a growing urban settlement. – Orange.
York is considered to have been a city sincetime immemorial. The other cities were formally awarded city status by the monarch; in the cases of Ripon and Wakefield following the creation of newChurch of England dioceses, and in the other cases following significant urban growth.[84] Middlesbrough is the largest built-up area in Yorkshire not to be a city. The largest built-up areas at the 2021 census were as follows:
There is no single Yorkshire-wide administrative body today. The area of the four ceremonial counties is administered by sixteen different local authorities, being ninemetropolitan boroughs covering South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire and sevenunitary authorities covering East Riding and North Yorkshire (one of which,Stockton-on-Tees, straddles the ceremonial boundary between North Yorkshire and County Durham).[86] Most of the authorities are grouped intocombined authorities, each led by adirectly elected mayor. The combined authorities forWest Yorkshire,South Yorkshire andTees Valley are already operating. A newYork and North Yorkshire Combined Authority was established in February 2024 with its first mayor due to be elected in May 2024, and proposals for establishing a combined authority covering Hull and East Riding are being considered.[87]
Administrative hierarchy covering the four ceremonial counties as at March 2024:
The areas from the historic county that are not covered by the four ceremonial counties are now administered as parts ofCounty Durham,Westmorland and Furness, Lancashire and Greater Manchester.
Historically, Yorkshire was divided into three ridings. The term 'riding' is of Viking origin and derives fromThrethingr (equivalent to third-ing). The three ridings in Yorkshire were named theEast Riding,West Riding, andNorth Riding.[88] Each riding was divided into smaller areas calledwapentakes with more local functions. York was made acounty corporate in 1396,[89] as was Hull in 1440, making them independent from the ridings. York's corporate territory was enlarged in 1449 to also include an adjoining rural area known as theAinsty.[90] Hull's corporate territory covered both the town and adjoining areas, which were sometimes together known asHullshire.
TheSheriff of Yorkshire was the most senior official position within the county in the Middle Ages. In 1547 a separate post ofLord Lieutenant of Yorkshire was created, taking some of the functions previously held by the sheriff. The single lieutenancy was split in 1660 into separate posts for theEast Riding,North Riding andWest Riding. For the purposes of lieutenancy, York was deemed part of the West Riding, and Hull was deemed part of the East Riding.[91][92]
Elected county councils were established in 1889 under theLocal Government Act 1888, taking over administrative functions previously performed by magistrates at thequarter sessions. The quarter sessions for Yorkshire were held separately for each riding.[93] As such, three county councils were established rather than one for the whole county:East Riding County Council based inBeverley,North Riding County Council based inNorthallerton, andWest Riding County Council based inWakefield. Each riding was classed as an administrative county, but provision was made that the entire county of Yorkshire should continue to be one county for the purposes ofshrievalty, allowing the Sheriff of Yorkshire to continue to serve the whole county. Certain towns and cities were deemed large enough to provide their own county-level services and so they were madecounty boroughs, independent from the county councils. There were initially eight county boroughs in Yorkshire, being Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield, Hull, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sheffield, and York.[54][94] Other county boroughs were subsequently created atRotherham (1902),Barnsley (1913),Dewsbury (1913), Wakefield (1915) andDoncaster (1927).
More significant reviews of local government began to be considered following theLocal Government Act 1958. The North Eastern General Review was held from 1962 to 1963, and led to the creation of theCounty Borough of Teesside in 1968, which covered the abolished county borough of Middlesbrough and several neighbours, includingStockton-on-Tees andBillingham, which had been in County Durham.[95] Teesside was deemed part of the North Riding for ceremonial purposes, although as a county borough it was independent from North Riding County Council.
Almost as soon as Teesside had been created work began on a far more significant overhaul of local government, culminating in theLocal Government Act 1972, which took effect on 1 April 1974. The county boroughs and the administrative counties of the ridings were abolished, as were the lower tiermunicipal boroughs,urban districts andrural districts. A new set of counties and districts was put in place instead. Most of Yorkshire was split between North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Humberside and Cleveland. Some peripheral rural areas were transferred to other counties, notably theStartforth area which went to County Durham, theSedbergh area which went to Cumbria, theForest of Bowland area which went to Lancashire, andSaddleworth which went to Greater Manchester.[10] Some of the changes were unpopular, particularly in Humberside.[96][97]
In 1986 the county councils for themetropolitan counties of South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire were abolished, with themetropolitan boroughs in those counties taking over county-level functions.[98] Humberside and Cleveland were both abolished in 1996 with new unitary authorities established to cover those areas. At the same time York was enlarged and also made a unitary authority, independent from North Yorkshire County Council.[96] The current ceremonial county boundaries were adopted at the time of the 1996 reforms, with a new ceremonial county called East Riding of Yorkshire created covering the parts of the abolished Humberside north of the Humber, whilst the parts of Cleveland south of the River Tees were added to North Yorkshire for ceremonial purposes.[11]
From the 1990s there were attempts to establish aregional tier of local government; aYorkshire and the Humber region was designated in 1994, covering North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Humberside. Between 1998 and 2009 there was aYorkshire and Humber Assembly comprising members of the region's local authorities and other stakeholders. Since 2009 the region has been primarily used for presentation of statistics rather than administration.
In 2014 the firstcombined authorities were established in Yorkshire, with South Yorkshire (which initially branded itself the "Sheffield City Region") and West Yorkshire having Yorkshire's first combined authorities. In 2018, eighteen of the twenty-two local councils in the Yorkshire and Humber region voted to create instead a much larger combined authority, which they proposed calling "One Yorkshire" which would have covered the region exceptNorth Lincolnshire andNorth East Lincolnshire. The plan included provision for a directly elected mayor for the area, and the scheme's supporters estimated that it could create up to 200,000 jobs.[99][100][101] The One Yorkshire proposal was ultimately rejected by the government in 2019, which preferred to continue with rolling out smaller combined authorities for parts of Yorkshire instead.[102]
The districts of North Yorkshire were abolished in 2023, with North Yorkshire County Council taking over their functions to become a unitary authority, and rebranding itselfNorth Yorkshire Council.[103]
TheCity of Leeds is Yorkshire's largest city and the leading centre of trade and commerce.Leeds is also one of the UK's larger financial centres. Leeds's traditional industries were mixed, service-based industries, textile manufacturing and coal mining being examples. Tourism is also significant and a growing sector in the city. In 2015, the value of tourism was in excess of £7 billion.
Sheffield once had heavy industries, such as coal mining and thesteel industry. Since the decline of such industries Sheffield has attracted tertiary and administrative businesses including more retail trade,Meadowhall being an example.
Coal mining was extremely active in the south of the county during the 19th century and for most of the 20th century, particularly aroundBarnsley andWakefield. As late as the 1970s, the number of miners working in the area was still in six figures.[104] The industry was placed under threat on 6 March 1984 when theNational Coal Board announced the closure of 20 pits nationwide (some of them in South Yorkshire). By March 2004, a mere three coalpits remained open in the area.[105] Three years later, the only remaining coal pit in the region was Maltby Colliery nearRotherham.[106] Maltby Colliery closed in 2013.[107]
Tourism is a huge part of the economy of York with a value of over £765 million to the city and supporting 24,000 jobs in 2019.[108] Harrogate draws numerous visitors because of its conference facilities. In 2016 such events alone attracted 300,000 visitors to Harrogate.[109]
Yorkshire has a large base of primary and secondary schools operated by both local authorities and private bodies, and a dozen universities, along with a wide range of colleges and further education facilities. Five universities are based in Leeds, two in Sheffield, two in York, and one each in Bradford, Hull, Middlesbrough and Huddersfield. The largest universities by enrolment areSheffield Hallam University and theUniversity of Leeds, each with over 31,000 students, followed byLeeds Beckett University, and the most recent to attain university status is theLeeds Arts University. There are also branches of institutions headquartered in other parts of England, such as theOpen University and Britain's first for-profit university (since 2012), theUniversity of Law. The tertiary sector is in active cooperation with industry, and a number of spin-off companies have been launched.
The A1(M) and M62 junction atFerrybridge, West Yorkshire
The oldest road in Yorkshire, called theGreat North Road, is now known as the A1.[111] This trunk road passes through the centre of the county and connects London to Edinburgh.[112] Another important road is the more easterlyA19 road which starts in Doncaster and ends just north ofNewcastle upon Tyne atSeaton Burn. TheM62 motorway crosses the county from east to west from Hull towardsGreater Manchester andMerseyside.[113] TheM1 carries traffic from London and the south of England to Yorkshire. In 1999, about 8 miles (13 km) was added to make it swing east of Leeds and connect to the A1.[citation needed] TheEast Coast Main Line rail link between London and Scotland runs roughly parallel with the A1 through Yorkshire and theTrans Pennine rail link runs east to west from Hull to Liverpool via Leeds.[114]
Before the advent of rail transport, the seaports of Hull and Whitby played an important role in transporting goods. Historically canals were used, including theLeeds and Liverpool Canal, which is the longest canal in England. Mainland Europe (theNetherlands andBelgium) can be reached from Hull via regular ferry services fromP&O Ferries.[115] Yorkshire also hasair transport services fromLeeds Bradford Airport. This airport has experienced significant and rapid growth in both terminal size and passenger facilities since 1996, when improvements began, until the present day.[116] From 2005 until 2022, South Yorkshire was served byDoncaster Sheffield Airport inFinningley.[117]Sheffield City Airport opened in 1997 after years of Sheffield having no airport, due to a council decision in the 1960s not to develop one because of the city's good rail links with London and the development of airports in other nearby areas. The newly opened airport never managed to compete with larger airports such as Leeds Bradford Airport andEast Midlands Airport and attracted only a few scheduled flights, while the runway was too short to supportlow cost carriers. The opening of Doncaster Sheffield Airport effectively made the airport redundant and it officially closed in April 2008. The Doncaster Sheffield Airport has since closed and left South Yorkshire without an airport.
The average amount of time people spend on public transport in Yorkshire on a weekday is 77 minutes. 26.6% of public transport users travel for more than two hours every day. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transport is 16 minutes, while 24.9% of passengers wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transport is 7 km, while 10% travel for over 12 km in a single direction.[118]
The culture of the people of Yorkshire is an accumulated product of a number of different civilisations who have influenced its history, including; theCelts (Brigantes andParisii),Romans,Angles,NorseVikings, andNormans amongst others.[126] The western part of the historicNorth Riding had an additional infusion ofBreton culture due to theHonour of Richmond being occupied byAlain Le Roux, grandson ofGeoffrey I, Duke of Brittany.[127] The people of Yorkshire are immensely proud of their county and local culture, and it is sometimes suggested they identify more strongly with their county than they do with their country.[128] Yorkshire people have their own Yorkshire dialects and accents and are, or rather were, known as Broad Yorkshire orTykes, with its roots in Old English and Old Norse.[129][130]
TheBritish Library provides a four minute long voice recording made in 1955, by a "female housekeeper", Miss Madge Dibnahon, on its web site and an example of the Yorkshire dialect used at that time, in an unstated location. "Much of her speech remains part of the local dialect to this day", according to the Library.[131][132] Due to the large size of Yorkshire, spoken dialects vary between areas. In fact, the dialect in North Yorkshire and Humberside/East Yorkshire is "quite different [than in West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire] and has a much stronger Scandinavian influence".[133]
One report explains the geographic difference in detail:[133]
This distinction was first recognised formally at the turn of the 19th / 20th centuries, when linguists drew an isophone diagonally across the county from the northwest to the southeast, separating these two broadly distinguishable ways of speaking. It can be extended westwards through Lancashire to the estuary of the River Lune, and is sometimes called the Humber-Lune Line. Strictly speaking, the dialects spoken south and west of this isophone are Midland dialects, whereas the dialects spoken north and east of it are truly Northern. It is possible that the Midland form moved up into the region with people gravitating towards the manufacturing districts of the West Riding during the Industrial Revolution.
Though distinct accents remain, dialect has declined heavily in everyday use. Some have argued the dialect was a fully fledgedlanguage in its own right.[134] The county has also produced a set of Yorkshire colloquialisms,[135] which are in use in the county. Among Yorkshire's traditions is theLong Sword dance. The most famous traditional song of Yorkshire isOn Ilkla Moor Baht 'at ("OnIlkley Moor without a hat"), it is considered the unofficial anthem of the county.[136]
Although the first Professor of English Literature atLeeds University,F. W. Moorman, claimed the first extant work of English literature,Beowulf, was written in Yorkshire,[137] this view does not have common acceptance today. However, when Yorkshire formed the southern part of the kingdom ofNorthumbria there were several notable poets, scholars and ecclesiastics, includingAlcuin,Cædmon andWilfrid.[138] The most esteemed literary family from the county are the threeBrontë sisters, with part of the county aroundHaworth being nicknamedBrontë Country in their honour.[139] Their novels, written in the mid-19th century, caused a sensation when they were first published, yet were subsequently accepted into the canon of great English literature.[140] Among the most celebrated novels written by the sisters areAnne Brontë'sThe Tenant of Wildfell Hall,Charlotte Brontë'sJane Eyre andEmily Brontë'sWuthering Heights.[139]Wuthering Heights was almost a source used to depict life in Yorkshire, illustrating the type of people that reside there in its characters, and emphasising the use of the stormy Yorkshire moors. Nowadays, the parsonage which was their former home is now a museum in their honour.[141]Bram Stoker authoredDracula while living inWhitby[142] and it includes several elements of local folklore including the beaching of the Russian shipDmitri, which became the basis of Demeter in the book.[143]
A Yorkshire pudding, served as part of a traditionalSunday roast
The traditional cuisine of Yorkshire, in common with theNorth of England in general, is known for using rich-tasting ingredients, especially with regard to sweet dishes, which were affordable for the majority of people.[159] There are several dishes which originated in Yorkshire or are heavily associated with it.[159]Yorkshire pudding, a savoury batter dish, is by far the best known of Yorkshire foods, and is eaten throughout England. It is commonly served withroast beef and vegetables to form part of theSunday roast[159] but is traditionally served as a starter dish filled with onion gravy within Yorkshire.[160] Yorkshire pudding is the base fortoad in the hole, a dish containing sausage.[161]
Other foods associated with the county include Yorkshire curd tart, acurdtart recipe withrosewater;[162]parkin, a sweetginger cake which is different from standard ginger cakes in that it includesoatmeal andtreacle;[163] andWensleydale cheese, a cheese made with milk fromWensleydale and often eaten as an accompaniment to sweet foods.[164] The beverageginger beer, flavoured withginger, came from Yorkshire and has existed since the mid-18th century.Liquorice sweet was first created by George Dunhill fromPontefract, who in the 1760s thought to mix the liquorice plant with sugar.[165] Yorkshire and in particular the city of York played a prominent role in the confectionery industry, withchocolate factories owned by companies such asRowntree's,Terry's andThorntons inventing many of Britain's most popularsweets.[166][167] Another traditional Yorkshire food is pikelets, which are similar tocrumpets but much thinner.[168] TheRhubarb Triangle is a location within Yorkshire which supplies most of the rhubarb to locals.
In recent years curries have become popular in the county, largely due to the immigration and successful integration of Asian families. There are many famous curry empires with their origins in Yorkshire, including the 850-seater Aakash restaurant inCleckheaton, which has been described as "the world's largest curry house".[169]
Brewing has taken place on a large scale since at least the 12th century, for example at the now derelictFountains Abbey which at its height produced 60 barrels of strong ale every ten days.[174] Most current Yorkshire breweries date from theIndustrial Revolution of the late 18th and early 19th century.[170]
Yorkshire has remained a popular location for filming in more recent times.[190][191] For example, much of ITV's highly acclaimedVictoria was filmed in the region, at locations such as Harewood House in Leeds and Beverley Minster (the latter being used to depict Westminster Abbey and St James' Palace),[192][193] whilstChannel 5 has programmed numerous Yorkshire-themed documentary series such asOur Yorkshire Farm andThe Yorkshire Steam Railway: All Aboard across its schedule.[194][195]
West Yorkshire has particularly benefited from a great deal of production activity.[196][197] For example, portions of the BBC television seriesHappy Valley andLast Tango in Halifax were filmed in the area, in Huddersfield and other cities; in addition to exteriors, some of the studio filming forHappy Valley was done at North Light Film Studios at Brookes Mill, Huddersfield. Although set in the fictional town of Denton, popular ITV detective seriesA Touch Of Frost was filmed in Yorkshire, mainly in and around Leeds. The BBC'sJamaica Inn andRemember Me and the ITV seriesBlack Work were also filmed at the studios and in nearby West Yorkshire locations.[198][199][200][201] More recently, many of the exteriors of the BBC seriesJericho were filmed at the nearby Rockingstone Quarry, and some interior work was done at North Light Film Studios.[202]
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county in the domesticfirst class cricketCounty Championship; with a total of 33 championship titles (including one shared), 13 more than any other county, Yorkshire is the most decorated county cricket club.[206] Some of the most highly regarded figures in the game were born in the county, amongst them:[208]
Huddersfield were the first club to win three consecutive league titles.[215] Leeds United reached the 2001 UEFA Champions League semi-finals and had a dominance period in the 1970s. Sheffield Wednesday who have had similar spells of dominance, such as the early 1990s. Middlesbrough won the 2004 League Cup and reach the 2006 UEFA Cup Final.[216][217]
TheYorkshire football team, controlled by the Yorkshire International Football Association (YIFA), represents Yorkshire inCONIFA matches. The team was founded in 2017, joined CONIFA on 6 January 2018 and plays at various venues throughout Yorkshire.[221][222]
Yorkshire has a long history of rugby union in the county withLeeds Tykes (formerly Yorkshire Carnegie) featuring in theAviva Premiership for eight seasons between 2001 and 2011 when they were relegated to the Championship. From 2020 the teams has reverted to its amateur status and plays inNational League 1.Rotherham Titans also played in the top tier of English rugby in2000–01 and2003–04.[223]
In the area of boxing"Prince" Naseem Hamed from Sheffield achieved title success and widespread fame,[228] in what theBBC describes as "one of British boxing's most illustrious careers".[228] Along with Leeds-bornNicola Adams who in 2012 became the first female athlete to win a boxing gold medal at the Olympics.[229]
A number of athletes from or associated with Yorkshire took part in the2012 Summer Olympics as members ofTeam GB; theYorkshire Post stated that Yorkshire's athletes alone secured more gold medals than those of Spain.[230]Notable Yorkshire athletes includeJessica Ennis-Hill and the Brownlee brothers,Jonathan andAlistair. Jessica Ennis-Hill is fromSheffield and won gold at the2012 Olympics in London and silver at the2016 Olympics inRio.Triathletes Alastair and Jonny Brownlee have won two golds and a silver and bronze respectively.
The sport ofKnurr and Spell was unique to the region, being one of the most popular sports in the area during the 18th and 19th centuries, before a decline in the 20th century to virtual obscurity.[234][235][236]
Yorkshire is considered to be particularly fond of cycling. In 2014 Yorkshire hosted the Grand Départ of the Tour de France. Spectator crowds over the two days were estimated to be of the order of 2.5 million people, making it the highest attended event in the UK.[237] The inauguralTour de Yorkshire was held from 1–3 May 2015,[238] with start and finishes in Bridlington, Leeds, Scarborough, Selby, Wakefield and York,[239] watched by 1.2 million.[240] Yorkshire hosted the2019 UCI Road World Championships between 22 and 29 September, which were held in Harrogate.[241] Notable racing cyclists from Yorkshire includeBrian Robinson,Lizzie Deignan andBeryl Burton.[242]
Field Hockey is a popular game in Yorkshire with 58 clubs running 271 organised teams.[243] The largest clubs include City of York HC (16 teams),Doncaster HC,Leeds HC andSheffield Hallam HC (all 14 teams). The most recent team from Yorkshire to have played in the EH Premier League wasSheffield Hallam who finished in 9th place in2013–14.[244] England and Great Britain's most capped player of all timeBarry Middleton hails from the town of Doncaster.[245] Hockey was formerly organised by theYorkshire Hockey Association but is now run by Yorkshire & North East Hockey who have run leagues and organised representative teams since September 2021.
A number of claims have been made for the distinctiveness of Yorkshire, as a geographical, cultural and political entity, and these have been used to demand increased political autonomy. In the early twentieth century,F. W. Moorman, the first professor of English language atLeeds University, claimed Yorkshire was not settled byAngles orSaxons following the end of Roman rule in Britain, but by a different Germanic tribe, theGeats. As a consequence, he claimed, it is possible the first work of English literature,Beowulf, believed to have been composed by Geats, was written in Yorkshire, and this distinctive ethnic and cultural origin is the root of the unique status of Yorkshire today.[137] One of Moorman's students at Leeds University,Herbert Read, was greatly influenced by Moorman's ideas on Yorkshire identity, and claimed that until recent times Yorkshire was effectively an island, cut off from the rest of England by rivers, fens, moors and mountains. This distancing of Yorkshire from England led Read to question whether Yorkshire people were really English at all.[251] Combined with the suggested ethnic difference from the rest of England, Read quoted Frederic Pearson, who wrote:
There is something characteristic about the very physiognomy of the Yorkshireman. He is much more of a Dane or a Viking than a Saxon. He is usually a big upstanding man, who looks as if he could take care of himself and those who depend upon him in an emergency. This is indeed the character that his neighbours give him; the southerner may think him a little hard: but if ever our country is let down by its inhabitants, we may be sure that it will not be the fault of Yorkshire.[251]
During the premiership ofWilliam Pitt the Younger the hypothetical idea of Yorkshire becoming independent was raised in the British parliament in relation to the question whether Ireland should become part of theUnited Kingdom. This resulted in the publication of an anonymous pamphlet in London in 1799 arguing at length that Yorkshire could never be an independent state as it would always be reliant on the rest of the United Kingdom to provide it with essential resources.[252]
Although in the devolution debates in theHouse of Commons of the late 1960s, which paved the way for the 1979 referendums on the creation of a Scottish parliament and Welsh assembly, parallel devolution for Yorkshire was suggested, this was opposed by theScottish National Party Member of Parliament for Hamilton,Winifred Ewing. Ewing argued that it was offensive to Scots to argue that an English region had the same status as an 'ancient nation' such as Scotland.[253]
The relationship between Yorkshire and Scottish devolution was again made in 1975 by Richard Wainwright, MP for Colne Valley, who claimed in a speech in the House of Commons:
The nationalist movement in Scotland is associated with flags, strange costumes, weird music and extravagant ceremonial. When... people go to Yorkshire and find that we have no time for dressing up, waving flags and playing strange instruments—in other words, we are not a lot of Presbyterians in Yorkshire—they should not assume that we do not have the same feelings underneath the skin. Independence in Yorkshire expresses itself in a markedly increasing determination to establish self-reliance.[254]
Following the local government reforms of 1974, Yorkshire lost its overall sheriff and the ridings lost their lieutenants and administrative counties. Although some government officials[255] andKing Charles[256] have asserted such reform is not meant to alter the ancient boundaries or cultural loyalties, there are pressure groups such as theYorkshire Ridings Society who want greater recognition for the historic boundaries.[257]
In 1998 the Campaign for Yorkshire was established to push for the creation of a Yorkshire regional assembly,[258] sometimes dubbed the Yorkshire Parliament.[259] In its defining statement, the Campaign for Yorkshire made reference to the historical notions that Yorkshire had a distinctive identity:
Yorkshire and the Humber has distinctive characteristics which make it an ideal test bed for further reform. It has a strong popular identity. The region follows closely the historic boundaries of the three Ridings, and there is no serious debate about boundaries. It possesses strong existing regional partnerships including universities, voluntary and church associations. All this makes it realistic to regard Yorkshire and the Humber as the standard bearer for representative regional government.[260]
The Campaign for Yorkshire was led by Jane Thomas as Director[261] and Paul Jagger as chairman. Jagger claimed in 1999 that Yorkshire had as much right to a regional parliament or assembly as Scotland and Wales because Yorkshire 'has as clear a sense of identity as Scotland or Wales.'[262] One of those brought into the Campaign for Yorkshire by Jane Thomas was Herbert Read scholarMichael Paraskos, who organised a series of events in 2000 to highlight the distinctiveness of Yorkshire culture. This included a major exhibition of Yorkshire artists.[263] Paraskos also founded a Yorkshire Studies degree course atHull University.[264] Interviewed byThe Guardian newspaper, Paraskos linked the start of this course to the contemporary devolution debates in Yorkshire, Scotland and Wales, claiming:
If Yorkshire is arguing for a parliament, there needs to be a cultural argument as well, otherwise why not have a parliament of the north? There is a rediscovery of political and social culture going on in a very similar way to the early assertions of a Scottish identity.[265]
In March 2013, the Yorkshire Devolution Movement was founded as an active campaign group by Nigel Sollitt, who had administered the social media group by that name since 2011, Gareth Shanks, a member of the social media group, and Stewart Arnold, former Chair of the Campaign for Yorkshire. In September 2013, the executive committee was joined by Richard Honnoraty and Richard Carter (as an advisor), who had also been involved in the Campaign for Yorkshire. The Movement campaigns for a directly elected parliament for the whole of the traditional county of Yorkshire with powers second to no other devolved administration in the UK.[266][267]
In 2014, Richard Carter, Stewart Arnold and Richard Honnoraty, founded Yorkshire First, a political party campaigning for the creation of a Yorkshire parliament by 2050 based on the Scottish Parliament. It was later renamed theYorkshire Party.[268] A Social democratic party, it has parish, town, district and county councillors, and stood in 28 constituencies in the2019 general election. Yorkshire Party candidates have also run for the position ofdirectly elected mayors inDoncaster in 2017 (receiving 3,235 votes, 5.04%) and the Sheffield City Region in2018 (receiving 22,318 votes, 8.6).
TheWhite Rose of York remains as the prime symbol of Yorkshire identity.
When the territory of Yorkshire began to take shape as a result of the invasion of the Danish Vikings, they instituted a monarchy based at the settlement of Jórvík, York.[269] The reign of the Viking kings came to an end with the last kingEric Bloodaxe dying in battle in 954 after the invasion and conquest by theKingdom of England from the south. Jórvík was the last of the independent kingdoms to be taken to form part of the Kingdom of England and thus the local monarchal title became defunct.[270]
Though the monarchal title became defunct, it was succeeded by the creation of the Earl of York title of nobility[271] by king of EnglandEdgar the Peaceful in 960. (Theearldom covered the general area of Yorkshire and is sometimes referred to as theEarl of Yorkshire.)[271] The title passed through the hands of various nobles, decided upon by the king of England. The last man to hold the title wasWilliam le Gros, however the earldom was abolished byHenry II as a result of a troubled period known asThe Anarchy.[272]
The peerage was recreated byEdward III in 1385, this time in the form of the prestigious title of Duke of York which he gave to his sonEdmund of Langley. Edmund founded the House of York; later the title was merged with that of theKing of England. Much of the modern-day symbolism of Yorkshire, such as theWhite Rose of York, is derived from the Yorkists,[273] giving the house a special affinity within theculture of Yorkshire. Especially celebrated is the Yorkist kingRichard III who spent much of his life atMiddleham Castle in Yorkshire.[41][274] Since that time the title has passed through the hands of many, being merged with the crown and then recreated several times. The title of Duke of York is given to the second son of theBritish monarch.[275]
^Some areas at the edges of the historic county are not within the four ceremonial counties named after Yorkshire, having been transferred to neighbouring counties for administrative and ceremonial purposes, notably in 1974 when areas were incorporated into the ceremonial counties ofDurham,Cumbria,Lancashire andGreater Manchester.
^Though theWars of the Roses were fought between royal houses bearing the names of York and Lancaster, the wars took place over a wide area of England. They were a dynastic clash between cadet branches of theHouse of Plantagenet. The most prominent family in Yorkshire, below the monarchy, the Nevilles ofSheriff Hutton andMiddleham, fought for the Yorkists, as did the Scropes ofBolton, the Latimers ofDanby andSnape, as well as the Mowbrays ofThirsk andBurton in Lonsdale. Yet some fought for the Lancastrians, such as the Percies, the Cliffords ofSkipton, Ros ofHelmsley, Greystock ofHenderskelfe, Stafford ofHolderness, and Talbot ofSheffield.
^abcdefBritish Canoe Union, Yorkshire; Humberside Region, Access and Recreation Committees; prepared by Mike Twiggs & David Taylor (1992).Yorkshire Rivers: A Canoeists Guide. Menasha Ridge Press.ISBN978-1-871890-16-7.
^"Hull Ferry Port Information". BoozeCruise.com. Archived from the original on 19 August 2007. Retrieved24 October 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^Kellett, Arnold (January 1994).The Yorkshire Dictionary of Dialect, Tradition and Folklore. Smith Settle.ISBN1-85825-016-1.
^Castelow, Ellen (21 April 2016)."Yorkshire Dialect".Historic UK.Archived from the original on 15 February 2017. Retrieved14 February 2017.Nah then,'ow do? – Nobbut middlin'.
^abMoorman, F. W. (1914). "English Place Names and the Teutonic Sagas". In Elton, Oliver (ed.).English Association Essays and Studies. Vol. 5. Oxford: Clarendon. p. 75f.
^"Whitby Abbey". Whitby-Abbey.co.uk.Archived from the original on 31 October 2007. Retrieved25 October 2007.
^Daniels, Nia (2 October 2016)."Yorkshire wins funding to grow film hub".The Knowledge Online. Media Business Insight Limited.Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved10 February 2017.Yorkshire has been announced by the BFI as the winner of National Lottery funding, aimed at encouraging emerging screen sector hubs
^Gildea, Samantha (1 February 2016)."Jericho filming locations".Examiner. Huddersfield.Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved10 February 2017.
^abRead, Herbert (31 January 1929). "Review of Frederic Richard Pearson,Yorkshire".The Times Literary Supplement. p. 79.
^Anonymous pamphlet, Thoughts on national independence, suggested by Mr. Pitt's speeches on the Irish union by a member of the honourable society of Lincoln's Inn, (London: Printed Privately, 1799), pp.25–27
^Hansard Parliamentary Papers, HC Deb, 14 February 1969, vol. 777, cc1725-76
^Hansard Parliamentary Papers, HC Deb, 18 December 1975, vol. 902, cc1832-52
^Hazell, Robert (2000).The State and the Nations: The First Year of Devolution in the United Kingdom. London: Imprint Academic. p. 118.
^"Where there's muck".The Independent. 18 March 1999. p. 3.
^Campaign for Yorkshire literature, quoted in Robert Hazell,The State and the Nations: The First Year of Devolution in the United Kingdom (London: Imprint Academic, 2000) p.140
^"New Director for Campaign Group".Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph. 13 October 1999. p. 5.
^Wainwright, Martin (18 March 1999). "Revolutionary Yorkshiremen edge towards devolution".The Guardian. p. 11.
^Martin, Andrew (4 August 2000). "Arts: Where There's Muck, There's Art".The Independent. p. 9.
^Yound, Robin (8 March 2001). "Ee by gum! Yorkshire gets its own degree".The Times. London.
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