Yorkshire Landmarks

In the second of this new series of blogs - the first having looked at Landmarks close to London - we highlight Landmarks throughout Yorkshire.

Calverley Old Hall, near Leeds

Sleeps up to 5 guests

Grade-I listed Calverley Old Hall dates to medieval times and is of great historical importance. Its rooms evolved over the centuries to suit the lives of its inhabitants. Guests today stay in the gracious proportions of 17th-century rooms, with fine moulded beams and flagstone floors. There are myriad interesting things to see and do in the area, including the Saltaire Village World Heritage Site, Bronte Parsonage Museum, Yorkshire Sculpture Park and Henry Moore Institute. Not far away are the Royal Armouries and Temple Newsam, a Tudor-Jacobean house with beautiful grounds.

20 minutes from Leeds
17 minutes from Bradford
60 minutes from York
70 minutes from Sheffield
40 minutes from Harrogate
65 minutes from Doncaster
35 minutes from Wakefield

Cawood Castle, Cawood, North Yorkshire

Sleeps up to 2 +2

The late medieval rooms in this gatehouse are all that survive of Cawood Castle, once a residence of the Archbishops of York. Here Cardinal Wolsey was dramatically arrested for treason on Henry VIII’s orders, and later Henry stayed here with his fifth wife Catherine Howard. In the retinue was her lover, Thomas Culpeper, who later caused her to be beheaded. During the turbulent Civil War of the 1640s, Cawood changed hands three times. Although the building’s past is full of drama, it is peaceful and relaxing today, its roof offering views of the surrounding countryside, with York in the distance.

40 minutes from Leeds
60 minutes from Bradford
30 minutes from York
70 minutes from Sheffield
50 minutes from Harrogate
45 minutes from Doncaster
40 minutes from Wakefield

Beamsley Hospital, near Skipton, North Yorkshire

Sleeps up to 5 guests

The unusual round building sits on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales. As an almshouse, it offered support to poor women from 1593 when it was created until well into the 20th century. It was founded by a remarkable Elizabethan Mother and Daughter duo, Margaret Countess of Cumberland and her heir Lady Anne Clifford. The 19th-century spa town of Ilkley is close by, as is Bolton Abbey and Skipton; with Harrogate a little further. For those who wish to travel the Yorkshire landscape in heritage style, Embsay & Bolton Abbey Steam Railway is a volunteer-run railway or you can tour the Liverpool Leeds Canal by boat.

55 minutes from Leeds
40 minutes from Bradford
75 minutes from York
110 minutes from Sheffield
25 minutes from Harrogate
90 minutes from Doncaster
70 minutes from Wakefield

The Ruin, Hackfall, Grewelthorpe, North Yorkshire

Sleeps up to 2 guests
The views from this little pavilion are nothing short of breath-taking. The Janus-faced Georgian folly (meaning it has two faces) is dramatically perched above a steep wooded gorge with the Yorkshire countryside rolling out into the distance. Nearby is Ripon Cathedral, with a history reaching back to the 7th century, and the Ripon museums offer an insight to the life in the workhouse, courtroom and prison. Newby Hall and Gardens and Fountains Abbey are a short drive away from the Ruin (if you are able to pull yourself away from its spectacular vista).

70 minutes from Leeds
75 minutes from Bradford
70 minutes from York
100 minutes from Sheffield
40 minutes from Harrogate
90 minutes from Doncaster
65 minutes from Wakefield

Culloden Tower, Richmond, North Yorkshire

Sleeps up to 4 guests

Originally called the Cumberland Temple, the tower was built as a monument to celebrate the victory of the Duke of Cumberland's army over Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites at the Battle of Culloden in 1746. Today its purpose is much more positive, with two bright octagonal rooms at the top of the four storey tower flooded with daylight and the original Gothic and Classical carving and plasterwork triumphantly repaired. The historic market town of Richmond, with its Norman castle, restored theatre, museum, monuments and fine Georgian architecture, has lots to offer visitors.

80 minutes from Leeds
90 minutes from Bradford
70 minutes from York
110 minutes from Sheffield
65 minutes from Harrogate
90 minutes from Doncaster
75 minutes from Wakefield

Cowside, Langstrothdale, North Yorkshire