7 Churches to Explore in North Yorkshire

Bolton Abbey lies in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales near Skipton. The land was gifted to the Augustinian canons by Alice de Rumilly in 1154. The canons lived and worshipped here until 1539 when the dissolution of the monasteries stripped the Priory of its assets. Despite the loss of most of the Priory buildings during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the western half of the original nave was preserved so that the local parish could continue its worship there.

Byland Abbey is a ruined abbey and a small village in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England, in the North York Moors National Park. It was founded as a Savigniac abbey in January 1135 and was absorbed by the Cistercian order in 1147. The site is now maintained by English Heritage and is scheduled as an ancient monument by Historic England with grade I listed status.

St Mary’s Church Leake is a beautiful grade 1 listed church in the shelter of the North Yorkshire Moors. It is a place of calm next to the busy A19 as it connects York to Teesside. The church is open daily as a place of stillness and prayer. The chapel stands close to the site of the battle of Towton of 1461, which was part of the Wars of the Roses. In the 1930s it was saved from neglect by a local group of ramblers, and is known locally as the Ramblers' Church

Jervaulx Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery located in a peaceful valley setting in the Vale of Ure, a few miles east of the Yorkshire Dales. Apart from its historical significance and the beauty of the location, Jervaulx is known for its horticulture; over 180 varieties of wildflower grow in and on the abbey walls. The place name Jervaulx is first attested in 1145, where it appears as Jorvalle. The name is French for 'the Ure valley' and is perhaps a translation of the English 'Ure-dale',

Set amid woodland in North Yorkshire, this unusual monastery is the best preserved Carthusian priory in Britain. The monastery consisted of a church and two cloisters. The Great Cloister, to the north of the church, had seventeen cells for monks whilst the southern Lesser Cloister had six cells for the lay brothers. Wander the ruins and discover how the monks lived 600 years ago in the reconstructed monk’s cell and herb plot. Explore the rooms of the Arts and Crafts manor house and then head out

Rievaulx Abbey is the perfect choice for a peaceful day out, with its extensive ruins and fascinating museum in a secluded North York Moors valley. The monastery was suppressed in 1538, but the spectacular abbey ruins became a popular subject for Romantic artists in the 18th and 19th centuries. The indoor museum has recently been transformed, featuring previously unseen artifacts, which tell the story of the rise and dramatic fall of the Cistercian abbey, while a new viewing window invites the a

Ripon Cathedral is a cathedral in the North Yorkshire city of Ripon. Founded as a monastery by Scottish monks in the 660s, it was refounded as a Benedictine monastery by St Wilfrid in 672. The church became collegiate in the tenth century and acted as a mother church within the large Diocese of York for the remainder of the Middle ages. The cathedral is notable architecturally for its gothic west front in the Early English style, considered one of the best of its type, as well as the Geometric