Photo: Danby Hall by Chris Heaton, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
About this place
Danby Hall began as a fourteenth-century pele tower above the River Ure near Thornton Steward, North Yorkshire.
The Scrope family has held it since the sixteenth century, having settled in the district as far back as the twelfth.
The house is a Historic Houses member property, and visits are arranged through the organisation rather than through regular public opening hours.
Read more on WikipediaHistory
The original tower was greatly enlarged in 1658 and remodelled again in 1855 by York architect Joseph Hansom, who added a new garden front. Local tradition holds that the house was reduced from three storeys to two during that work. Danby Hall was given grade I listed status in 1967.
Architecture
Built of stone beneath a Welsh slate roof, the house has an H-shaped plan with a five-bay entrance front and two projecting bays. The parapet is pierced and balustraded, carrying carved initials and a date.
Worth knowing
The Scrope family's long connection to the house includes evidence of their Catholic recusancy, with priest hiding holes present in the building.
Plan your visit
Nearest station: Finghall (Wensleydale Railway) (2.4 miles)
Nearby properties
Middleham Castle
View Middleham Castle on heritage mapHoly Trinity Church, Coverham
View Holy Trinity Church, Coverham on heritage mapHoly Trinity Church, Wensley
View Holy Trinity Church, Wensley on heritage mapHistoric places nearby
Within 5 miles of Danby Hall there are 4 historic properties, including 2 churchs, across Churches Conservation Trust, English Heritage and Historic Houses sites.
Within 10 miles of Danby Hall there are 10 historic properties, including 3 castles, 2 historic buildings and 2 churchs, across English Heritage, Historic Houses and Churches Conservation Trust sites.
Within 20 miles of Danby Hall there are 32 historic properties, including 9 historic houses, 9 historic buildings and 6 churchs, across English Heritage, Historic Houses and Churches Conservation Trust sites.
Facts
A fourteenth-century pele tower that has been home to one family for centuries, bearing the physical traces of Catholic recusancy.
- Type
- historic house
- Location
- North Yorkshire, England
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