Hello! Someone asked me yesterday “what’s going on with your blog?” Well, life has been fairly quiet since I last wrote. We had a period of daily rain here in Glasgow with gray skies and cool/cold temps that didn’t encourage you to venture out. I felt a little like this guy.
However, we finally had a wee adventure worth writing about. D. was invited to give a presentation at the University of Sheffield (England) and after his time there, we ventured to York, a historic city just over 200 miles (or a four-plus hour train ride) away from Glasgow. Surprisingly, it’s the first time that I’ve crossed into England (other than stopovers at London Heathrow airport) since I’ve been living here.
The arrow shows the border between Scotland and England which crosses the River Tweed. Note, London is another 200 miles south of York.
York is a place with such a deep and interesting history from ancient to modern times with each era leaving traces in daily life. Local tribes called Brigantes, were conquered by the Roman invasion and the city of York first took shape around 71 AD.
York was seen as a strategic area and the Romans built a fortress around the city; amazingly, some of those walls can still can be seen.
Many more artifacts from that time remain buried, emerging from time to time. One recent example was a group of metal-detecting hobbyists who found a treasure of four Roman artifacts four years ago; their finds are now on display at the local Yorkshire Museum. Can you imagine picking up something that had last been in the hands of a Roman nearly two millennia ago?
Vikings also left their mark, including imparting the name Jorvik, which became York, then the Normans. In the medieval 1200s, the York castle, city walls, and gates were built. We thoroughly enjoyed a volunteer-led tour of the York Walls (in spite of the rain).
One of the Medieval gates, hot oil would have been poured on anyone trying to pass through uninvited, along with arrows from archers standing at those crosses. 
Along the Medieval walls, thousands of daffodils have been planted. 
A medieval monastery, ruined during Henry VIII’s era. 
from the ruins 
Victorians built walkways on the city walls. 
Medieval buildings still exist. 
The Shambles, an old Medieval street that used to be filled with butchers. 
This medieval home started sagging after car traffic increased in the 1950’s. Town officials reduced traffic on the street to aid it from declining further.
The jewel of York is the York Minster, a Gothic cathedral, which was finished around 1300 AD on the site of an original church dated from around 637 AD. No other building in York can be built taller than the church and its grand size helps you orient yourself no matter where you are.
I tried to upload my own audio recording of the York Minster bells on a Sunday morning, but it didn’t work, so here is a recording from someone else that I’ll borrow. It was marvelous, giving me goosebumps.
Victorian York brought the railway, the chocolate industry (in which one in four York residents were employed) and a racetrack (built on the site where medieval Roman gladiators fought). It became the regional pleasure capital – a nice place to visit. Though industry has left, that legacy remains.
Learning about and seeing the traces left by a thousand generations of inhabitants of York gave me a sense of awe about history and the recurrence of some themes of humanity in all their ugliness and beauty – power, war, belief in the divine, perseverance, and innovation.
thanks Suzanne. This was beautiful; love the old buildings and the history.
Thanks for reading, Anita! I’m glad you enjoyed seeing my impressions of York.
Thanks, Sue, for a lovely history review for the city of York. Do any of the inhabitants get to sleep in when the bells are ringing? Very impressive!
Marlene
Hi Marlene, yes, I imagine that sleeping in is not an option for those living close by, you can feel the bells in your bones as they’re ringing.
I love your adventures ♥️