South Cowton is a village and Civil Parish based around an abandoned medieval village in the Richmondshire

Richmondshire

Richmondshire is a local government district of North Yorkshire, England. It covers a large northern area of the Yorkshire Dales including Swaledale and Arkengarthdale, Wensleydale and Coverdale, with the prominent Scots' Dyke and Scotch Corner along the centre. Teesdale lies to the north...

 district of North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...

 in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

The village was developed some time after the Norman Conquest, The Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

 tells us that South Cowton was owned by Count Alan of Richmond, and was ruled by Godric the Steward. The archaeological

Archaeology

Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...

 remains of the village suggest that there were at least 20 houses during the Medieval era.

The two major historic buildings in South Cowton are The Castle

South Cowton Castle

South Cowton Castle is a 15th century fortified dwelling house in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England.It is situated on the land that was once the medieval village of South Cowton....

 and St Mary's Church

St Mary's Church, South Cowton

St Mary's Church, South Cowton, is a redundant Anglican church standing in open countryside in the former village of South Cowton, near Scotch Corner in North Yorkshire, England...

. Both buildings were erected in the 15th century. They were both built by Richard Conyers, one of the few lords of the many Cowton manors, ever to actually live there.

Between 1489 and 1490 Richard Conyers demolished the village of South Cowton, evicting its tenants in order to convert the land into pastures.

The current village consists of little more than a few widely dispersed farms, the Castle and the church. The former villages of Temple Cowton and Atley Cowton as well as the hamlets of Atley Hill

Atley Hill

Atley Hill is a hamlet in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the B1263 road between the A167 and the village of Scorton....

 and Pepper Arden have been incorporated into the parish of South Cowton.

External links