Ulnaby
Encyclopedia
Ulnaby is an abandoned village
and scheduled ancient monument in the grounds of Ulnaby Hall Farm, near High Coniscliffe
, County Durham
. It is believed that this toft village was occupied from the late 13th century to the 16th century, followed by temporary 19th century buildings. Ulnaby Hall farm appears to have been built in the late 16th century, supplanting a fairly high status medieval
manorial
enclosure which was associated with the original village. It is thought that the village shrank due to the change from labour-intensive arable farming to pasture, and then was abandoned as the site was subsumed into the farm as pasture itself.
, County Durham
. The earthworks cover an area of 0.16 km2 under pasture, with the actual village covering 6.6 hectares. There are ridge and furrow
areas to the north and west. There is visible evidence of two east-west rows of tofts either side of an east-west hollow way
, and on the north side of the hollow way is the village green
. The site, which slopes gently to the south, is bounded by roads on the north and west sides, and a stream to the south. Beneath the pasture the archaeology is on boulder clay
overlying magnesian limestone
. Three fields make up the site: an 1841 document says that the western field was called Back Field, the eastern field was Garths and the southern field was New Acridge Carr. The fields immediately to the west of the site were called Kiln Field and Lime Kiln Field, and there is evidence of quarrying in Back Field. A garth in this context is an enclosed garden, yard or paddock, and would refer to the existing earthworks. Carr refers to marshland in the context of old pasture.
for Ulfhethin's farm, which could imply that there was a pre-medieval settlement locally. Although archaeologists have not found reason to date the village itself before medieval times, there is local evidence of worked flints, a Bronze Age
awl, three late Neolithic
or early Bronze Age bowl barrows
and the Roman road
Dere Street
, all within 3 kilometres. Roman items have been found locally at High Carlbury
, High Coniscliffe
and Ulnaby farm itself.
which still leads east-west through the lost village. In the mid-12th century the land belonged to the Greystoke
family, and by the late 13th century it was the property of William de Somerville, who exchanged it for Scottish land held by the Marmadukes. In 1320 a Marmaduke widow gave the land to Sir Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, and after Sir Thomas was executed in 1322 it reverted to the Neville
family, at a time when the Carlbury and Ulnaby estates were jointly worth £20 per annum: quite profitable at that time. Before he died, it is thought possible that Lancaster redesigned the village around the green
, and that he built the manor house in 1320 for a steward
at the position now occupied by the southernmost farm buildings. The steward would have collected the peasants' dues
for the absent landlord. Ulnaby and its associated manor belonged to the House of Neville from 1343 to 1573, and it is also possible that the original manor on the site, where Ulnaby Hall now stands, was built by Sir Ralph de Neville around 1354. Charles Neville
forfeited it in 1571 for his part in the Rising of the North
. Queen Elizabeth I
granted it to the Tailboys family of Thornton Hall
on 20 June 1573.
Documents of 1629 and 1654 indicate that the estate consisted of the manor, four tofts, three cottages, five barns, three gardens and orchards, a water cornmill
and dovecote
, with 100 acre (0.404686 km²) each of arable
and meadow
, 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of pasture
and 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) of woodland
. It has been suggested that around 1573 the Tailboys family replaced the original manor with Ulnaby Hall and farm, possibly re-using material from the old manor house. The village dwindled in size until it became part of the farm; by 1629, three - not four - tofts remained, according to one source. Ulnaby Hall has been thought to date from 1609: this is possible as the earliest part of the hall dates from late 16th to early 17th century. Old maps show that Ulnaby village contained one last building of presumed medieval origin in 1855 beside the north-east corner of the present farm buildings, but that this was gone by 1896; it is said that it was used as a barn until the 1870s. Some farm cottages were then added, and these still exist. It is thought that the reduction in size of the village was in response to the success of the cloth industry
, which encouraged change from labour-intensive arable land to pasture.
's Archaeological Survey and Investigation team in 2007. This suggested that there had been a village there without a green, then a toft village consisting of two rows of small farmsteads around a green. After that, some tofts were added and some abandoned. Next to the village there was an enclosed area including a manor, fishpond, dovecote and orchard. At the same time as the English Heritage survey, the Northumberland and Durham Vernacular Architecture Group undertook a measured survey
of Ulnaby Hall. They thought that a raised rectangular earthwork in the old village green could possibly have been the earliest evidence of village habitation, perhaps indicating an earlier manor or even a Roman
building. They found possible lynchet
s on the north side of the old road as the hollow way enters the village from the east.
The manorial enclosure was at least 1.6 hectares, and is considered to have been fairly high status. It was bounded by a wall of dressed
limestone
blocks, and contained a fishpond
and dovecote
. The fishpond was cut into an old ridge and furrow
field, and the residence itself is believed to be underneath the present Ulnaby Hall. There is evidence of a succession of buildings on the site, terminating in the 19th century, but the village had shrunk by the 17th century, indicating the effect of the change from labour-intensive arable land to pasture. A survey of Ulnaby Hall shows a single-phase build in the late 16th century of a south-facing building of one large room over another and two wings at the back, with service rooms to the west. Two of the original gardens, to the south and east of the hall, still exist, and the third was probably the garth field or paddock to the south of the farm track. There was a smithy, five barns and orchards. One of the peasant houses was quite large, having three rooms. It is thought that the southern end of the site, around the water channel, was a marshy area which provided the village with various resources, and that this was drained in the 18th century.
excavated the site, found a silver coin and part of a bone spoon, and were rained on. They dug eight trenches, and the report was written by Wessex Archaeology
. They found evidence for occupation from the late 13th or early 14th centuries until some time in the 15th century, when activity appears to have centred on the western tofts of the north row, and one or two tofts in the south row, until the 16th century. The double row of tofts with village green
appeared to be the original pattern, and there was no evidence of pre-medieval occupation. The hollow way was cobbled and continued in regular use until the 19th century. Earlier buildings were found to be cruck
-built with stone bases to the walls, and later ones probably stone-built. The manorial enclosure, early earthwork on the village green
and the hollow way
were not excavated.
s, gates and bridges have been constructed for the use of visitors and to protect the earthworks, and guided walks were offered to local people by English Heritage
. Wildlife at the site includes hares and owls.
Maps and photos
Time Team videos
Abandoned village
An abandoned village is a village that has, for some reason, been deserted. In many countries, and throughout history, thousands of villages were deserted for a variety of causes...
and scheduled ancient monument in the grounds of Ulnaby Hall Farm, near High Coniscliffe
High Coniscliffe
High Coniscliffe is a parish and village in the borough of Darlington and ceremonial county of County Durham, England. The parish includes Carlbury and Low Coniscliffe...
, County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
. It is believed that this toft village was occupied from the late 13th century to the 16th century, followed by temporary 19th century buildings. Ulnaby Hall farm appears to have been built in the late 16th century, supplanting a fairly high status medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
manorial
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
enclosure which was associated with the original village. It is thought that the village shrank due to the change from labour-intensive arable farming to pasture, and then was abandoned as the site was subsumed into the farm as pasture itself.
Location
The site is 6.8 km north-west of Darlington, in the grounds of Ulnaby Hall Farm, between Ulnaby Lane and the B6279, near High ConiscliffeHigh Coniscliffe
High Coniscliffe is a parish and village in the borough of Darlington and ceremonial county of County Durham, England. The parish includes Carlbury and Low Coniscliffe...
, County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
. The earthworks cover an area of 0.16 km2 under pasture, with the actual village covering 6.6 hectares. There are ridge and furrow
Ridge and furrow
Ridge and furrow is an archaeological pattern of ridges and troughs created by a system of ploughing used in Europe during the Middle Ages. The earliest examples date to the immediate post-Roman period and the system was used until the 17th century in some areas. Ridge and furrow topography is...
areas to the north and west. There is visible evidence of two east-west rows of tofts either side of an east-west hollow way
Sunken lane
A sunken lane is a road which has over time fallen significantly lower than the land on either side. They are created incrementally by erosion, by water and traffic...
, and on the north side of the hollow way is the village green
Village green
A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement. Traditionally, such an area was often common grass land at the centre of a small agricultural settlement, used for grazing and sometimes for community events...
. The site, which slopes gently to the south, is bounded by roads on the north and west sides, and a stream to the south. Beneath the pasture the archaeology is on boulder clay
Boulder clay
Boulder clay, in geology, is a deposit of clay, often full of boulders, which is formed in and beneath glaciers and ice-sheets wherever they are found, but is in a special sense the typical deposit of the Glacial Period in northern Europe and North America...
overlying magnesian limestone
Dolostone
Dolostone or dolomite rock is a sedimentary carbonate rock that contains a high percentage of the mineral dolomite. In old U.S.G.S. publications it was referred to as magnesian limestone. Most dolostone formed as a magnesium replacement of limestone or lime mud prior to lithification. It is...
. Three fields make up the site: an 1841 document says that the western field was called Back Field, the eastern field was Garths and the southern field was New Acridge Carr. The fields immediately to the west of the site were called Kiln Field and Lime Kiln Field, and there is evidence of quarrying in Back Field. A garth in this context is an enclosed garden, yard or paddock, and would refer to the existing earthworks. Carr refers to marshland in the context of old pasture.
Context
The name, "Ulnaby", is possibly derived from the Old NorseOld Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
for Ulfhethin's farm, which could imply that there was a pre-medieval settlement locally. Although archaeologists have not found reason to date the village itself before medieval times, there is local evidence of worked flints, a Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
awl, three late Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
or early Bronze Age bowl barrows
Tumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...
and the Roman road
Roman roads in Britain
Roman roads, together with Roman aqueducts and the vast standing Roman army , constituted the three most impressive features of the Roman Empire. In Britain, as in other provinces, the Romans constructed a comprehensive network of paved trunk roads Roman roads, together with Roman aqueducts and the...
Dere Street
Dere Street
Dere Street or Deere Street, was a Roman road between Eboracum and Veluniate, in what is now Scotland. It still exists in the form of the route of many major roads, including the A1 and A68 just north of Corbridge.Its name corresponds with the post Roman Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Deira, through...
, all within 3 kilometres. Roman items have been found locally at High Carlbury
Carlbury
Carlbury is a hamlet in the civil parish of High Coniscliffe in County Durham, in England. It is situated a few miles to the west of Darlington, on the north bank of the River Tees between Piercebridge to the west, and High Coniscliffe to the east...
, High Coniscliffe
High Coniscliffe
High Coniscliffe is a parish and village in the borough of Darlington and ceremonial county of County Durham, England. The parish includes Carlbury and Low Coniscliffe...
and Ulnaby farm itself.
Village and manor occupation
The village itself is believed to have been occupied from the late 13th to the 16th century; at first a few small tofts on the same hollow waySunken lane
A sunken lane is a road which has over time fallen significantly lower than the land on either side. They are created incrementally by erosion, by water and traffic...
which still leads east-west through the lost village. In the mid-12th century the land belonged to the Greystoke
Baron Greystock
The title Baron Greystock has been created twice in the Peerage of England. It was first created when John de Greystock was summoned to parliament in 1295 and it became extinct on his death...
family, and by the late 13th century it was the property of William de Somerville, who exchanged it for Scottish land held by the Marmadukes. In 1320 a Marmaduke widow gave the land to Sir Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, and after Sir Thomas was executed in 1322 it reverted to the Neville
House of Neville
The House of Neville is a noble house of early medieval origin, which was a leading force in English politics in the later middle ages...
family, at a time when the Carlbury and Ulnaby estates were jointly worth £20 per annum: quite profitable at that time. Before he died, it is thought possible that Lancaster redesigned the village around the green
Village green
A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement. Traditionally, such an area was often common grass land at the centre of a small agricultural settlement, used for grazing and sometimes for community events...
, and that he built the manor house in 1320 for a steward
Steward (office)
A steward is an official who is appointed by the legal ruling monarch to represent him or her in a country, and may have a mandate to govern it in his or her name; in the latter case, it roughly corresponds with the position of governor or deputy...
at the position now occupied by the southernmost farm buildings. The steward would have collected the peasants' dues
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
for the absent landlord. Ulnaby and its associated manor belonged to the House of Neville from 1343 to 1573, and it is also possible that the original manor on the site, where Ulnaby Hall now stands, was built by Sir Ralph de Neville around 1354. Charles Neville
Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland
Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland was an English nobleman and one of the leaders of the Rising of the North in 1569....
forfeited it in 1571 for his part in the Rising of the North
Rising of the North
The Rising of the North of 1569, also called the Revolt of the Northern Earls or Northern Rebellion, was an unsuccessful attempt by Catholic nobles from Northern England to depose Queen Elizabeth I of England and replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots.-Background:When Elizabeth I succeeded her...
. Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
granted it to the Tailboys family of Thornton Hall
Thornton Hall, High Coniscliffe
Thornton Hall is a privately owned 16th century manor house at High Coniscliffe, near Darlington, County Durham. It is a Grade I listed building....
on 20 June 1573.
Documents of 1629 and 1654 indicate that the estate consisted of the manor, four tofts, three cottages, five barns, three gardens and orchards, a water cornmill
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
and dovecote
Dovecote
A dovecote or dovecot is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be square or circular free-standing structures or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pigeonholes for the birds to nest. Pigeons and doves were an important food source historically in...
, with 100 acre (0.404686 km²) each of arable
Arable land
In geography and agriculture, arable land is land that can be used for growing crops. It includes all land under temporary crops , temporary meadows for mowing or pasture, land under market and kitchen gardens and land temporarily fallow...
and meadow
Meadow
A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . The term is from Old English mædwe. In agriculture a meadow is grassland which is not grazed by domestic livestock but rather allowed to grow unchecked in order to make hay...
, 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...
and 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) of woodland
Forest management
200px|thumb|right|[[Sustainable development|Sustainable]] forest management carried out by [[Complejo Forestal y Maderero Panguipulli|Complejo Panguipulli]] has contributed to the preservation of the forested landscape around [[Neltume]], a sawmill town in Chile...
. It has been suggested that around 1573 the Tailboys family replaced the original manor with Ulnaby Hall and farm, possibly re-using material from the old manor house. The village dwindled in size until it became part of the farm; by 1629, three - not four - tofts remained, according to one source. Ulnaby Hall has been thought to date from 1609: this is possible as the earliest part of the hall dates from late 16th to early 17th century. Old maps show that Ulnaby village contained one last building of presumed medieval origin in 1855 beside the north-east corner of the present farm buildings, but that this was gone by 1896; it is said that it was used as a barn until the 1870s. Some farm cottages were then added, and these still exist. It is thought that the reduction in size of the village was in response to the success of the cloth industry
Textile manufacturing by pre-industrial methods
Textile manufacturing is one of the oldest human activities. The oldest known textiles date back to about 5000 B.C. In order to make textiles, the first requirement is a source of fibre from which a yarn can be made, primarily by spinning. The yarn is processed by knitting or weaving to create...
, which encouraged change from labour-intensive arable land to pasture.
English Heritage and NDVA Group
A non-intrusive earthwork survey was done by English HeritageEnglish Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
's Archaeological Survey and Investigation team in 2007. This suggested that there had been a village there without a green, then a toft village consisting of two rows of small farmsteads around a green. After that, some tofts were added and some abandoned. Next to the village there was an enclosed area including a manor, fishpond, dovecote and orchard. At the same time as the English Heritage survey, the Northumberland and Durham Vernacular Architecture Group undertook a measured survey
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
of Ulnaby Hall. They thought that a raised rectangular earthwork in the old village green could possibly have been the earliest evidence of village habitation, perhaps indicating an earlier manor or even a Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
building. They found possible lynchet
Lynchet
A lynchet is a bank of earth that builds up on the downslope of a field ploughed over a long period of time. The disturbed soil slips down the hillside to create a positive lynchet while the area reduced in level becomes a negative lynchet. They are also referred to as strip lynchets.They are a...
s on the north side of the old road as the hollow way enters the village from the east.
The manorial enclosure was at least 1.6 hectares, and is considered to have been fairly high status. It was bounded by a wall of dressed
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
blocks, and contained a fishpond
Fish pond
A fish pond, or fishpond, is a controlled pond, artificial lake, or reservoir that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, or is used for recreational fishing or for ornamental purposes...
and dovecote
Dovecote
A dovecote or dovecot is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be square or circular free-standing structures or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pigeonholes for the birds to nest. Pigeons and doves were an important food source historically in...
. The fishpond was cut into an old ridge and furrow
Ridge and furrow
Ridge and furrow is an archaeological pattern of ridges and troughs created by a system of ploughing used in Europe during the Middle Ages. The earliest examples date to the immediate post-Roman period and the system was used until the 17th century in some areas. Ridge and furrow topography is...
field, and the residence itself is believed to be underneath the present Ulnaby Hall. There is evidence of a succession of buildings on the site, terminating in the 19th century, but the village had shrunk by the 17th century, indicating the effect of the change from labour-intensive arable land to pasture. A survey of Ulnaby Hall shows a single-phase build in the late 16th century of a south-facing building of one large room over another and two wings at the back, with service rooms to the west. Two of the original gardens, to the south and east of the hall, still exist, and the third was probably the garth field or paddock to the south of the farm track. There was a smithy, five barns and orchards. One of the peasant houses was quite large, having three rooms. It is thought that the southern end of the site, around the water channel, was a marshy area which provided the village with various resources, and that this was drained in the 18th century.
Time Team and Wessex Archaeology
In April 2008, Time TeamTime Team
Time Team is a British television series which has been aired on Channel 4 since 1994. Created by television producer Tim Taylor and presented by actor Tony Robinson, each episode features a team of specialists carrying out an archaeological dig over a period of three days, with Robinson explaining...
excavated the site, found a silver coin and part of a bone spoon, and were rained on. They dug eight trenches, and the report was written by Wessex Archaeology
Wessex Archaeology
Wessex Archaeology is one of the largest private archaeological organisations operating in the United Kingdom, based near Salisbury in Wiltshire.-Background:...
. They found evidence for occupation from the late 13th or early 14th centuries until some time in the 15th century, when activity appears to have centred on the western tofts of the north row, and one or two tofts in the south row, until the 16th century. The double row of tofts with village green
Village green
A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement. Traditionally, such an area was often common grass land at the centre of a small agricultural settlement, used for grazing and sometimes for community events...
appeared to be the original pattern, and there was no evidence of pre-medieval occupation. The hollow way was cobbled and continued in regular use until the 19th century. Earlier buildings were found to be cruck
Cruck
A cruck or crook frame is a curved timber, one of a pair, which supports the roof of a building, used particularly in England. This type of timber framing consists of long, generally bent, timber beams that lean inwards and form the ridge of the roof. These posts are then generally secured by a...
-built with stone bases to the walls, and later ones probably stone-built. The manorial enclosure, early earthwork on the village green
Village green
A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement. Traditionally, such an area was often common grass land at the centre of a small agricultural settlement, used for grazing and sometimes for community events...
and the hollow way
Sunken lane
A sunken lane is a road which has over time fallen significantly lower than the land on either side. They are created incrementally by erosion, by water and traffic...
were not excavated.
Ulnaby today
The site is now listed as scheduled ancient monument NMR number 20961. Ulnaby Hall survives as a Grade II listed building with its farm. Some of its blocked-up windows are said to date back to the 16th or 17th century. An ancient sycamore tree and terrace in a field in front of the hall are survivors from one of the original gardens. Ulnaby Hall is surrounded by fields of earthworks under pasture, showing banks, ditches, walls and hollow ways. Possibly one of the fishponds was at the south end of the site, fed by the water channel. It is thought that it is the use of land as pasture which has preserved the site unchanged since the village was deserted. Around 2008, Ulnaby Hall Farm opened the site and farm as a visitor attraction. A reconstruction painting of the medieval village has been produced for visitors, along with a self-guided walk leaflet. StileStile
A stile is a structure which provides people a passage through or over a fence or boundary via steps, ladders, or narrow gaps. Stiles are often built in rural areas or along footpaths to allow access to an adjacent field or area separated by a fence, wall or hedge...
s, gates and bridges have been constructed for the use of visitors and to protect the earthworks, and guided walks were offered to local people by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
. Wildlife at the site includes hares and owls.
External links
VisitingMaps and photos
- Streetmap: map showing Ulnaby
- Aerial image of Ulnaby site
- Tees Archaeology: series of aerial photos of site
- Unofficial website for Tony Robinson: stills from Time Team dig
- Panoramio: two stills of Time Team dig, and satellite map of site
Time Team videos
- Channel 4: Series 16, episode 2, The Hollow Way: Ulnaby, County Durham (video)
- Channel 4 on Youtube: The Hollow Way: Ulnaby, County Durham (video)