North Yorkshire Resorts - Ripon And Fountains Abbey

Ripon

Cathedral City of the Yorkshire Dales, Ripon has much to entertain visitors and locals alike. The Cathedral stands proud on a site where monasteries have stood since the 7th century. Author of "Alice in Wonderland" Lewis Carroll is reputed to have found inspiration from the Cathedral whilst visiting his father who was Canon of Ripon from 1852 to 1868.

Attractions of Ripon besides the magnificent Cathedral include the Police and Prison Museum, the Workhouse Museum, the Courthouse Museum and the beautifully maintained Spa Gardens. Ripon architecture combines Georgian with Medieval and notable half timbered buildings include the Wakeman's House and the Town Hall.

It is the market square however which is the heart and soul of Ripon. With its stunning obelisk - which has been in place for over 300 years and stands over 90 feet high - the market square bears witness each evening at precisely 9pm to Ripons' Hornblower tradition. This tradition has taken place every night without fail for over 1100 years! The ritual sees the Hornblower setting the watch at each corner of the Obelisk and signified in years gone by the setting of the curfew.

Every Thursday the market square is filled with gaily coloured market stalls and Ripon buzzes with the weekly market which has taken place since the 8th century. The history of the market being held on a Thursday is thought to have originated from Ripon being the first of the monasteries of St. Wilfrid and his principal shrine with Thursday being celebrated as the day which St. Wilfrid died and as such were kept as "a feast as though it were a Sunday..." which used to attract pilgrims from outside of the City for which traders set out their stalls and the market was formed. It is believed that the market square itself was built around the 12th century.

Nearby attractions to Ripon include Ripon Racecourse, Lightwater Valley Theme Park, Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Deer Park & Water Garden, Newby Hall & Gardens. The beautiful little market town of Masham is also close by and is home to Theakstons' and Black Sheep Breweries. The well known Yorkshire Brymor Ice Cream Parlour lies under 10 minutes drive from Masham and helps to make Masham a nice day trip for visitors staying in Ripon.

Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Deer Park & Water Gardens

Maintained by the National Trust, Fountains Abbey is Yorkshire's first World Heritage site and what a site it is! Set in over 800 acres of parkland the site encompasses not only the largest abbey ruins in England but also one of the most impressive Georgian water gardens.

Founded in 1132 by 13 Benedictine monks who later became Cistercian monks, the Abbey buildings and over 500 acres of land were sold by the crown following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539. It was bought by a merchant called Sir Richard Gresham and passed down through several generations of the Gresham family until being sold to Stephen Proctor who commissioned and build Fountains Hall around 1598 to 1604. Built in part using stone from the Abbey, Fountains Hall is a magnificent Elizabethan mansion of which two rooms are open for public viewing.

The Studley Royal Estate was separately owned from Fountains Abbey until 1767 when William Aisalabie purchased the Abbey ruins and landscaped the Seven Bridges Valley and Abbey grounds to complement the beautifully landscaped Studley Estate and Water Garden which was the inspiration and creation of his father John Aislabie, who inherited the Studley Estate in 1693.