Near Ripon, in North Yorkshire, Markenfield Hall is a moated medieval manor of rare purity, the seat of the Markenfield family. Its history in the Renaissance is one of ruin: that of a Catholic gentry family, swept away by the great Rising of the North of 1569.
A family of the old nobility
An L-plan fortified manor, surrounded by a moat, Markenfield was the stronghold of the family of the same name, anchored in Yorkshire since the Middle Ages. Like so many families of the North, the Markenfields were of old stock and loyal to Catholicism. They had already taken sides in the dynastic struggles: Sir Thomas Markenfield, High Sheriff of Yorkshire in 1484, fought at Bosworth (1485) alongside Richard III — on the losing side, therefore, at the dawn of the Tudor age. The family nevertheless came through the century, attached to its lands and its faith.
The ruin after 1569
Disaster came with the Rising of the North of 1569: the great revolt of the Catholic lords of the North against Elizabeth I, in favour of Mary Stuart and the return of the Mass. Thomas Markenfield took an active part in it. The revolt failed; Markenfield had to flee to the continent, where he died in exile. His lands were confiscated by the Crown and granted to Thomas Egerton, Master of the Rolls. The family was ruined, the manor emptied of its masters. Markenfield Hall thus became the emblem of the destruction of the Catholic gentry of the North, punished for its loyalty to the old faith. To see: the L-plan moated fortified manor, the great hall and the undercroft, the Tudor gatehouse, the chapel.
Did you know?
After the confiscation of 1569, Markenfield Hall remained so long deprived of its masters that its chapel knew its 'first wedding since 1487' only in 2001 — that is, after more than five centuries of liturgical silence. This date, engraved in the memory of the place, measures the extent of the freeze that struck the house: the fall of a gentry family for the sake of faith could freeze a whole house for generations.
Notes
Markenfield Hall lies near Ripon, North Yorkshire; a private manor, open to the public a few days a year. Hours to check.
Quiz
- At which battle of 1485 did the Markenfields fight?
- Bosworth (alongside Richard III)
- The Armada
- Flodden
- In which rising did Thomas Markenfield take part in 1569?
- The Rising of the North
- Kett's Rebellion
- The Gunpowder Plot
- What became of his lands after the failure of 1569?
- Confiscated by the Crown
- Enlarged
- Sold to France