Kirby Knowle is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

Hambleton District Hambleton is a local government district in North Yorkshire, England. The administrative centre is Northallerton, and the district includes the outlying towns and villages of Bedale, Thirsk, Great Ayton, Stokesley, and Easingwold. The dist ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, England, on the border of the North Yorkshire Moors and near

Upsall Upsall is a hamlet in and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately four miles north-east of Thirsk. Upsall is part of the Upsall and Roxby estates owned by the Turton family. The populat ...

, about 4 miles north-east of

Thirsk Thirsk is a market town and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England known for its racecourse; quirky yarnbomber displays, and depiction as local author James Herriot's fictional Darrowby. History Archeological fin ...

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

part of the

North Riding of Yorkshire The North Riding of Yorkshire is a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point is at Mickle Fell with 2,585 ft (788 metres). From the Restoration it was used as ...

, the population of the civil parish was estimated at 60 in 2014. In the 2011 census the population of Kirby Knowle was included with

Cowesby Cowesby is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England. Part of the village including The Cowesby Hall Estate is within the North York Moors National Park and about north of Thirsk. The population of the c ...

parish and not counted separately.

History

The village is mentioned in the ''

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

'' as ''Chirchebi'' in the ''Yalestre'' hundred. The lands were in the possession of ''Orm, son of Gamal'', but passed to ''Hugh , son of Baldric'' after the Norman invasion. The lands became the possession of Robert de Mowbray who granted tenancy to Baldwin le Wake and then to the Upsall family, eventually passing to the Lascelles family. The Lascelles built a castle here in the 13th century which burnt down in 1568. During this time the manor was in the hands of the Constable family. The Constables were Catholics and were dispossessed of the manor after the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. A mile to the west of the village is Kirby Knowle Castle, a 17th-century house altered in the 19th century. An earlier house on the site belonged to Joseph Constable. He was a Catholic recusant and was arrested in the house on 6 March 1597 after a search was made of secret hiding places and underground passages.

Governance

The village is within the Thirsk and Malton UK Parliament constituency. It lies within the Whitestonecliffe ward of Hambleton District Council and Thirsk electoral division of North Yorkshire County Council. The parish shares a grouped parish council, known as Hillside Parish Council, with the civil parishes of

Boltby Boltby is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England. It is on the edge of the North York Moors National Park at , and about north-east of Thirsk. According to the 2011 census, it had a population of 143 ...

Felixkirk Felixkirk is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England. The village is situated about three miles north-east of Thirsk. The population of the civil parish was estimated at 100 in 2014. History The vill ...

and

Geography

The nearest settlements are

to the west;

to the south;

to the south-east and

to the north. The 1881 UK Census recorded the population as 114. The 2001 UK Census recorded the population as 68 of which 59 were over the age of sixteen years and of these 35 were in employment. There were 33 dwellings of which 24 were detached.

Religion

There is a church in the village dedicated to

St Wilfrid Wilfrid ( – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Francia, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and ...

. It is a Grade II listed building, rebuilt in 1873 on the site of the original.

References

External links

Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire {{Hambleton-geo-stub