The North Riding of Yorkshire is a
subdivision of
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
, England, alongside
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
, 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 a
lieutenancy area, having been previously part of the
Yorkshire lieutenancy. Each riding was treated as a county for many purposes, such as
quarter sessions. An administrative county, based on the riding, was created with a
county council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.
Ireland
The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irela ...
in 1889 under the
Local Government Act 1888. In 1974 both the administrative county and the North Riding of Yorkshire lieutenancy were abolished, replaced in most of the riding by the
non-metropolitan county and lieutenancy of
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four co ...
.
History
Archives from 1808 record that the "north-riding of York-shire" had once consisted of "fifty-one lordships" owned by
Robert the Bruce
Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventuall ...
. During the
English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I (" Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of r ...
, the North Riding predominantly supported the
royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gov ...
cause, while other areas of Yorkshire tended to support the
parliamentarians.
Governance and administration
The County of York, North Riding administrative county was formed in 1889. In 1894 it was divided into municipal boroughs, urban districts and rural districts under the
Local Government Act 1894
The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...
.
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the ...
had already been incorporated as a
municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
in 1853 and formed a
county borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent te ...
, exempt from county council control, from 1889. Richmond and
Scarborough had been incorporated as municipal boroughs in 1835, with
Thornaby-on-Tees added in 1892.
The
urban district
Urban district may refer to:
* District
* Urban area
* Quarter (urban subdivision)
* Neighbourhood
Specific subdivisions in some countries:
* Urban districts of Denmark
* Urban districts of Germany
* Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (his ...
s in 1894 were
Eston, Guisborough, Hinderwell, Kirkleatham,
Kirklington cum Upsland, Loftus, Malton, Masham, Northallerton, Pickering, Redcar,
Saltburn and Marske by the Sea
Saltburn, Marske and New Marske is a civil parish in Redcar and Cleveland in north-east England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 18,325 increasing to 19,134 at the 2011 census. As its name suggests, the parish includes ...
, Scalby, Skelton and Brotton and
Whitby
Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Cl ...
. In 1922 Redcar was incorporated as a borough.
The
rural district
Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the a ...
s in 1894 were Aysgarth,
Bedale
Bedale ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the district of Hambleton, North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, it is north of Leeds, south-west of Middlesbrough and south-west of the county town o ...
,
Croft, Easingwold,
Flaxton, Guisborough, Helmsley, Kirkby Moorside, Leyburn, Malton, Masham,
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the ...
, Northallerton, Pickering, Reeth, Richmond, Scarborough,
Startforth
Startforth is a village on the Pennines end of south Teesdale, England. The population of Startforth taken at the 2011 Census was 1,361. It is historically located in the North Riding of Yorkshire, but along with the rest of the former Startfort ...
,
Stokesley, Thirsk,
Wath Wath may refer to:
Places in England
* Wath, Cumbria, a U.K. location
* Wath (near Ripon), a village in Harrogate district, North Yorkshire
* Wath, Ryedale, a village in North Yorkshire
* Wath-in-Nidderdale
Wath, sometimes known as Wath-in ...
and
Whitby
Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Cl ...
.
County Review Order
The Local Government Act 1929 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that made changes to the Poor Law and local government in England and Wales.
The Act abolished the system of poor law unions in England and Wales and their board ...
s reduced the number of urban and rural districts in the county:
*Hinderwell urban district was absorbed by Whitby rural district in 1932
*A new Saltburn and Marske by the Sea urban district was formed from Saltburn by the Sea urban district and part of Guisborough rural district. the remainder of Guisborough RD passed to Loftus urban district and Whitby rural district in 1932
*Kirklington cum Upsland urban district was absorbed by Bedale rural district in 1934
*Masham urban district was redesignated as Masham rural district in 1934
In 1968 a new
Teesside county borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent te ...
was created, taking in
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the ...
and parts of the administrative areas of Durham and North Riding councils. From the North Riding came the Redcar Borough and Saltburn-Marske Urban District, Thornaby-on-Tees Borough (formerly part of the Stokesley's rural district) and Eston's urban district. Tees-Side also included parts north of the
River Tees historically in Durham. The area was associated with the North Riding for lieutenancy and other purposes.
Sub-cultural area
In 1974 the North Riding authorities were abolished. The majority of its former area became part of a
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four co ...
administrative area. This area includes a northern part of the
West Riding as well as the northern and western parts of the pre-1974
East Riding. Land in and around the former Teesside county borough became part of
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the United States, U.S. U.S. state, state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along ...
county.
In 1996, Cleveland county was abolished with Middlesbrough, Redcar-and-Cleveland and a part of the Stockton district assigned to the North Yorkshire lieutenancy, becoming known as a similarly named conurbation to the previous county borough called Teesside. The
City of York borough also became a unitary authority. The former Startforth Rural District (remaining land south of the Tees) is the only part of the North Riding outside of the North Yorkshire lieutenancy since 1974, under
County Durham Council area and until 2009 in areas
Teesdale district.
The North Riding is now represented by all of
Hambleton,
Richmondshire,
Ryedale
Ryedale is a non-metropolitan district in North Yorkshire, England. It is in the Vale of Pickering, a low-lying flat area of land drained by the River Derwent. The Vale's landscape is rural with scattered villages and towns. It has been in ...
,
Scarborough,
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the ...
,
Redcar and Cleveland. It is also represented by parts of
Harrogate
Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa ...
,
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees, often simply referred to as Stockton, is a market town in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, England. It is on the northern banks of the River Tees, part of the Teesside built-up area. The town had an estimat ...
,
City of York and
County Durham
County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...
council area.
The principal towns of the cultural and historic riding are
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the ...
,
Redcar
Redcar is a seaside town on the Yorkshire Coast in the Redcar and Cleveland unitary authority in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It is located east of Middlesbrough.
The Teesside built-up area's Redcar subdivision had a populatio ...
,
Whitby
Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Cl ...
,
Scarborough and
Northallerton.
Proposed resurrection of name
On three occasions a re-use of the name of the North Riding for local government purposes has been considered. During the
1990s UK local government reform
The structure of local government in the United Kingdom underwent large changes in the 1990s. The system of two-tier local government introduced in the 1970s by the Local Government Act 1972 and the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 was aboli ...
, the
Banham Commission suggested uniting
Richmondshire,
Hambleton,
Ryedale
Ryedale is a non-metropolitan district in North Yorkshire, England. It is in the Vale of Pickering, a low-lying flat area of land drained by the River Derwent. The Vale's landscape is rural with scattered villages and towns. It has been in ...
and
Scarborough districts in a new
unitary authority
A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
called North Riding of Yorkshire. Later, the government proposed renaming the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire the North Riding of Yorkshire. This was deemed inappropriate and rejected, after a "chorus of disapprobation".
During a further local government review in the 2000s as part of the preparations for the
regional assembly referendums, a unitary authority with the name North Riding of Yorkshire, consisting of Richmondshire, Hambleton, Ryedale and Scarborough was again suggested. However, the Commission withdrew this in favour or two unitary authorities, one for Hambleton and Richmondshire, the other for Ryedale and Scarborough.
Ancient divisions
Unlike most counties in England, which were divided anciently into
hundreds, Yorkshire was divided first into three
ridings and then into numerous
wapentake
A hundred is an administrative division that is geographically part of a larger region. It was formerly used in England, Wales, some parts of the United States, Denmark, Southern Schleswig, Sweden, Finland, Norway, the Bishopric of Ösel–Wiek, ...
s within each riding. Within the North Riding of Yorkshire there were thirteen wapentakes in total, as follows:
Wapentakes
See also
*
List of Lord Lieutenants of the North Riding
*
List of High Sheriffs of North Yorkshire
*
Custos Rotulorum of the North Riding of Yorkshire – List of Keepers of the Rolls
References
External links
Map of the North Riding of Yorkshireon Wikishire
Information on the North Riding of Yorkshireon I'm From Yorkshire
{{DEFAULTSORT:North Riding Of Yorkshire
History of local government in Yorkshire
Geography of North Yorkshire
History of North Yorkshire
Local government in North Yorkshire
Yorkshire, North Riding