Researchers throw new light on dark period of hall’s past

Visitors got an opportunity to enjoy afternoon tea while taking in the beauty of Markenfield Hall.

There was a chance for people to take a guided tour of the hall followed by a delicious afternoon tea at the hall near Ripon.

This year is an exciting one for Markenfield, as ongoing research by The Friends of Markenfield Archive and Study Groups has revealed previously unknown documents held by an American University that could re-write the hall’s history books.

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The discovery, which is being translated from medieval Latin, relates to the fate of the hall after its confiscation from the Markenfield family for treason following The Rising of the North in 1569.

It was previously thought it was simply handed over to Queen Elizabeth’s chancellor, but the discovery of the original Elizabethan letter patent at the University of California, Berkeley, has turned this assumption on its head. Ian Curteis, of Markenfield Hall said yesterday: “It has been a long standing belief that the hall was confiscated and then all but abandoned to tenants.

“It was presumed that this was why the hall remains so complete an example of a moated, medieval manor house – but this is clearly now not the case. This discovery sheds light on a dark period of the hall’s history and we are so grateful to The Friends for their research.”

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