Yorkshire
Above: The Grand Départ of the Tour de France 2014 will set off from Leeds on 5 July and pass through some of Yorkshire's most historically significant places, from the ancient town of Addingham, which appeared in the Domesday Book, to the hometown of the Brontë sisters
1699, this exquisite venue is like being transported back to an earlier time. It all starts from the moment you drive up to the entrance to unload your luggage, which sort of feels like you’ve come to visit your rich aristocratic cousin for the weekend. Guests can choose between sumptuous bedrooms in the main house or a little more homeliness and privacy in one of the courtyard apartments down the lane. If you need to unwind further then you can make use of the spa facilities housed in two Edwardian properties opposite. For a real piece of living history, take a ride on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, which sets off from Pickering. Jump on board for a pleasant steam train ride through rural villages in its cosy wood-panelled carriages, or book a dining car for a more luxurious trip. Step off at one of the stations en route for a trek through wind-swept moors that the Brontë sisters would have approved of, or stay on all the way to the coast at Whitby to see an altogether different side of Yorkshire at the seaside town, which incidentally inspired Bram Stoker to write his epic novel Dracula. The Grand Départ of the Tour de France 2014 – the world’s largest annual sporting event – will race through the spectacular Yorkshire countryside on 5 and 6 July, with the first leg taking in much of the west and the north of the county and the second leg
setting off from York and racing through the Peak District. The race will weave some of the region’s biggest attractions, from Harewood House, a magnificent 18th century stately home that is the family residence of the Earl and Countess of Harewood, to the village of Addingham, which appeared in the Domesday Book as Ediham. This name may have meant ‘home of Edi’, in reference to the Earl Edwin of Bolton Abbey, one of the monasteries later dissolved by Henry VIII. Interestingly, the abbey is thought to be the inspiration behind William Wordsworth’s poem The White Doe of Rylstone. The historic spa town of Ilkley, part of the first day’s route, is where you’ll find some of Yorkshire’s finest tea rooms, while West Tanfield was famously sketched by Turner during his grand tour of Yorkshire in 1816. On the second day of the race the spotlight will deservedly be on the Peak District National Park, a magical land of meadows, leafy forests and pretty moorland. Langsett, known in medieval times as Penisale, is a pretty village in the heart of South Yorkshire, and the perfect place to take in the splendid views.
ILLUSTRATION: © ScOTT jeSSOp
From the moment you arrive it feels as though you’ve come to stay with your rich, aristocratic cousin for the weekend
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britain
Go to the BRITAIN website at www.britain-magazine.com/yorkshire to discover more about this fascinating region in the north of the country www.britain-magazine.com