Coxwold

History

The village name is derived from Saxon words Cuc, meaning cry and valt, meaning wood.

The village is mentioned in the Domesday Book as part of the Yalestre hundred by the name of Cucvalt. The lord of the manor at the time of the Norman invasion was Kofse, but passed to Hugh, son of Baldric and thence to Roger de Mowbray. Before 1158, the manor and lands of Coxwold passed to Thomas Colville. In return for the lands, Thomas had to swear allegiance to Roger de Mowbray. Thomas de Colville’s estate included the manors of Yearsley, Coxwold and Oulston as well as other properties and land in York, Thirsk, Everley, Nunwick, Kilburn and Upsland. The Colville shield is proudly displayed at one of the roof intersections in the twelfth century Norman church at Coxwold.

Successive generations of Colvilles held the estate and lands of Coxwold until 1405 when Thomas Colville viii was murdered, probably at the instruction of Richard le Scrope Archbishop of York, who, in turn, was acting on behalf of Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland. The bulk of the Coxwold estate was then granted to the Uhtred-Neville family.

While in possession of the Coxwold estate, the Colville family gave generous grants to Byland Abbey and Newburgh Priory but, at the turn of the fourteenth century, there were some disputes between the monks of Newburgh Priory and the Colvilles over rights to land around Coxwold.

In 1304 Sir Thomas Colville v started a tradition of a weekly market to be held in the grounds of the manor of Coxwold. He also established a two-day annual fair to celebrate the Assumption, a tradition that survived uninterrupted in Coxwold Manor for some five hundred years.

Sir Thomas Colville vii (of Yearsley and Coxwold) became famous following a jousting incident before the Battle of Crecy in 1346 when he crossed the river to joust with a French knight who had been hurling abuse at the English king. He later joined the retinue of John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster who was the third son of Edward III and by far the richest noble in England.

At one time, the village had a station on the Thirsk and Malton Line. It opened on 19 May 1853, but closed on 7 August 1964 as part of the reorganisation of the national railway system. In 1603, Sir John Harte, who was born in nearby Kilburn, North Yorkshire, built a Grammar School in the village, which closed in 1894. He was also a Lord Mayor of London.

Governance

Coxwold lies within the Thirsk and Malton UK Parliament constituency. It is part of the Stillington electoral district of North Yorkshire County Council. It is also within the White Horse ward of Hambleton District Council which returns one councillor.

Geography

The village stands on a slight incline where most of the dwellings are located, with the church at the top of the hill. At the bottom of the hill is the village smithy and an old well. The Fauconberg Arms Inn is located on the main street. The inn bears the arms and motto of Baron Fauconberg and offers accommodation and a restaurant.

According to the 1881 UK Census, the population was 313. The 2001 UK Census put the population at 185. The census recorded that of that population 161 were over the age of sixteen and of those, 92 were in employment.

The nearest settlements to Coxwold are Husthwaite 1.6 miles (2.6 km) to the south-west; Carlton Husthwaite 2.4 miles (3.9 km) to the west; Kilburn 2 miles (3.2 km) to the north-west; Wass 1.7 miles (2.7 km) to the north-east and Oulston 1.6 miles (2.6 km) to the south south-east.

Green's Beck runs south-westwards through the village to join Mill Beck to form Elphin Beck to eventually flow into the River Swale.

Education

The village had a local Primary School from 1863 until 1974. The village is within the primary education catchment area of Husthwaite Church of England School, and within the secondary education catchment area of Easingwold School.

Religion

Since 700 AD, Coxwold has had a church on the site at the top of the hill. The present church was built in 1420 in the Perpendicular style with an unusual octagonal west tower and is dedicated to St Michael. The chancel features a unique tongue-shaped communion rail (early 18th century). Rev. Sterne was appointed vicar in 1760.

Notable residents

The Rev. Laurence Sterne lived at Shandy Hall from 1760 to 1768, and the house was named by him. Shandy Hall is located on Thirsk Bank at the north-western end of the village and was originally built in 1430 as a parsonage for Coxwold's village priest. It is a small brick building, with a mossy, stone-covered roof, wide gables, and massive chimney-stacks. It was originally a timber-framed, open-hall house but was considerably altered in the 17th century. The stone tablet above its doorway states that Sterne wrote Tristram Shandy and A Sentimental Journey at Shandy Hall. This is not entirely accurate, for two (of the nine) volumes of Tristram Shandy had already been published in 1759 before Sterne moved to Coxwold.

Notable buildings

To the south of the village is Newburgh Priory, a Grade I listed stately home built on the site of a former Augustine Priory. The original Priory was built in 1145 by Roger De Mowbray, but fell victim to the Dissolution of the Monasteries carried out by King Henry VIII. The King sold the estate to Anthony de Bellasis, whose family took the name of Fauconberg upon the creation of the Baronetcy. The estate passed to the Wombwell family in 1825 at the end of the male line, and remains in their possession today.

To the north of the village lie the ruins of Byland Abbey, a Grade I listed building, which was founded in the 12th century by Savigniac monks.