Here are among top majestic moments across our area...
1. Nunnington Hall, North Yorkshire
The Graham family of Nunnington Hall supported the Jacobite cause and the claim of Charles Edward Stuart, Bonnie Prince Charlie, to the throne.
Stuart relics including a ring containing Bonnie Prince Charlie’s hair while a fragment of a tartan plaid cloak, belonging to the Young Pretender, can be viewed in the Oak Hall as part of Hamilton Collection.
2. Harewood House, near Leeds
A young Princess Victoria visited Harewood House in 1835 shortly before her coronation, the grand country house still lived in by her direct descendent.
Explore its breath-taking Lancelot “Capability” Brown landscape and acres of formal gardens, take tea on the idyllic Terrace or take in the splendour of the State Rooms filled with original Chippendale furniture.
3. The Bay Horse Inn in Goldsborough, near Knaresborough
The inn is now owned by the Oglesby family, three years ago undergoing significant refurbishment. The £380,000 revamp pays homage to the village’s royal connections.
Princess Mary, the only daughter of King George V, lived at Goldsborough from 1922 until 1930 after her marriage to Henry Lascelles.
Their two sons George and Gerald were born at Goldsborough and christened in the estate church. They moved to Harewood House when Henry inherited the earldom.
The pub is decorated with old photos showing Princess Mary and her family at the hall in the 1920s.
Mary’s brother was King George VI, father of our present Queen, who could have visited Goldsborough as a small child.
4. Pontefract Castle
Over the centuries the castle’s importance made it the location of many dark and terrible deeds.
In 1399 King Richard II was captured by his cousin Henry Bolingbroke with his throne taken away from him.
He was imprisoned by the new Henry IV at the castle, where he was thought to have starved to death. This infamous event is immortalised in Shakespeare’s play Richard II.