East Riddlesden Hall

East Riddlesden Hall is a Grade I listed building that overlooks the River Aire in Keighley, West Yorkshire that has origins dating back to the 7th Century. Much of the structure you can see today dates from the 17th Century, although there is a spectacular Medieval Tithe Barn that is in remarkable condition.

While there is no physical evidence of the buildings, archaeological evidence suggests that there has been a dwelling on the site since the 7th Century. Indeed, a Saxon cross was found on the estate and is now on display in the Great Hall. The first stone-built structures were constructed during the ownership of the de Montalt family, who were the owners between 1125 and 1400.

In 1400 the ownership passed to the Paslew family who expanded the estate and built a new farmhouse in 1466 adjacent to the earlier hall. It was the Murgatroyd family, however, who really defined East Riddlesden Hall with a massive rebuilding programme, following their purchase of the estate in 1638 for £6,000.

James Murgatroyd was a textile merchant from Halifax who had made his fortune in the woollen cloth trade and between 1642 and 1648 he undertook the transformation of the modest medieval dwelling into a grand, flamboyant manor house with a Great Hall linking to a new two storey block that included two distinctive 'Yorkshire Rose' windows. His Royalist leanings are also in evidence through carvings of King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria.

The family however, were as notorious as they were rich! They had a reputation for being profane and debauched and legend has it the River Aire was so ashamed of the family, it changed its course to be further away from the house! Disputes and declining fortunes saw their association with East Riddlesden Hall end in 1653, when the estate was mortgaged to Edmund Starkie, before he finally took full ownership in 1708.

By the 19th Century the Starkie line had ended and the hall passed to absentee landlords and was occupied by tenant farmers and working-class families, the last of which to live there were the Bailey family. Throughout this period the house fell into disrepair, in 1905 the Starkie Wing was demolished except for the façade which remains today and in 1913 many of the internal fittings and fireplaces were stripped out and sold.

In 1933 the fortunes of the estate changed when two local brothers, William and John Brigg, saved the hall from being purchased for demolition and also tracked down many of the sold of fixtures and fittings. In 1934 they donated East Riddlesden Hall to the National Trust who have looked after it since.

One of the most spectacular features of the estate, apart from the gardens which were lovely in early autumn when we visited, is the Medieval Tithe Barn. It features a 120-foot-long oak roof, which is supported by some huge posts! It is considered one of the best examples of such a barn in Northern England. It would have been used to house grain and livestock such as the famous 'Airedale Heifer' which was a prize-winning cow from the 19th Century that apparently weighed over a ton and was a local celebrity. There is a painting of it in the house and to be frank, it's a strange looking beast!

The Hall is reputed to be one of the most haunted houses in Yorkshire with the Grey Lady being its most famous former resident. If you think the hall looks familiar and you haven't previously visited, that may be down to it appearing in a number of TV shows, including two adaptations of Wuthering Heights, the BBC series Gunpowder and Sharpe's Justice starring chief Yorkshireman, Sean Bean!