Wharram Percy - A Deserted Medieval Village

Wharram Percy

Was that the beginning of spring last weekend? It was the perfect weather for going out and frollicing about the Yorkshire Wolds. I even got a slight sunburn on my face! We originally set off to look at daffodils in Farndale but twenty minutes into our journey we found out that this winter has been so long that there was nothing to see yet. It made me think that the five layers of clothing I was wearing were totally justified... really! We happened to pass a sign for the deserted medieval village Wharram Percy, which spontaneously turned into our new destination. We’ll have to go to Farndale another time!

There are approximately 3,500 deserted medieval villages in England but Wharram Percy is the most famous and thoroughly studied one. I didn’t know that. In fact, I had never even heard of it until I happened to see the street sign for the first time about a year ago. But apparently between 1950 and 1990 there have been annual archeological excavations at the site.

Wharram Percy in the second half of the 13th century

The Rise and Fall of Wharram Percy

People had been living in the area of Wharram Percy as early as the Bronze Age. The Romans stayed there for a while followed by the Vikings, the Anglo-Saxons and of course the Normans, who are like Vikings but more French. In the 14th and 15th century, Wharram Percy had turned into a thriving medieval village. When I say thriving, I should clarify that the population probably never exceeded 190 people. But these people suddenly disappeared. Now there are many reasons why a village might be deserted: Viking raids, famine, floods or William the Conqueror’s Harrying of the North were typical reasons back then. But Wharram Percy prevailed all of these threats. It even survived the Black Death of 1348/49. It wasn’t the plague or a war mongering ruler that brought Wharram Percy to its knees - it was sheep and man’s love for money. Landowner Baron Hilton evicted the villagers to build more sheep pastures in the late 15th or early 16th century. Quite a disappointingly unspectacular ending for such an ancient settlement!  

St. Martin's Church can look back on over 1,000 years of history

So what’s left?

You can’t see any of the old medieval buildings anymore; all you will find is their outline on the grass. One building did survive all these years, though. St. Martin’s church might not have a roof anymore and bits of the wall are missing but it’s still standing and it still looks a lot like a church. I was surprised to learn that it was still used by villagers from nearby Thixendale until the 1950s.

The area around Wharram Percy was not completely abandoned for centuries. For instance, you'll find a farmhouse from the 19th century right next to the church. It has a railway station sign saying “Wharram” attached to it. It was taken from a nearby railway station during WW II as part of the British anti-invasion preparations. The idea behind it being that taking off all the railway station signs would confuse the Germans if they ever made it to England :D Here’s to hoping not too many English people got confused until they put the signs back up!

Today Wharram Percy is being looked after by English Heritage, who have put up interesting signs about how people lived in this rural, medieval village. There is no entrance fee so you’re free to roam the site as you please :) It’s definitely worth a visit even if you are not overly fond of history. The landscape alone can be rewarding enough.