Whitby, Eskdale and the Old Cleveland Coast
Above: Whitby courtesy of The N orthern Echo
WHITBY - ST HILDA AND THE SYNOD
Whitby in Yorkshire also has links with North Eastern England north of the River Tees. Before Viking settlement fell upon Yorkshire, Whitby lay within the Kingdom of Northumbria and was the site of an Anglo-Saxon abbey founded in 657 A.D. The abbey stood on the site now occupied by Whitby's ruinous Norman abbey overlooking the River Esk and was dedicated to a Northumbrian princess called St Hilda, who moved here from Hartlepool and was the first abbess. In later years the abbey was destroyed by the Vikings who raided Whitby in 870 A.D.
Vikings eventually became peaceful settlers at Whitby calling it `Hviteby' - `the White Town' In 664 A.D Whitby abbey had been the setting for the Synod of Whitby , an important meeting held to decide if the people of Northumbria should adhere to Celtic or Roman teachings of Christianity. The meeting was chaired by Oswy, King of Northumbria, who listened to the arguments of St Wilfrid (of Ripon and Hexham) and St Colman who spoke respectively for the Roman and Celtic causes. In the end it was St Wilfrid's highly persuasive oratory skills that won the support of King Oswy and determined the outcome of the synod. The Celtic christianity introduced by St Aidan thirty years before was abandoned in favour of Roman practices. Roman Catholocism thus became the primary religion of northern England for centuries to come.
CAEDMON : THE SAINTLY POET OF WHITBY
In the time of St Hilda, Whitby was the home of an Anglo-Saxon called Caedmon who has been described as the man "who laid the first great temple of English poetry". Caedmon was originally an illiterate cow herder with an embarrasing inability to sing and according to legend his problem was such that he would hide away in a cow shed while his working friends entertained each other with music and singing.
One evening while hiding in the shed Caedmon fell into a deep sleep and dreamt that an angel sent from heaven taught him how to sing. The following morning Caedmon awoke to discover that his dream had come true and that he now had a marvellous gift for singing phrases from the testament in the form of verse. St Hilda, the abbess of Whitby, was greatly pleased with Caedmon's discovery and encouraged him to utilise his talent in spreading the word of God.
Eskdale is a beautiful valley with a name that probably goes back to Viking times. Indeed many of the names in the valley are Viking. These include Ainthorpe a place near Danby which signifies a small Viking farm or 'thorpe', that was isolated or 'on its own'. The name means one thorpe or 'lonely farm'. Danby itself is also a Viking name meaning village of the Danes. The name Goathland may mean Goda's land - again, probably Viking name, but Grosmont is Norman French and means 'big hill'. These last two places are closely associated with the famous North York Moors Railway - a preseved steam railway. A train journey is one of the best ways for seeing the magnificent scenery hereabouts.
STAITHES : CAPTAIN COOK'S COAST
Staithes, situated in a deep narrow creek formed by the Roxby Beck which cuts its way through the steep cliffs ten miles north of Whitby, is undoubtedly one of the prettiest coastal villages in England. Originally it was settled by the Vikings who gave the village its name which means `The Landing Place' but romantics argue that the village owes its origins to a French shipwreck whose survivors settled ashore. Staithes is very popular with visitors who come primarily for the excellent scenery. Perhaps some also come in search of the headless ghost of a young girl who reputedly haunts the coast hereabouts.
More often than not visitors to Staithes are on the trail of Captain James Cook (See also Middlesbrough) who worked at Staithes as a boy apprenticed to a local grocer. It was here at Statithes that he acquired the love of the sea that set him on course for his long and eventful career. Indeed upon leaving Staithes Cook headed straight for Whitby and from 1775 he worked for a Whitby shipowner employed on colliers shipping coals from the River Tyne to London.
Cook's knowledge of the sea went from strength to strength and upon joining the navy he quickly progressed to the rank of Captain. In his voyages as Captain many important discoveries of new land were made in journeys that took him to Australia, New Zealand, Alaska, Tahiti and Hawaii, where he eventually lost his life on the 14th February 1779 after a disagreement between local tribesmen and members of his crew.
Above Staithes Courtesy of The N orthern Echo
VIKINGS AND SMUGGLERS ON CLEVELAND'S CLIFFLAND COAST.
Cleveland is an ancient district of Yorkshire with a name that literally means `Cliffland' - a reference to the coastal cliffs of the area. In fact the cliffs at Boulby to the north of Staithes are 679 feet high, which makes them the highest on the whole eastern coast of England. Their rugged recesses once provided shelter for smugglers who were especially active on the Cleveland coast during the eighteenth century.
The steeple of a nearby church was one of the places where illicit kegs of wine, gin and whisky were once hid. Smuggling was a highly profitable business and was once a common activity on the coasts of Northumberland, Durham and North Yorkshire. The naturally secluded shelters of Cleveland's cliffland coast once frequented by the smugglers may have been used in even earlier times by Viking longships, as the Vikings seem to have settled this area in particularly large numbers. We know this from the evidence of Viking place names which are abundant in the area. Examples include Skinningrove, Carlin Howe and Loftus meaning `Skinner's Pit' `Witch's Hill' and `House with a Loft'.
SALTBURN-BY-THE SEA - VICTORIAN RESORT AND ROMAN WATCHTOWER
Saltburn to the north of Boulby was an important Victorian bathing resort and we are reminded of this by the presence of the North East's only pleasure pier which juts out 600 feet from Saltburn beach. Originally the pier was 1400 ft long but its length was severely reduced during a storm in 1924 when it was rammed by a ship called theOvenberg. Another intriguing feature related to Saltburn's role as a Victorian resort lies directly above the pier where we find the oldest working water balanced inclined tramway in Britain.
Dating from the 1870s this was specially designed to transport visitors back and forth from Saltburn town to the pier and beach. Although the town's most obvious features are of Victorian origin, its history goes back much further as we know that in the thirteenth century it was inhabited by a hermit and in even earlier Roman times it was the site of a fortified Roman signalling station.
The earthworks of this fort are situated on Hunt Cliff, a vertical sea cliff 365 ft above sea level, a mile to the east of Saltburn. Huntcliff was one of a number of Roman signalling stations situated along the Yorkshire coast which were built as watchtowers against the threat of Anglo-Saxon raids from Denmark and Germany, It was eventually overrun by the raiders in the fourth century A.D. when its occupants were murdered and reputedly dumped in a nearby well.
ENGLAND'S SMALLEST CHURCH AND THE OLDEST LIFEBOAT
Redcar (See also Middlesbrough for more information on Redcar) began as a little fishing village which grew as a coastal resort in the nineteenth century with the extension of the railway to here from Teesside. Like Saltburn, Redcar is still frequented by day trippers in search of the scent of the sea but the biggest attraction is undoubtedly the Race Course around which the town seems to encircle.
The town of Redcar is less known as the home of the world's oldest lifeboat called the Zetland which is displayed in the museum of that name in King Street. It was built around 1810 by Henry Greathead of South Shields and originally worked at Spurn Head until it was bought by Redcar fisherman in 1802. The Zetland was built twenty years after the first ever lifeboat which was also built at South Shields.
Before we leave the old Cleveland coast to cross the Tees to Hartlepool we must make mention of the village of Upleatham on the Guisborough to Marske road south of Redcar. Here we find St Andrew's, a church measuring 17 feet 9 inches by thirteen feet. It is reputedly the smallest church in England.
INDUSTRY AND WILDLIFE AT THE MOUTH OF THE TEES
To the north of Redcar is Teesmouth (See also Middlesbrough), one of Britain's most industrialised river estuaries with a dramatic and seemingly endless landscape of chimneys and `space age' towers. Compared to the mouth of the River Tees, the industries of the River Tyne and Wear seem almost insignificant.
Most notable of the industrial plants at Teesmouth, are the giant chemical complexes, the oil refineries, the steel works and a power station at Seaton Carew, to the north of the river. Despite the heavy industry, the area is surprisingly important for its wildlife and the partly industrialised Seal Sands on the north bank of the Tees are the Winter home to thousands of wildfowl and waders. Seals may also be regularly seen `basking' in their man made surroundings. Seal sands are only half their original size having been largely reclaimed for the site of an oil refinery and chemical works.
