The Ainsty or the Ainsty of York was a historic district of Yorkshire, England, west of the city of York. Originally a wapentake or subdivision of the West Riding of Yorkshire it later had a unique status as a rural area controlled by the corporation of the city.
The Ainsty covered an area to the west of York, bounded by three rivers: the Nidd to the north; the Ouse to the east and the Wharfe to the south. [1] The Ainsty was unique among the wapentakes of Yorkshire in that it was not formally included in any Ridings from 1449 until 1836. [1]
Much of the Ainsty consists of floodplain intersected by streams (e.g. Dam Dike, Healaugh Beck, Sike Beck, The Foss) and man-made drainage channels (e.g. Moor Drain). Being low-lying and surrounded by rivers, in mediaeval times it was fenny and prone to flooding, particularly in winter. As a result, villages tend to occupy slight rises, and the settlements of the Ainsty are dispersed with some areas, such as Marston Moor, almost completely devoid of buildings. [2]
The Ainsty is now divided between the City of York and the counties of North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire.
The Ainsty is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 (in the form Ainestig), when it was a wapentake of the West Riding of Yorkshire. It was named from Ainsty Cliff at Bilbrough, [3] presumably the original meeting place of the wapentake. Ainsty Cliff was itself named from a small narrow path which led from Steeton Farm over Ainsty Cliff to Bilbrough. The word Ainsty is from Old English ān stīga, meaning "one-man path" or "narrow path", which became einstigi in Old Norse. [4]
The city of York later claimed jurisdiction over the area under a royal charter of King John granted in the early 13th century. The validity of this charter was a matter of dispute between the city and the Crown, eventually leading to the imprisonment of the mayor in 1280 when it was proved that a clause in the document had been altered. [1] The bailiffs of the city were subsequently able to resume jurisdiction of the wapentake, although it was not formally included in the city when it was created a county of itself in 1396. [1]
In 1449 the Ainsty was annexed to York, with the sheriffs of the city assuming authority. The city, which was said to be "in decay", was granted the "privileges and franchises" of the Ainsty to improve its financial position. In 1463 the mayor and aldermen were made justices of the peace with the commission of oyer and terminer.
Many Ainsty villages have churches with well-preserved Norman (Romanesque) features, e.g. Tockwith, Moor Monkton, Bilton-in-Ainsty, Askham Richard, Askham Bryan, Healaugh, and Wighill. [5] The comparative absence of alteration to these churches after c. 1200 (and of large later churches) suggests that the Ainsty was something of an economic backwater during the later mediaeval period. The area contains the sites of at least two deserted villages: Easedike, just north of Tadcaster on the Wharfe, and Wilstrop on the south bank of the Nidd.
The English Civil War battlefield of Marston Moor (1644) lies within the Ainsty, near Long Marston.
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 reformed the city of York as a municipal borough with effect from 1 January 1836. It was unclear if the reformed corporation still had jurisdiction in the Ainsty. [6] The matter was finally settled by the Municipal Corporation (Boundaries) Act 1836, which came into force in August. Under the legislation the Ainsty was declared to be part of the West Riding for all purposes. [1] When elected county councils were created by the Local Government Act 1888, the Ainsty's inclusion in the West Riding was confirmed.
By the 19th century, the Ainsty had two divisions: the eastern, or York Division, and the western, or Tadcaster Division. [7]
Like other similar subdivisions of counties, although the Ainsty was never formally abolished, it ceased to have any function in the latter half of the 19th century. The former area of the wapentake is now divided between the unitary City of York and the districts of Harrogate and Selby in North Yorkshire.
From 1866 the wapentake comprised the following civil parishes: [8]
The Ainsty gives its name to the Selby and Ainsty parliamentary constituency, first contested at the general election of 2010, [9] and the New Ainsty Deanery of the Church of England. [10]
The Ainsty Bounds Walk is a 44-mile (71 km) footpath around Ainsty. [11]
Ainsty is also the name of a residential area of Wetherby developed in the 1950s, including Ainsty Road, Ainsty Crescent, Ainsty Drive and Ainsty View.
The Ainsty is the name of a public house in the Acomb area of York. [12]
Ainsty also gives its name to Ainsty Court inside Halifax College, a college within the University of York. [13]
Acaster Malbis is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of the City of York, England. It is located on the River Ouse, almost 5 miles (8 km) south of York. Nearby are the villages of Copmanthorpe 2 miles (3.2 km) to the north-west, Bishopthorpe 2 miles to the north and Appleton Roebuck 3.5 miles (6 km) to the south-west. The parish covers an area of about 2,000 acres (810 ha).
Askham Richard is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of City of York in the north of England, 6.5 miles (10.5 km) south-west of York, close to Copmanthorpe, Bilbrough and Askham Bryan. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 351. The village became a Conservation Area in 1975. Nearby is Askham Bryan College of Agriculture.
Copmanthorpe is a village and civil parish in the City of York in the English county of North Yorkshire, 4 miles (6.4 km) south-west of York, west of Bishopthorpe and close to Acaster Malbis, Askham Bryan and Askham Richard. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 4,262, reducing to 4,173 at the 2011 Census.
Selby District was a local government district of North Yorkshire, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in the town of Selby. The district had a population of 83,449 at the 2011 Census. The southernmost district of North Yorkshire, it bordered the City of York unitary authority, the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, the City of Leeds and City of Wakefield districts in West Yorkshire, the City of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, and the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire.
Tadcaster is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England, 15 miles (24 km) north-east of Leeds and 10 miles (16 km) south-west of York.
The A64 is a major road in North and West Yorkshire, England, which links Leeds, York and Scarborough. The A64 starts as the A64(M) ring road motorway in Leeds, then towards York it becomes a high-quality dual carriageway until it is east of the city, where it becomes a single carriageway for most of its route to Scarborough.
Bilton-in-Ainsty is a village in the civil parish of Bilton-in-Ainsty with Bickerton, in North Yorkshire, England. It lies about 4 miles (6 km) east of Wetherby and 8 miles (13 km) west of York. Bilton had a population of 147 in 2006.
Acaster Selby is a village in the former Selby District of North Yorkshire, England. It is part of the joint civil parish with Appleton Roebuck. It is situated about 6 miles (9.7 km) south from York, on the west back of the River Ouse; near the opposite bank is the settlement of Stillingfleet, and 1.3 miles (2.1 km) to the north-west is Appleton Roebuck.
Barkston Ash was a parliamentary constituency centred on the village of Barkston Ash in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It was represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Long Marston is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated on the B1224 road from Wetherby to York, 7 miles (11 km) west of York. The civil parish includes the hamlets of Hutton Wandesley, immediately south of the village of Long Marston, and Angram, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south east of Hutton Wandesley.
Moor Monkton is a village and civil parish in the former Harrogate District of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the River Nidd and 7 miles (11 km) north-west from York city centre.
Wighill is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is near the River Wharfe and 6 miles (9.7 km) east of Wetherby, West Yorkshire. The village has one public house, the White Swan Inn, which reopened in 2009 after a two-year closure.
The Ebor Way is a 70-mile (112 km) long-distance footpath from Helmsley, North Yorkshire to Ilkley, West Yorkshire, via the city of York, England. It takes its name from Eboracum, the Roman name for York.
The Ainsty Bounds Walk is a 44-mile (71 km) long-distance footpath mostly in North Yorkshire, England, with a short section in West Yorkshire. It follows the boundaries of the ancient wapentake of The Ainsty, between the rivers Wharfe, Nidd and Ouse, and passes through the towns of Boston Spa, Wetherby, Moor Monkton, the outskirts of York, and Bolton Percy. As a circular walk it can be walked from any point, but it is considered to start and finish at Tadcaster.
The City of York, officially simply "York", is a unitary authority area with city status in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England.
Healaugh is a village and civil parish in the former Selby District of North Yorkshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 161 in 63 households. The population had increased to 249 at the 2011 census. The village is about three miles north north-east of Tadcaster.
The Leeds and York Railway was a proposed railway line, promoted in the mid 1840s, intended to connect York and Leeds. The line lost a significant promoter, the Manchester and Leeds Railway in 1845/6 as a result of a non-competition arrangement between that company and the York and North Midland Railway.
Wilstrop is a civil parish about 8 miles (13 km) west of York, in the Harrogate district, in the county of North Yorkshire, England. In 2001 the parish had a population of 44, and in 2015 the population was estimated at 60. There is no modern village in the parish. The site of the deserted medieval village of Wilstrop lies near the River Nidd on the northern boundary of the parish.
Wetherby and Easingwold is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament, partly in North Yorkshire and partly in West Yorkshire. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, it was first contested at the 2024 general election.
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| Historic divisions | |
| Geography | |
| History | |
| Culture and heritage | |
Ainsty and City of York | ||
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| Towns and parishes (pre-1832) |  | |
| Castle | ||
