Bar Walls Of The City Of York

Mikehyms

Wall walkies and Bars 1st December 2008

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A must do if you have time in York - takes around a couple of hours to walk round the lot. York is unusual in that it has kept (most) of the old walls that defended and defined the city. They last played a key part in the Civil War and you can still see some of the damage that caused. Lots of access points (thou not good if you have a mobility problem as the walls were designed for military use). Great views across the city and at various points you can look into city gardens and bits of the Minster that you won't see otherwise.

You pass over or across a number of Bars (not the kind that serve beer) that acted as the entrances to the city. One at Walmgate still has the barbican, portcullis and inner doors that acted like a medieval airport like security system. The Micklegate Bar is one of four main gateways and was a handy place to display the heads of such luminaries Sir Henry Purcey (Hotspur) and Richard, Duke of York. It was only in mid C18 that this habit ended. Monk Bar is the most ornate Bar and was a self-contained fortress with spaces to pour oil and anything else that came to hand over those trying to get in. It also has a small (fee needed) museum devoted to villainous Richard III. Some bars like Bootham Bar sit on what had been part of an to entrance to the Roman fortress. It is said to have a door knocker which anyone from Scotland had to use to get permission from the Lord Mayor to enter the city.

Access to the walls is free and provide a far better view of the city than any tour bus.