The
lovely, picturesque Village of Sledmere nestles quietly in the rolling
hills of the Yorkshire Wolds and can be found situated between Driffield
and Malton on the B1251 road.
The Village is famous for its stately home Sledmere House, owned
and lived in by Sir Tatton SYKES, 8th Baronet giving it that "lived
in" feeling that sadly, most stately homes lack. The house
is exquisitely decorated inside and houses a fine collection of
antique furniture, beautiful pottery and many a fine painting. The
library boasts an extensive collection of rare books and is decorated
in modern colours of blue and lemon with delicate artwork in the
ceiling with 22 ct. gold plate.
The Roman Catholic Chapel attached to the house also has a most
beautiful ceiling painted by Tom ERRINGTON. The artwork took four
years to complete and depicts the four winged creatures of the Evangelist
in the Chancel and in the Nave, a variety of birds including a swan,
heron, swallow and lapwing.
The house itself is stood in acres of beautiful gardens and parkland
with well maintained gardens, an 18th Century walled garden with
roses that smell like a dream, a pond complete with fish and fountains
and a lovely view across acres of open space where deer can be found
grazing which complete this beautiful tranquil setting.
Sledmere Monument is a stone monument standing 120 feet high along
the B1251 on Garton hill and is visible on the sky line for miles
around. The monument was built in memory of the 4th Baronet, Sir
Tatton SYKES by his friends and neighbours in 1865. The inscription
reads, "Erected to the memory of Sir Tatton SYKES Baronet by
those who loved him as a friend and honoured him as a landlord".
A heavy wooden door at the base of the monument leads to a spiral
staircase leading to a small chamber at the top from which on a
clear day a panoramic view of the Wolds can be taken in.
Many of the houses in the peaceful village are owned by Sledmere
Estate who have their offices here also. Many of the villagers are
employed on the estate in one form or another. The houses are all
very characteristic, from the terraced rows on Top Row and Bottom
Row to the rows of semi detached cottages with their window boxes
and planters completing the picture of the whole village partaking
in being one beautiful English cottage garden.
The Village Church is St. Mary's which stands serenely in the shadow
of the House. There has been a church on that site since Norman
times. Some of the stone work in the present tower dates back to
the 14th Century.
The Church interior has many elaborate carvings by John BARKER,
a celebrated sculpture of the 19th Century. The magnificent carvings
on the interior and exterior of St. Mary's makes it well worth a
visit.
Situated opposite the Church gates is the Eleanor Cross. Built in
1895 by Temple Moore the cross was built to mark the resting places
of Eleanor of Castile, the wife of Edward 1 who died in Warby, Nottinghamshire
in 1290. The monuments commemorate the resting places of her body
as she travelled to London for burial. Charing Cross marks the end
of her journey. Originally built as an ornament it was converted
in 1919 to a memorial for those local to the village who lost their
lives in the 1914 war.
Nearby stands The Wagoner's
Memorial. Carved in stone it is a monument to the Yorkshire men
who lost their lives in the war 1914 - 1919. The inscription reads,
"Lieutenant Colonel Sir Mark SYKES Baronet MP designed this
monument and set it up as a remembrance of the calling and services
rendered in the great war 1914 - 1919 by the Wolds
Wagoners Reserve A corps of 1000 drivers raised by him on the
Yorkshire Wolds Farms in the year 1912".
Also found in the Village outside the main gates to the house is
the village well, now covered by a rotunda that is made up of eight
stone columns holding up the domed top. The inscription reads "This
edifice was erected by Sir Tatton SYKES Bart in the memory of his
father Sir Christopher SYKES Bart who by assiduity and perseverance
in building and planting and enclosing of the Yorkshire Wolds in
the short space of thirty years set such an example to other owners
of the land as has caused what was once a bleak and barren tract
of country to become now one of the most productive and best cultivated
districts in the county of York AD 1840".
The serene beauty of the buildings that make up the village and
the marvellous surroundings in which it finds itself in make Sledmere
one of the most picturesque and tranquil places to visit in the
Yorkshire Wolds.
© Karen
Thompson 2000-2005
 
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| Sledmere
House,
East Yorkshire's Premier Stately Home |
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| The
Magnificent Library
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| The
Turkish Room
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| The
Wolds Wagoners Memorial
(Forum
Link - Click Here!)
ÓMSH
1999
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| The
beautiful exterior carvings at
St Mary's Church
ÓMSH
1999 |
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