York is a special place. This is not just a biased view based on local pride – visitors from around the world marvel at what York has to offer. But what makes the city ‘special’, and so different to other towns and cities in Britain?
On the face of it there are comparatively few structures of outstanding architectural significance. What makes the city special is the rich tapestry of buildings throughout the ages. Its Roman, Medieval, Georgian, Victorian and modern influences combine to form a unique blend of shapes and colours in which every period of Britain’s history is represented.
Unlike Georgian Bath or Victorian Leeds, York is not a “one-age” city. As the English architect Patrick Nuttgens commented
“There is no other city in Britain more capable of illustrating the history of the country at large, both in terms of its absorbing past or its promise for the future.”
This is evident as you drive in to York. As used to be common in many historic towns, the drive into the city from almost any direction is like a trip through architectural history. As you enter the outskirts, you encounter post-war and inter-war housing. Closer to the centre are the grand Edwardian houses, Victorian villas, Regency and Georgian buildings, all culminating at one of the medieval city gates or bars.
Within the city walls, is a unique patchwork quilt of rooftops, alleyways and streetscapes, dominated by the Minster rising magnificently above the city. Then there is the city below ground:
“quite simply Britain’s largest, deepest, most important and best-preserved urban archaeological site.”
As former York University vice-chancellor Sir Ron Cooke noted in his campaign for preserving the city
“York as a whole is a mirror of British history and architecture. It is a special community, one whose evolution is exceptionally well-recorded.”
The history of Britain – the Romans, the Vikings, anti-Semitic riots, the purges of Henry VIII, the Civil War, the enlightenment, the birth of science, the development of trade and transport – all are to be found “written …in the physical fabric for all to see and enjoy,” Sir Ron says.
York is a vibrant cultural community enriched by the social schemes of the Rowntree’s foundation, the church, the army, the railways, York’s merchant and manufacturing past, the University and millions of visitors from across the world. As a result, York punches well above its weight in the arts, culture and educational institutions.
York has also pioneered conservation of heritage buildings. As long ago as 1596, Clifford’s Tower was saved from demolition by public outcry. Possibly the most important campaign was won in the 19th century when the City’s Walls were saved from demolition. William Etty, a well known English artist and son of the city, led the campaign, and a statue is now dedicated to his memory in Exhibition Square, outside the Art Gallery / Bootham Bar. In the 1950s the renovation of Shambles was among the first local-authority-led urban conservation schemes in the country. In the 1960s York was selected as one of four English towns (along with Bath, Chester and Chichester) for detailed conservation studies. Now in the 21st century, York is seeking recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site which would raise the profile of the city even further, delivering economic and social benefits to the city. If awarded the World Heritage status, York would become only the 3rd city in the UK to have this status after Bath and Edinburgh.
Other heritage sites in the UK include:
• Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd
• Durham Castle and Cathedral
• Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast
• Ironbridge Gorge
• St Kilda
• Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites
• Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey
• Blenheim Palace
• City of Bath
• Hadrian’s Wall
• Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey and Saint Margaret’s Church
• Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine’s Abbey, and St Martin’s Church
• Tower of London
• Old and New Towns of Edinburgh
• Maritime Greenwich
• Heart of Neolithic Orkney
• Blaenavon Industrial Landscape
• Derwent Valley Mills
• Dorset and East Devon Coast
• New Lanark
• Saltaire
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
• Liverpool – Maritime Mercantile City
Source: http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/archive/2004/12/08/York+Archive/7873528.Save_our_fair_city/
