Beyond the awesome scale of the medieval castle, these buildings have a rich story to tell about the families that lived there and the communities around them. Taking a second glance at the physical remains is always rewarding, as Leah Goddard found when visiting Middleham and Richmond Castles for the module The Visible Past. Over the course of a few weeks on the Visible Past module, we have been considering how castle studies and scholarship have favoured particular narratives over others when considering the subjects of their investigation. Our class trip to Middleham Castle and Richmond Cas ..read more

Visiting historic sites allows us to experience the sounds, spaces and structures of the medieval past in a special way, inviting new ideas and questions about their significance. At Yorkshire’s monastic sites, it can emphasise connections with nature as well as highlight isolation and the distinct ways faith was demonstrated at these places, as Scarlett Walker found when visiting of Mount Grace Priory and Rievaulx Abbey for the module The Visible Past. As soon as the coach pulled into the car park, the first thing to notice about both Mount Grace Priory and Rievaulx Abbey is th ..read more

Film is so evocative that researching old home movies can be emotional, as well as raise a whole array of questions, as Fae Godstchalk-Hart found on placement at the Yorkshire Film Archive. They share their thoughts here. During my placement I worked in the Yorkshire Film Archives and I must say that though the work was not much different from what I was usually doing at university anyway, the experience was very enjoyable! They started of us newbies with a simple introductory course, which gave us a brief overview of what the archive was and also a little bit of the history of film. The exper ..read more

Exploring the Joseph Rowntree Theatre Archive while on placement at the Borthwick Institute for Archives proved a transformative experience for second year student, Perry Cooper, as he explains here. My time at the Borthwick Institute for Archives has been a journey of discovery and personal development. My tasks there consisted of the analysis, documentation and storage of historical data gifted to the archives by the Joseph Rowntree Theatre, which has had archival material since its opening in all the way back to 1935. As a consequence of my time there, I find myself feeling much more confid ..read more

Researching films at the Yorkshire Film Archive has been an enriching experience for second year student, Freya Rickards, both in terms of using historical skills and thinking about future careers. Here, she highlights her approach to writing context pieces for this special film collection. For my History, Community and Culture module, I completed a placement at the Yorkshire and North East Film Archive to assist with their Nature Matters project, which looks at changes in the environment and local landscape throughout the 20th century. In my work I researched various films that were being use ..read more

The history of Rowntrees is famous across York and beyond not just for chocolate and confectionary, but also the work to alleviate poverty and develop community in the early 20th century.  Second year student, Catherine Gallagher, had the opportunity to delve into the Rowntree archive while on placement at the Borthwick Institute for Archives, focusing particularly on the period of the Second World War. She shares her thoughts here. The Rowntree company is well known for chocolate and the company’s factories, especially in York. However, the Rowntree family were not ordinary factory owner ..read more

York is known for being an historic city and, for those studying the past, the historic environment can be truly inspiring. Second year student Leah Marshall shows just how captivating those surroundings can be, describing here the history all around her while on placement at York Explore. Recently I had the privilege to partake in a volunteering experience at the city archive, where I had the chance to work in an amazing historical building – York Explore Library – and surround myself with beautiful and iconic historical features of the city of York. The structure was built in 1927 and is in ..read more

As part of the module The Visible Past, first year students study castles from different perspectives to understand the significance of these buildings and the people who used them. But it is only when exploring the sites themselves that knowledge of these spaces can really be put into context. Here, Ashanti Carlton shares her thoughts on visiting Middleham and Richmond Castles. We began with the first site that we visited, Middleham Castle, which is in the middle of the town. The first thing you see is the gatehouse and the sheer thickness of the walls. What was also immediately evident was t ..read more

For her placement at the Borthwick Archive, second year student Charlotte Pearce explored the collection of the Joseph Rowntree Theatre. Here, she examines the history and importance of the theatre since its foundation in 1935. For my work placement I helped to process a newly obtained archive from the Joseph Rowntree Theatre. The archive covered all sorts from the opening of the theatre to the present day, including items such as scripts, programmes, letters, posters and newspapers, to name a few. The Joseph Rowntree Theatre opened 18 November 1935 and was commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree ..read more

Yorkshire’s awesome monastic buildings can tell us so much about the communities that lived, worked and prayed there, especially when you have been studying them as part of the module The Visible Past. In this post, first year history student Freya Pointon highlights what she learned from our site visits to Mount Grace Priory and Rievaulx Abbey. One of the first aspects that you notice upon arrival at Mount Grace Priory, a 14th century Carthusian monastery, is the seclusion. After parking, we walk down the lane and are greeted by an extended, yet modest, stone gating, which belies the secrets ..read more