The Church of All Saints is a

grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

building and former parish church for

Great Ayton Great Ayton is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The River Leven (a tributary of the River Tees) flows through the village, which lies just north of the North York Moors. According to the 2021 Census, the parish has a popu ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

, England. The churchyard is known to contain several graves to family members of

Captain Cook Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 1768 and 1779. He complet ...

, a noted seafarer. All Saints was replaced as the main parish church in the 1870s by

Christ Church, Great Ayton Christ Church is the parish church of Great Ayton, a village in North Yorkshire, in England. From the Saxon period to the early 19th century, All Saints' Church, Great Ayton was the local parish church. Between 1876 and 1877, a replacement wa ...

. The entire western end of the church, including its tower, was removed in 1880. All Saints is still open for people to be able to visit at certain times of the year.

History

Elements of the present church of All Saints date back to the 8th century, and a church in Great Ayton (''Atun''), was mentioned in the

Domesday Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

survey of 1086. In the early part of the 12th century, Robert de Meynell is recorded as having given the church at Great Ayton to Whitby Abbey. The structure of the present church dates back to sometime after 1175, being recorded as being built "in the last quarter of the 12th century". The chancel measures by , the nave by , and a south porch by . The porch is believed to be a 13th-century addition to the old

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

doorway into the church. Renovations in the late 18th century (1788–1789) saw the roof stripped of its lead to pay for the tower to be rebuilt, only for it, and the a large western section of the church, to be pulled down in 1880. At the same time, despite the church not being publicly used, some of the windows were replaced in the church. All Saints was replaced by a newer church, closer to the main road through Great Ayton in 1876. The building of Christ Church was precipitated by the state of the All Saints structure, and the increase in the population, related to the boom in ironstone mining in the area. However, the graveyard was still used routinely until 1881, before a new one was opened on the north side of the village. Some burials continued at All Saints; a report from November 1886 recalls the burial there of a Dr William Augustus Loy. The church was grade I listed in 1966, notable being its Georgian pulpit, Tudor windows and late-

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

king post roof. In modern times, the church is open for visits, special events, midweek Communion and celebratory services on Captain Cook's birthday. The church does not have any heating, or electric lighting. Candles are used to provide light.

Clergy

* †Died in office * ♦

Interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of revolutionary breach of legal continuity, discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one m ...

between incumbent and previous when dates are incorrect, period appears too long or records are incomplete. After 1877, All Saints was closed, and Christ Church in the village was used instead.

Churchyard

Several members of Captain Cook's family are buried in the churchyard. Their burial plot is marked by a

grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

headstone made from sandstone. Cook's father, also called James, is believed to have carved many of the Cook family headstones in the churchyard.

References

Sources

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External links

Church history
{{DEFAULTSORT:Great Ayton, All Saints Grade I listed churches in North Yorkshire 12th-century church buildings in England Church of England church buildings in North Yorkshire