Kirklees Hall is a 16th-century Grade I listed Jacobean hall, close to the English village of Clifton in

Calderdale Calderdale () is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, which had a population of 211,439. It takes its name from the River Calder, and dale, a word for valley. The name Calderdale usually refers to the borough through which the ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

. The first evidence of a hall constructed at Kirklees was that of Sir Thomas Gargrave, who conveyed the property to the Pilkington family. After the estate was acquired by the up-and-coming Armytage family, the stone built hall was altered c.1770 by John Carr for the

Sir George Armytage, 3rd Baronet Sir George Armytage, 3rd Baronet (25 December 1734 – 21 January 1783) was a British politician. In 1758, he succeeded his older brother John as baronet. Armytage was a member of parliament (MP) for York from 1761 to 1768. Family On 10 April ...

. The Armytage family went on to occupy the hall for several generations. Lady Armytage (d: 2008 aged 81), sold the property in 1983 and moved into Priory Gardens a property she built within Kirklees Park estate adjacent to Old Farm (formerly Low Hall) and the Kirklees Priory site. The former gatehouse part of the Old Farm (Low Hall) complex can still be seen, though the site is on private land and has no public access. Kirklees Hall and grounds designed after Francis Richardson are now a collection of luxury residences set in 18 acres and are annexed from Kirklees Park estate which are private with no public access.

Robin Hood associations

In the 12th century, the

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

s built Kirklees Priory. It is connected to the legend of

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...

as it is said to be his final resting place. In the

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

song ''Geste'' it is said that Robin Hood was the nephew of the prioress, who sheltered him when he was fleeing from the

Sheriff of Nottingham The Sheriff of Nottingham is the main antagonist in the legend of Robin Hood. He is generally depicted as an unjust tyrant who mistreats the local people of Nottinghamshire, subjecting them to unaffordable taxes. Robin Hood fights against him, ...

. She drained his blood (as was a common

medicinal Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

practice in those days). She drained too much and he died. Though one can not be certain of her intentions, local folklore tells us that it was murder. The site of Robin Hood's Grave is marked on the local

Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...

map. The grave is located a short distance from the building where Robin Hood died, although archery experts have stated that the distance covered would not have been possible with bows of that time, never mind Robin's strength in his last moments. The grave is clearly marked as belonging to Robin Hood. The priory gatehouse and grave are located on private land.

Notes

Country houses in West Yorkshire Grade I listed houses Grade I listed buildings in West Yorkshire Buildings and structures in Calderdale John Carr (architect) buildings {{WestYorkshire-struct-stub