Wath (''alias'' Wath-by-Ripon) is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

north of

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Within the boundaries of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, the ...

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 population of the parish was estimated at 210 in 2015. The parish church is dedicated to St Mary.

History

The name ''Wath'' derives from

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

and means "ford", which has led to speculation that the name associates with a crossing through water, most likely Wath Beck at the east end of the village. The village is noted in the

Domesday Book 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 ...

where it was in the ownership of Count Alan, having previously been owned by ''Archil'' and ''Rothschil'' in 1066.

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

granted to Count Alan. The manor and village were in dispute about ownership through the first half of the 13th century. These disputes culminated in a

Papal Court The papal household or pontifical household (usually not capitalized in the media and other nonofficial use, ), called until 1968 the Papal Court (''Aula Pontificia''), consists of dignitaries who assist the pope in carrying out particular ceremon ...

which decided that the two warring parties would submit a champion each in a duel. The abbot of Mont St Michel feared for his life, and that of his champion, and so renounced all claims on the village. The winner was Sir Robert Marmion, whose family were already resident at

West Tanfield West Tanfield is a village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England. The village is situated approximately six miles north of Ripon on the A6108 road, A6108, which goes from Ripon to Masham and Wensleydale. The parish include ...

and who built their castle ( Marmion Tower). Wath was historically a large ancient parish in the

North Riding of Yorkshire The North Riding of Yorkshire was a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point was at Mickle Fell at . From the Restoration it was used as a lieutenancy area, having b ...

, which also included the townships of Melmerby, Middleton Quernhow and

Norton Conyers Norton Conyers is a civil parish in North Yorkshire, England, north of Ripon. There is no modern village in the parish. Most of the parish is occupied by the grounds of Norton Conyers House, which cover the site of a deserted medieval village ...

. Wath and the other townships became separate civil parishes in 1866.

Governance

Wath is part of the electoral ward of Wathvale. This ward stretches south to

Norton-le-Clay Norton-le-Clay is a village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated near the A1(M) motorway and north-west of Boroughbridge. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the Borough of Harrogate, it is now administered by ...

with a total population taken at the 2011 Census of 3,479. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the

Borough of Harrogate The Borough of Harrogate was a local government district with borough status in North Yorkshire, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in the town of Harrogate, but it also included surrounding settlements, including the cathedral ...

, it is now administered by the unitary

North Yorkshire Council North Yorkshire Council, known between 1974 and 2023 as North Yorkshire County Council, is the local authority for the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire, England. Since 2023 the council has been a unitary authority, being a county coun ...

References

Sources

External links

{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire