YorkshireWHIXLEYAscension(glyndruryCC-BY-SA2.0)1 GlynDrury

The Ascension

Do not miss this gem between York and Harrogate, listed in Domesday book of 1086, with fascinating headstops with strange faces staring at visitors from every angle.

Whixley, Yorkshire

Opening times

Open from 9am until dusk daily 24/7 seven days per week.

Address

Church Street
Whixley
Yorkshire
YO26 8AR

Medieval church with a Norman font and window.

The windows are 13th century, with intersecting lancets and a later superb enlarged window at the east end depicting the crucifixion. An original piscina and mysterious paintings from an earlier era are among the treasures worth discovering. The tower, with battlements, houses six bells from 1667 whilst the gilded clock displays a telling message to the community and the world.

The marble reredos is beautifully carved showing the disciples on the Mount of the Ascension, as Christ leaves them with his Great Commission (Acts chapter 1). A huge marble sarcophagus containing the bones of the then Lord of the Manor, Christopher Tancred, was transferred from the chapel in Whixley Hall (a fine Elizabethan building over the high wall adjacent to the church) to a position under the tower in 1862.

A fine organ by Foster and Andrews of Hull, Benefaction Boards, a Roll of Honour of Whixley's war dead, plus a Roll of Honour from the village school dating back to the 1800s, along with many other memorials, remind us of the lives of the villagers down earlier centuries.

Whixley is a pretty village with shop and pub famous for its exceptionally good value carveries. Well worth a short diversion, one mile off the A59!

  • Wildlife haven

  • Spectacular stained glass

  • Social heritage stories

  • National heritage here

  • Magnificent memorials

  • Glorious furnishings

  • Fascinating churchyard

  • Famous connections

  • Enchanting atmosphere

  • Captivating architecture

  • Steps to enter the church or churchyard

  • Space to secure your bike

  • Parking within 250m

  • On street parking at church

  • Dog friendly

  • Car park at church

  • Accessible toilets nearby

  • Sunday service alternate Sundays and special occasions.

  • Church of England

  • Maintenance Grant, £3,000, 2018

  • Our Maintenance Grants funded urgent maintenance projects to help keep churches open.

Contact information

Other nearby churches

St Mary

Nun Monkton, Yorkshire

A hermitage or small monastic settlement may have existed at Nun Monkton during the Anglian period in Northumbria, prior to the arrival of the Vikings, giving rise to the 'Monkton' part of the village's name.

All Saints

Newton on Ouse, Yorkshire

All Saints church stands at the heart of the lovely village of Newton on Ouse, North Yorkshire on the banks of the river Ouse and close to National Trust property, Beningbrough Hall.

All Saints

Kirk Deighton, Yorkshire

The church is, at the highest point in the village, is on the site of the original church nave and has since been extended and rebuilt.