Mock Beggar Hall
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Mock Beggar Hall by Stephen Craven as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
Mock Beggar Hall
Image: © Stephen Craven Taken: 28 Mar 2000
This curiously named building with a dovecote built into the frontage is in the village of Appletreewick (pronounced Ap'trick). The current owner of the house has provided the following interesting background to its name and history: Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase & Fable states that a Mock Beggar Hall or Manor is 'A grand, ostentatious house, where no hospitality is afforded, neither is any charity given'! Our house is in what was the demesne of Appletreewick, owned by the monks of Bolton Priory until the Dissolution, when the King sold the demesne to Sir Christopher Hales, Master of the Rolls, and prosecutor of Anne Boleyn. We believe that our house was a grange, and possibly inhabited by lay brothers from the Priory, administering the demesne property and lead mines, and there was an obligation to provide food and shelter to passing travellers. After the Dissolution it was no more freebies here!
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Image Location
Latitude
54.036855
Longitude
-1.920567