Cocken Kirke: A History of Threats, Mumbling, and Collapse

A day spent clearing up yet more storm damage with the National Trust at Bransdale. Which storm was it? Storm Éowyn, perhaps? It is hard to say; they all blur together after a while. Despite a dusting of snow on the high moors overnight, the weather has been suspiciously well-behaved. Lunch on the green at Cockayne was almost enjoyable, until the inevitable rain arrived.

In 1538, one Will Wood informed the priest that he “would have of him a leg or an arm”—a remark alarming enough to make the parish records. The clerk in 1567 was removed for mumbling. The church, then called “Cocken Kirke”, acquired burial rights in 1665, and the roof obligingly collapsed in 1714. The present building, dedicated to St. Nicholas, emerged around 1800, was remodelled in 1886, and extended in 1934¹RUSHTON, JOHN. THE RYEDALE STORY—A YORKSHIRE COUNTRYSIDE HANDBOOK. PUBLISHED BY THE RYEDALE DISTRICT COUNCIL. SECOND EDITION 1986.. The esteemed architect Goodhart-Rendel examined little Cockayne Church and pronounced: “I don’t understand this.” Quite.

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  RUSHTON, JOHN. THE RYEDALE STORY—A YORKSHIRE COUNTRYSIDE HANDBOOK. PUBLISHED BY THE RYEDALE DISTRICT COUNCIL. SECOND EDITION 1986.