Once a cluster of medieval buildings, the area south and west of York Minster now forms a fine space in which to admire the Gothic cathedral in all its glory.

The medieval Minster precinct, some of which survives to the East of the Minster, was gradually demolished during the nineteenth century, beginning in 1839 with the clearing of space in front of St Michael-le-Belfry church and peaking with the arrival of the railways and the motor car.

Duncombe Place was established in 1860 and Deangate in 1903, allowing traffic to get from the railway station to the northern parts of the city with a minimum of fuss. Deangate was closed to motorised traffic in 1989 but is still useful for cyclists getting across town quickly.

As well as the Minster, look out for a Roman column in Minster Yard and a statue of Constantine the Great, proclaimed Emperor in York in around 315AD.

The setting is also improved by the rear façade of what was York College for Girls – now an Italian restaurant accessed from Low Petergate.

For a description of what Minster Yard may have been like in Henry VIII’s time, read C J Sansom’s Tudor whodunnit Sovereign.

At the south-east end of Deangate you will see the masonry yard where, to this day, stonemasons work the blocks that make up the Minster itself.

Also note that there is another street called Minster Yard to the east of York Minster on the other side of Dean’s Park, however when most people refer to Minster Yard they mean this space west of the Minster.

Continue your York tour
Go north-west to High Petergate towards Bootham Bar, Exhibition Square and the City Art Gallery
Go east towards College Street for one of York’s many ghost stories, or for St Williams College and the Treasurer’s House
Go south-east to Low Petergate towards St Michael-le-Belfry church and the birthplace of Guy Fawkes
Go south-west to Duncombe Place towards Lendal Bridge, the Assembly Rooms, York’s Theatre Royal, the rail station and St Wilfrid’s Catholic Church