standing a short distance to the north east of the of east north the to distance short a standing

it. He was thus able to see the tunnel entrance. tunnel the see to able thus was He it.

Another fine building is The Green Dragon Inn Inn Dragon Green The is building fine Another

cap down the well, and had to be allowed to retrieve retrieve to allowed be to had and well, the down cap

owner of the Hall, whereupon the villager threw his his threw villager the whereupon Hall, the of owner estate at that time. time. that at estate

villager was forbidden from entering the well by the the by well the entering from forbidden was villager John Wallett and his wife Elizabeth who owned the the owned who Elizabeth wife his and Wallett John

Hall to the cellar of the Green Dragon Inn. In 1950, a a 1950, In Inn. Dragon Green the of cellar the to Hall initials and date “J W E 1685”. The initials are those of of those are initials The 1685”. E W “J date and initials

House), the other from a well in the garden of the the of garden the in well a from other the House), On the chimney of the farmhouse can be seen the the seen be can farmhouse the of chimney the On

one from the Hall to Manor Farm (now Hemgate Hemgate (now Farm Manor to Hall the from one church standing against the churchyard boundary. boundary. churchyard the against standing church

Two tunnels are thought to run beneath the village; village; the beneath run to thought are tunnels Two remain, including Church Farm to the north of the the of north the to Farm Church including remain,

Despite this a number of Grade 2 listed buildings do do buildings listed 2 Grade of number a this Despite

Village Hall. Village

limestone buildings having long since disappeared. disappeared. since long having buildings limestone

was closed in 1963 and the building is now used as the the as used now is building the and 1963 in closed was

Ryhall is a beautiful village despite many of the older older the of many despite village beautiful a is Ryhall

which the National School was built in 1857. The School School The 1857. in built was School National the which

Pierrepont in 1800. It was he who gave the land on on land the gave who he was It 1800. in Pierrepont under control. control. under

from the original Elizabethan house by Michael Michael by house Elizabethan original the from been has Ryhall through river the of flow the

The present Hall is Georgian and was reconstructed reconstructed was and Georgian is Hall present The However, since the creation of Water in 1972 1972 in Water Rutland of creation the since However,

The Hall at Ryhall was first mentioned in 1587. 1587. in mentioned first was Ryhall at Hall The Knossington, was a regular occurrence in the village. village. the in occurrence regular a was Knossington,

the Gwash, a tributary of the rising near near rising Welland River the of tributary a Gwash, the

in this window near the bottom left hand corner. hand left bottom the near window this in

that have now closed. now have that

falling from Ryhall Heath to the Gwash. Flooding of of Flooding Gwash. the to Heath Ryhall from falling

personal mark, the Wheatsheaf, which can be seen seen be can which Wheatsheaf, the mark, personal

Inn closed in 1914, one of the five pubs in the village village the in pubs five the of one 1914, in closed Inn

causeway built in 1650. The land is mostly low lying lying low mostly is land The 1650. in built causeway

in 1900. Kempe’s windows can be recognised by the the by recognised be can windows Kempe’s 1900. in

has been removed and the roof raised. The Five Bells Bells Five The raised. roof the and removed been has

river are linked by a three arched stone bridge and and bridge stone arched three a by linked are river

east end of the South arcade was made by Kempe Kempe by made was arcade South the of end east

to the five bells in the church. Since it was built thatch thatch built was it Since church. the in bells five the to

road. The areas of the village north and south of the the of south and north village the of areas The road.

windows in the Church. The Gann window in the the in window Gann The Church. the in windows

Originally it was the Five Bells Inn, possibly a reference reference a possibly Inn, Bells Five the was it Originally

the road from Stamford to Bourne, a former turnpike turnpike former a Bourne, to Stamford from road the

over 700 years old. There are three stained glass glass stained three are There old. years 700 over

Anne house, one of the oldest houses in Ryhall. Ryhall. in houses oldest the of one house, Anne

in the little river Gwash and is bordered on its west by by west its on bordered is and Gwash river little the in

Font and Sedilia (priests’ seats in the Chancel) are are Chancel) the in seats (priests’ Sedilia and Font

Directly opposite the Green Dragon Inn is a Queen Queen a is Inn Dragon Green the opposite Directly

The village does indeed lay either side of a meander meander a of side either lay indeed does village The of St. Christopher, the Patron Saint of Travellers. The The Travellers. of Saint Patron the Christopher, St. of

‘a nook on the bend of a river with rye growing there’. there’. growing rye with river a of bend the on nook ‘a killed at the battle of Evesham in 1256. in Evesham of battle the at killed schoolroom. On the North arcade is a large figure figure large a is arcade North the On schoolroom.

from derives Ryhall name The Book. Domesday He was a close ally of Simon de Montfort and was was and Montfort de Simon of ally close a was He as the Parvis room, which was once used as a a as used once was which room, Parvis the as

the north of Stamford and is first mentioned in the the in mentioned first is and Stamford of north the 1250. around Despenser Hugh by built House Manor has over it a priest’s chamber, known nowadays nowadays known chamber, priest’s a it over has

Ryhall is a parish of irregular shape lying 3 miles to to miles 3 lying shape irregular of parish a is Ryhall almost certainly stand upon the former site of the first first the of site former the upon stand certainly almost lived here nearly 900 years ago! The South doorway doorway South The ago! years 900 nearly here lived

cellar. Both Church Farm and The Green Dragon Dragon Green The and Farm Church Both cellar. portrait gallery of some of the Ryhall worthies who who worthies Ryhall the of some of gallery portrait

Introduction

church which has a splendid 13th Century vaulted vaulted Century 13th splendid a has which church known to the sculptor, so perhaps we have here a a here have we perhaps so sculptor, the to known

figures. Many of the human faces would have been been have would faces human the of Many figures.

an outdoor string course runs a host of grotesque grotesque of host a runs course string outdoor an

being made through subsequent centuries. Along Along centuries. subsequent through made being

and tower arches with various other additions additions other various with arches tower and

enlarged in 1250 with the addition of the chancel chancel the of addition the with 1250 in enlarged

of Barnack and Ketton stone in around 1200. It was was It 1200. around in stone Ketton and Barnack of oldest remaining building in the village, constructed constructed village, the in building remaining oldest

The Norman church of St. John the Evangelist is the the is Evangelist the John St. of church Norman The Ryhall St John’s Church John’s St

A1

Legend of St. Tibba A6121 Langham Exton

The Church is traditionally associated with the A606 Ryhall legend of St. Tibba, the patron saint of falconers. Empingham She was the niece of King Penda of Mercia, Stamford A6003 and is said to have lived here in the 7th century. Braunston- Originally buried in the churchyard, her remains In-Rutland were removed to Peterborough Monastery in 963 Edith Weston A1 by Abbot Elgin because of the jealousy of the monks there. It is said that she used to bathe at the spring on Tibba’s Well Hill, this being on the hill from Tolethorpe to Belinsford Bridge. A47 A47 Barrowden Ryhall A6003 Tolethorpe Hall Travel Tolethorpe Hall has origins going back to the 11th Century when it is believed that the first Manor Road: Ryhall is situated approximately 2 miles north House was built on the site of the present hall by a of Stamford on the A6121. Norman family. In 1503 the property was acquired Bus: Services 4 and 202 from Stamford. by the Brownes. Robert Browne was the founder T: 0871 2002233 E: www.traveline.org.uk and leading campaigner of the religious Separatist movement, also known as Brownists, seeking a Rail: The nearest railway station is Stamford. separate church from the Church of . Shakespeare referred to the Brownists in “Twelfth Ordnance Survey Maps Night” and the Pilgrim Fathers were Separatists. Landranger 130 In 1977 the near derelict Tolethorpe Hall was Explorer 234 acquired by the Stamford Shakespeare Company, who created one of Europe’s finest open air theatres in the grounds. If you require further information regarding this leaflet or require it in an alternative format please contact Rutland County Council Highways at the address below:

Rutland County Council Highways 28 - 34 Station Approach, Oakham, Rutland, LE15 6QW T: 01572 771117 E: [email protected] W: www.rutland.gov.uk/row Follow The Drift to its junction with the Careby Road 2 Cross the bridge over the river Gwash and turn left Ryhall Walk Number 1 and turn right. After a short distance you will see a on to Mill Street. Continue to the junction with Turnpike Start from the Village Hall. bridleway on your left. Road. Cross the road with care, turn left and after a short distance you will find a footpath signposted on your 1 Stand outside the village hall facing the library. 6 Follow the bridleway around the fields edge, Turn left and walk downhill, passing the church on right. Follow the footpath and bear left as it opens out through a small spinney, and then up a hill. On your left, towards the village square. On arriving in the into a large arable field. reaching the top of the hill a row of trees will be visible square, with the Green Dragon Inn ahead and on your in the distance which marks the bridleways junction 3 At the top of the hill is a field gate at the junction with left, take a right on to Bridge Street. with the Road. the Careby Road. Cross over the road to the entrance to Top Farm. Climb the stile on your right and continue in 7 Cross over the road and turn right. After around this direction, passing over a second stile and through a 10 minutes, as the path starts to head down hill, you gap in a hedge, until you reach the junction with a will find a footpath on your left. Climb over the stile farm track. and follow the footpath to a kissing gate on the opposite side of the field. Continue down the hill, 4 Turn left and take the track past Ryhall Grange to its passing through a number of gates on your way, end at the top of a large arable field. Walk diagonally until you emerge on to a byway called ‘Back Lane’. across the field heading for gate that will be visible in the hedgerow ahead. Pass through the gate and continue 8 Cross over the lane, climb over a stile and then in the same direction. As you reach the end follow the path around the edge of a garden and of the next field you will find a stone bench with down to its junction with Foundry Road. Looking “Joe’s Corner” carved in to it. ahead and to the right you will see the white bridge over the river Gwash again. Cross over the bridge and 5 Continue in the same direction up the hill to a stile retrace your steps through the village and back to the in the opposite corner of the field. Climb the stile and village hall. turn right on to an old tarmac byway known as The Drift.

Key

Ryhall Walk Number 1 Distance: 4 miles Stiles: 7

Ryhall Walk Number 2 Distance: 3.8 miles Stiles: 2 6

5

7 4

6

7 3

8

8 5 2

4

2 1 1 3

N

Ryhall Walk Number 2 4 Turn left and after a short distance you will find a 7 Continue across yet another arable field and signpost on your right pointing towards a wooden gate. in the distance Ryhall now becomes visible. Walk Start from the Village Hall. Pass through the gate proceed along a track enclosed downhill towards the village until you reach a stile at 1 Standing outside the village hall facing the library, by tall hedges on either side. When you reach a junction the footpaths junction with Turnpike Road and Careby turn right and follow Balk Road, passing the entrance to with another track cross straight over. Road. Bear slightly to the left and follow Turnpike Road the old Manor House on your right. When you reach the until you reach the junction with Mill Street on 5 Continue along the edge of a large arable field junction with the Stamford Road, cross with care and your right. past a number of waymark posts. Before too long a follow the farm track straight ahead of you. short wooden sign post will become visible pointing to a 8 Following Mill Street with the River Gwash on your 2 Follow the track for five minutes or so, with the river footpath on your right. right you will soon reach a white bridge. Turn right over Gwash on your right, until you find a footpath branching the bridge and you will soon arrive in Ryhall village 6 Pass between the wooden posts and over the ditch off to the left across an arable field. At the top of the square. Walk straight ahead, taking the path past the then make your way across an arable field, heading hill is a gap in the hedge and a stile. Climb over the stile Green Dragon Inn that leads you into the Church Yard. towards a gap in the hedge at the top of the hill. and cross a small enclosed area of grazing land, before Follow the path through the churchyard and onto to Pass through the gap and over a shallow ditch. meeting another stile at the junction with Salters Lane. Church Street, which leads you back to the village hall. Cut across the corner of the next field and then continue 3 Follow the lane down the hill, past the entrance in the same direction, heading for the corner of this to the old Mill and over the river Gwash. Stay on the much larger arable field where a waymark post marks lane as it bends sharply to the right and continue to its the boundary. junction with the Casterton Road.