Medieval Aisled Houses in Yorkshire: A Review

Abstract

Two groups of medieval aisled houses in Yorkshire, one in the Halifax area, the other in the Vale of York, have long been known to students of vernacular architecture. The houses in the two groups show many points of similarity but also significant differences in structural forms, plans and distributions. This article reviews these buildings, asking questions of why aisled construction might have been adopted and how the observed differences might be explained, suggesting that social differences between the two areas, as well as local building traditions, were responsible. Questions are also raised about why it is only in these two areas in the north of England that medieval aisled houses have been recorded. Issues relating to problems of dating the buildings due to the lack of dendrochronological sampling are highlighted.