This afforded a good view of the church's tower set against the castle on the slight hill beyond.

Because of the distance from York, it became a peculier (like Middleham or Masham) only without a court of its own to decide on matters.

[8] It refurbished a second time in 1877 at the behest of Fanny Georgiana, who was the Duchess of Leeds and resided at the adjacent Hornby Castle.

In the 1840s, the Duchess of Leeds, Louisa Catherine Hervey-Bathurst, created a Catholic church in one of the houses in the village.

[9] The graveyard contains five Commonwealth War Graves Commission type burial plots.

[15] Historically, it also used to cover the villages of Ainderby Miers and High Holtby[16] and was described as being an extensive parish.

[21] Somes sources indicate that the incumbents without dates in the 14th and 15th centuries (Robert de Killum, John Orre and Thomas Shyerwynd), were not actually the priests in charge, as Speight maintains that between 1349 and 1896, there were 31 vicars with an average of 17.5 years each between them.