Though there is no evidence of civil settlement in the Roman period, a rural villa was discovered in the 19th century some 330 yards (300 m) east of the castle, in farmland south of the road to Masham.

In 1069, William the Conqueror granted them to his Breton cousin Alan Rufus, who built a wooden motte-and-bailey castle above the town.

[6] In 1389, the Lord of Middleham Manor received a crown grant to hold a weekly market and yearly fair on the feast of St Alkelda the Virgin.

[9] Middleham and surrounding lands were part of the Crown estates from the accession of Richard III until Charles I sold the manor to the City of London in about 1628.

[8] The only remaining Norman artefact is a section of zigzag moulding that once surrounded a door or window and now appears above the north aisle.

The church has a three-metre Perpendicular font cover and a replica of the Middleham Jewel, found locally.

In 1478 Edward IV gave permission for a leper hospital to be built on the east side of town, in conjunction with the church.

Today there are several, including Mark Johnston, Jedd O'Keefe, James Bethell, and Ben Haslam.

It is now a Racing Welfare office providing support and guidance to hundreds of stable staff based in and around the town.

[15] A late 15th-century 68-gram gold pendant with a 10-carat blue sapphire stone, it has since passed to the Yorkshire Museum in York for £2.5 million.

The lozenge pendant, engraved on the obverse with a representation of the Trinity, is bordered by a Latin inscription warding off the evil of epilepsy.

[17] The back panel slides to reveal a hollow interior, which originally contained three-and-a-half tiny discs of silk embroidered with gold thread.

Other notable finds from Middleham include: Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North East and Cumbria and ITV Tyne Tees.

The valley has modern alluvial terraces and gravel deposits, but the subsoil is mainly limestone, intersected here and there by sandstone with plate.

[8] In birth order: Middleham appeared three times in the UK television series All Creatures Great and Small.

[26] In the episode "Where Sheep May Safely Graze", Middleham Antiques, in North Road, became Geoff Hatfield's confectionery shop.