Photographs of York City Walls

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York been defended with walls of one form or another since the Romans. To this day, substantial portions of the walls remain, and York has more miles of intact wall than any other city in England. The Danes occupied the city in 867. By this time the Roman defences were in poor repair, and the Danes demolished all the towers save the Multangular Tower and restored the walls. The majority of the remaining walls date from the 12th - 14th century, with some reconstruction carried out in the 19th century.
The walls are punctuated by four main gatehouses, or 'bars', (Bootham Bar, Monk Bar, Walmgate Bar and Micklegate Bar). These restricted traffic in medieval times and were used to extract tolls, as well as being defensive positions in times of war.
Although much of Bootham Bar was built in the 14th and 19th centuries, it also has some of the oldest surviving stonework dating to the 11th century. It stands almost on the site of the north western gate of Eboracum.
Monk Bar is the tallest and most elaborate of the four and was built in the early 14th century. It was intended as a self-contained fort and each floor is capable of being defended separately.