A lovely Spring day. I drove up to a village North of Thirsk which has the most wonderful old Norman Church that sits in a field of daffodils. Unfortunately they weren't yet in full flower, so I will have to return in a week or so. On the way back down the A19 I stopped off at another Norman church, St Mary the Virgin, otherwise known as Leake Church; I have passed so many times, and often thought about stopping to take a look. The church is large, and has some lovely relatively modern stained glass. I had often wondered about the churches location - it stands directly next to the busy A19 and, with the exception of the neighbouring farm, stands quite solitary. A little research shows that in the 14th century it was at the heart of a large and thriving village of perhaps 1,500 inhabitants. However at some time in the late 15th or the 16th century the village simply disappeared - I haven't been able to discover if it is recorded why; perhaps disease, or crop failure, or clearance by a landlord.
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