Margaret Clitherow Shrine
Reminder of a gruesome martyrdom
When walking along the Shambles, keep an eye open for the plaque marking the shrine of Saint Margaret Clitherow.
Margaret Clitherow, wife of a York butcher, converted to Roman Catholicism in 1574, after the founding of the Church of England.
She secretly celebrated mass at her home in the Shambles and even had an escape route through the attic for the priest, should they be discovered in worship.
In 1586 she came before the court for hiding priests. She was executed the same year on Ouse Bridge by being pressed under the weight of a door with heavy rocks on it. Her right hand was cut off and is stored as a relic at the Bar Convent.
She was canonised in 1970.
You'll find accounts of her story inside the house. Mass is celebrated at the shrine (a few doors from her actual home) every Saturday at 10 am.
LOCATION Castle Area
The Shambles, YO1 7HU, Footstreets Area
Open daily, 9am till dusk