Howley Hall Ruins

Howley Hall is ruin from the Elizabethan period. It is located in Batley – south west of Leeds City Centre.

One of Yorkshire’s most prestigious ruins:

The Ruins

This example of Elizabethan architecture stood standing until the early 19th century. The scars on the ground are clues to the grandiose prestige of the site. Like the surviving earthworks that give you a real breadth of the size of the building. Read on in the history section to find out more of it’s historical importance.

Howley Trail Run

Leeds Run Routes have mapped out a cheeky little trail run (4k in total!) on mixed terrain out and back from the Dewsbury Road entrance. Take a look at the Howley Hall Ruins run route.

Howley Hall – Lady Anne’s Well Walk

A walk that’s popular with a lot of the locals. Once you visit the site it’d be silly not to have a go at this 2-mile walk around it to really soak up the gorgeous views and beautiful countryside. Check out Dave’s route in full here.

Geocaching

Some clever spark (and we love you for it) has gone and put a Geocache smack bang in the middle of Howley Hall Ruins. For those new to geocaching in a nutshell it’s the worlds first GPS treasure hunt game. While hunting this one try and avoid trespassing on the neighbouring golf course. The ‘Ghost of Howley Hall’ Geocache can be found here.

Earthwork Gardens

There’s a rare trail of the gardens earthworks running around the ruins of the hall. It’s a hint of the stunning landscape gardens and raised bowling green that was there many moons ago. See if you can spot the trace of these historical gardens on your visit to the ruins.

Photography

The ruins provide an opportunity to document history. There’s also some great panoramic views to be had on the surrounding landscape…

Howley Hall was engineered by Sir John Savile – a Yorkshire politician – at the close of the 16th century. The house was the epi-centre of some of the English Civil War battles in 1643. Soon after it passed into the hands of the Brudenell family – another clan of nobility. The hall went into disrepair under the Brudenell family stewardship and it was demolished sometime before 1730 to be left with what you see today.”

As this is a designated ruin there are no amenities on-site.

Picnic

A picnic in and amongst the ruins is quite the way to spend some time surveying the site and appreciating its history. Just remember to clear away all the rubbish as this is a protected site.

Food & Drink

The ruins are in a remote spot outside of Batley which leaves less option for getting some food and drink out. Your best bet is to checkout the Needless Inn where the pub are known to serve up a decent cooked meal for everyone including the vegans and vegetarians. Try the stone baked pizza. You won’t be disappointed.

Park for free just below the ruins on Howley Mill Lane (Google Map Directions)

There is space for approx three cars at the end of Howley Hill Lane.

The ruins and pathways accessing it are not suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs.

The best way to get to Howley Hall Ruins is by taxi via the M62. One way will take you around 30-minutes.