Discover Acaster Malbis

Acaster Malbis combines architectural and local history with flood meadows along the River Ouse. When planning a trip, you can therefore think of the village in terms of two different interests: historic buildings and the former military airfield on the one hand, and river meadows on the other. Holy Trinity Church dates back to the early 14th century; Acaster Malbis Airfield is part of the village’s 20th-century history. Church Ings and Acaster South Ings add specific landscape features to the picture. If you are looking for a hotel for a stay in Acaster Malbis, this distinction can help you first decide what you want to focus on when choosing where to visit.

Church and local history

Holy Trinity Church dates back to the early 14th century and is a Grade I listed building. Additions and restoration work carried out in 1886 by C Hodgson Fowler included the bell tower and spire.

Inside is an effigy of a knight depicted with crossed legs, believed to represent Sir John Malbys. Sir John Malbys died in 1316. The identification of the effigy therefore remains uncertain.

The Ship Inn building dates from the mid-18th century and served as a public house for inland boatmen. Its former function adds a social connection to inland navigation to the history of the church’s architecture.

The village’s history spans chronologically from the early 14th century, through the inn from the mid-18th century, to the airfield of 1942–1946. The church work of 1886 belongs to a later phase of construction, not to its origins. This makes it possible to distinguish the church’s architectural history from the airfield’s limited period of military use.

The former Acaster Malbis Airfield

Acaster Malbis Airfield opened as a military airfield in 1942 and closed in 1946. It was established at the end of 1942 as a grass airfield for fighter aircraft beside the River Ouse; its riverside location proved highly unsuitable because of the fog. The airfield included two Type 2 aircraft hangars and a B-1 aircraft hangar. The hangar types add specific details about the airfield infrastructure of the time to the historical context.

Flood meadows along the River Ouse

Church Ings consists of two unimproved alluvial flood meadows on the River Ouse at Acaster Malbis in the Vale of York. Acaster South Ings also comprises two large alluvial flood meadows on the River Ouse near Acaster Malbis. The area lies about four miles south of the City of York; a local authority survey from 2010 classifies it as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

The two names refer to areas with two meadows each along the same river, but they are not interchangeable: at Church Ings, the unimproved condition is a defining feature; Acaster South Ings is designated as an SSSI and is located approximately south of the City of York. This lets you distinguish the nature areas by their specific characteristics, rather than treating them as a single place.

Discover more destinations: Strensall, Holme-on-Spalding-Moor, Hessay, Rufforth, Huntington, Copmanthorpe, Knapton

See the main travel overview: York.