Whitby - Old Town Hall

Whitby Abbey was founded in 657 AD by King Oswiu, as an act of thanksgiving, after defeating Penda, the pagan king of Mercia. The abbey became the leading royal nunnery of the kingdom of Deira, and the burial-place of its royal family. In 664, the Synod of Whitby took place, which determined the calculation of the Christian date of Easter, according to which Easter always falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the beginning of spring on March 21st. This rule for the movable holiday prevailed throughout Europe and is still in force today.

When Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries and the abbey here surrendered in 1539. By then the town that had developed had between 20 and 30 houses and a population of about 200.

The city was the training ground for Britain's most important seafarer, James Cook. His monument overlooks the city's harbor.
The Old Town Hall, built in the neoclassical style, measures 10 m in length and 8.2 m in width and was furnished with a clock at the expense of the town.

The building has an open ground floor with the upper floor supported by columns. This allowed the undercroft to be used for market trading. The upper floor, accessed by a spiral staircase in the centre of the lower floor, is where the courts used to meet.