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How well do you know York? Take the quiz

Posted 12/02/2026 by Your Move
Upwards shot of the York Minster

 

  1. What was the full Roman name of York when it became a legionary fortress?
     
  2. Which Roman emperor was proclaimed emperor in York in AD 306?
     
  3. What is the name of the shortest street in York, measuring just a few metres long?
     
  4. Which two rivers made York such a strategic trading settlement in Roman and Viking times?
     
  5. What does the Viking name Jórvík actually translate to?
     
  6. Which part of York Minster took over 250 years to complete?
     
  7. How many gates—known locally as “bars”—are there in York’s city walls?
     
  8. Which bar is considered the main ceremonial entrance to the city?
     
  9. What unusual feature can be found carved into many buildings around York Minster?
     
  10. What was the Shambles originally known for selling during the Middle Ages?
     
  11. Which famous chocolate company did not originate in York: Rowntree, Terry’s, Cadbury, or Nestlé?
     
  12. What is the name of the medieval merchant’s house often claimed to be the most haunted in York?
     
  13. Which historic event in 1190 led to a tragic mass death at Clifford’s Tower?
     
  14. What was York’s primary industry during the height of the railway era?
     
  15. Which Roman legion mysteriously disappeared after being stationed in York?
     
  16. What is the name of the narrow passageway said to be the most haunted street in York?
     
  17. What creature is most commonly featured in York Minster’s stone carvings and roof bosses?
     
  18. Which famous dessert is uniquely associated with York and rarely found elsewhere?
     
  19. Which annual festival transforms York into a Viking village every February?
     
  20. What surprising fact links York Minster and the Titanic?
     
  21. Which York street name refers to a place where leather was once worked?
     
  22. What is unusual about the layout of York’s city walls compared to most English cities?
     
  23. Which famous author is believed to have drawn inspiration from York’s streets for a fantasy world?
     
  24. Approximately how many listed buildings does York have?
     
  25. What phrase is often used to describe York as a city with “layers of history” beneath its streets?

The answers: how did you do?
 

  1. Colonia Eboracensium

  2. Constantine the Great

  3. Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate

  4. The Rivers Ouse and Foss

  5. “Horse Bay” or “Place of the Horse”

  6. The Minster as a whole—construction spanned over 250 years

  7. Four main bars

  8. Micklegate Bar

  9. Grotesques and gargoyles

  10. Meat (it was home to butchers)

  11. Cadbury

  12. The Golden Fleece

  13. The massacre of the Jewish community

  14. Railway manufacturing and transport

  15. The Ninth Legion (Legio IX Hispana)

  16. The Shambles (or Stonegate, depending on legend!)

  17. Dragons

  18. Yorkshire curd tart

  19. The Jorvik Viking Festival

  20. Some craftsmen who worked on York Minster also worked on Titanic interiors

  21. Girdlergate

  22. They form a complete loop around the city

  23. J.K. Rowling

  24. Over 1,700

  25. “A city built on itself”

The Your Move Content Marketing Team

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Updated: 12/02/2026