Oswaldkirk
View of village from Oswaldkirk Bank
Oswaldkirk Location within North Yorkshire
Population	230
OS grid reference	SE 6239 7909
Civil parish	Oswaldkirk
Unitary authority	North Yorkshire
Ceremonial county	North Yorkshire
Region	Yorkshire and the Humber
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	York
Postcode district	YO62
Dialling code	01439
Police	North Yorkshire
Fire	North Yorkshire
Ambulance	Yorkshire
UK Parliament	Thirsk and Malton
List of places UK England Yorkshire 54°12′14″N 1°02′42″W / 54.2038°N 1.0450°W / 54.2038; -1.0450

Oswaldkirk is a small village and civil parish 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Helmsley and 20 miles (32 km) north of York in North Yorkshire, England. It is named after the village church of St Oswald, King and Martyr, the Anglo-Saxon King of Northumbria who was slain by the pagan, Penda in 642. There was previously a Catholic church, dedicated to St Aidan, which closed in 2020. The population of the village as taken at the 2011 census was 230.^[1]

The village is situated at the junction of the roads B1257 and B1363 and straddles the boundaries of the North York Moors National Park and the Howardian Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Non-ecclesiastical amenities include a playground, a village hall and a pub called "The Malt Shovel". The Millennium Trail, a 1.4 miles (2.3 km) circular waymarked walk around Oswaldkirk, takes in the major historical sites and points of interest. The village is also on the path of the Ebor Way.

Each year the village holds a Safari Lunch,^[2] a Cricket match and a Bonfire. Every two years there is a benefice Hog Roast (Ampleforth, Gilling East, Stonegrave & Oswaldkirk).^[3] In 2002 the village community wrote a book entitled Oswaldkirk: A Living Village.^[4] In 2008, the village reached the North of England Finals in the Calor village of the year competition, and was placed first in the "people" category.^[5]

Geology

Oswaldkirk is situated to the south of a steep hill, known as "Oswaldkirk Hagg". Many springs rise along the base of the hill, at the boundary of the Kimmeridge Clay and the Corallian Oolite. The latter was mined into the twentieth century in numerous quarries on the hagg between Oswaldkirk and Ampleforth, and fossils from the limestone, especially gastropods, are often found in the village.

History

The first recorded reference to Oswaldkirk was in the Domesday Book (1086). It was referred to as "Oswaldecherca" or "Oswaldecherce" (Oswald's Church).

Oswaldkirk Hall, a Grade II* listed building, was built c. 1690 for William Moor and is one of eight listed buildings or structures in the parish.^[6]

Between 1974 and 2023 the village was part of the Ryedale district.