Upper Stories of Monk Bar

Visited 19 March 2006

Here's another view of the upper stories of Monk Bar.  Richard III (who was probably not a hunchback) built the top story in 1484; today it's used as a 50 seat theater that attempts to clear his name, if not straighten his back.  Also inside Monk Bar is what York claims to be the "Little Ease"--the world's smallest prison cell (5'3" in diameter) used to "convert" Catholics who refused to become Protestants.  We can't blame Richard for this, of course, as Protestants wouldn't be invented for several more decades.  Richard does get blamed for a lot of other things such as murdering the little princes in the Tower of London.  The museum puts Richard II on "trial" here for the tourist trade.

Lost? If so, click here for a good map of the York Walls (in PDF format)

For more narrative on York, see our description web page by clicking here.