We can learn a lot about the history of a place just from its name.
“Shambles” is an archaic term for an open-air slaughterhouse and meat market. Aptly named The Shambles, this beautiful medieval cobbled street in York was once lined with butcher’s shops and stalls. Today it is one of the best-preserved medieval streets in Europe, and one of the most visited in Britain.
The overhanging timber-framed buildings date back to the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Their upper floors jut out so far over the street that neighbours on opposite sides could, legend has it, shake hands from their windows.
History of the Street
The street is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, when it was known as Fleshammels — a name derived from the Anglo-Saxon words for flesh and shelves, referring to the wooden shelves on which butchers displayed their meat.
By 1872, there were 26 butcher’s shops on the street. Today, not a single one remains. Instead, tourists browse gift shops, tea rooms, and independent boutiques in the same narrow, crooked buildings.