We stopped and took a walk around Whitby, a lovely fishing town where the River Esk flows into the North Sea. From the pier we could see the iconic 13th century ruins of Whitby Abbey and 12th century St Mary’s church sitting high on the clifftop to the east. To the west we could see literally dozens of coloured beach boxes lining beautiful West Cliff Beach.

Famously, Whitby was Bram Stoker’s inspiration for his 1897 gothic horror novel Dracula. While on holiday here in 1890, Irish born Stoker was fascinated with the town’s gothic atmosphere and in particular St Mary’s and the ruins of Whitby Abbey. The story of Dracula is still popular today with performances and screen adaptions.

Whitby Abbey was established in AD 657 as a Christian monastery, and was one of the most important religious centres in the Anglo-Saxon world. In AD 664 a meeting was held here to decide the date of Easter – that’s something I had never considered until this trip!

The monastery was destroyed by the Vikings in the 9th century, then it was reestablished by the Benedictine monks in 1078. The current ruins were constructed between 1225 and the 15th century. King Henry VIII dissolved the abbey in 1539, ordering that anything of value, such as windows and lead from the roof, were stripped. It was further damaged by the Germans in 1914.

The Whitby 199 Steps is a staircase that has connected the abbey and church to the township since at least 1370. It was even used for funeral processions, which must have been very precarious. The eighth photo is a stock photo of the stairs, which were also known as Jacob’s Ladder and the Church Stairs.

Captain James Cook embarked on his career in Whitby, apprenticing here with ship owner John Walker in the 1740s. There is a statue and museum commemorating this – the latter is housed in the 17th century home that Cook lived in as a lodger.

It’s hard to imagine that so much has gone on in this peaceful, picturesque town over the centuries. There is so much more here than meets the eye!