News

One of the most important documents in the history of Leeds was rescued from being turned into a makeshift lampshade, the city’s archivists have revealed.

The one-of-a-kind copy of the Leeds Royal Charter, written centuries ago, was about to be repurposed as an unusual decorative feature by the unwitting owner of a Canterbury book shop in the 1950s.

Fortunately, a chance consultation with a friendly expert disclosed that the delicately inscribed text was the sole remaining copy of the Royal Charter first granted to Leeds by King Charles I in 1626.

The much-loved Leeds Tapestry celebrating the city’s history has received an inspiring new panel, completely designed and stitched by residents to explore ideas of freedom.

Ancient artefacts unearthed and collected during the construction of a huge Leeds transport project have been preserved at a Leeds museum.

Spanning more than six thousand years of the city’s history, the remarkable archive includes a beautifully preserved prehistoric arrowhead, a Bronze Age axe, medieval pottery and a 300-year-old pair of nutcrackers.

The beginning of a new year is always a chance for us to reflect on the past whilst also looking ahead with excitement and anticipation to what the future may hold.

Over the coming year, that sentiment will carry more significance for Leeds than ever as the city prepares to mark a very special, and completely unique historical milestone.

Plans for a tribute to a pioneering 19^th century British locomotive driver who was laid to rest in Leeds are gathering steam following a chance discovery at a local museum.

During recent renovation work at Leeds Industrial Museum in Armley, curators happened upon the beautifully carved gravestone of Robert Morrow, more than 160 years after his death in nearby New Wortley.

An audacious bid to rescue King Charles I from imprisonment in Leeds is among the timeless tales discovered amid the pages of the city’s earliest written history.

The remarkable plot, told for what is believed to be the very first time within the centuries-old text, saw the notorious monarch offered a chance of escape from Red Hall in the city centre in 1647 by donning women’s clothes, which he politely declined.