YORK CASTLE MUSEUM

This is probably the most comprehensive and fascinating museum in York. It tells the story of the city from the Georgian era to the present day, through many everyday domestic objects. Large spaces restore the typical interiors of several periods: a rich family sitting room, a small Dales farmhouse, bedrooms and dining rooms... The lives of Yorkshire people are examined with a fine-tooth comb, from baby clothes to mourning clothes to formal dresses. The highlight of the show? A Victorian reproduction of Kirkgate Street: push open the door of the chemist's, the dressmaker's, the toy shop, the confectioner's or the school... Comedians wait behind in costume to tell their job. Closer to the present time, the 1960s are announced with the first vacuum cleaners, detergents and advertisements. Music and the Beatles are in the spotlight, as well as sports, the child king and emancipation, all in a colourful aisle. A moving section pays tribute to the Poilus of the Great War. You can walk through a trench, hear the gunfire, the bombs, and discover the daily life of the time while films and speakers in uniform describe life and death on the French front lines. Some cooks even reserve two or three typical foods from the front... The tour ends with a visit to the castle's gaols, where 15,000 prisoners were incarcerated between 1705 and 1835.