Richard III Experience at Monk Bar

Monk Bar stands in York’s medieval walls as the tallest of the four gatehouses. The stone arch frames views of the city’s narrow lanes and overhanging timber houses. Built in the 14th century, the gate once controlled traffic entering the walled city. Inside the tower, visitors once found rooms arranged over several floors. The space is now empty after the museum closed in 2020. The Richard III Experience told the story of the last Plantagenet king. Exhibits traced his early years and the bloody Wars of the Roses between Lancaster and York. Multimedia displays recreated key battles while glass cases held arms and armour from his reign. One display held the only known fragment of a gun from that period. The Jorvik Group took over the site in 2014 and renamed it before closing it during the pandemic. Visitors who entered the tower once climbed winding staircases to reach each floor. The top room offered views across rooftops towards York Minster. The surrounding walls stretch for two and a half kilometres, linking four gatehouses. Though the Richard III Experience is no longer open, the gatehouse remains a landmark in the city’s defences.