Birdsall is a village and civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 in the Ryedale

Ryedale

Ryedale is a non-metropolitan district of the shire county of North Yorkshire in England. Settlements include Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside, Malton, Norton-on-Derwent, Pickering, and Terrington.-Derivation of name:...

 district of North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 180. The village is about four miles south of Malton

Malton, North Yorkshire

Malton is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The town is the location of the offices of Ryedale District Council and has a population of around 4,000 people....

.

Birdsall House is the home of Baron Middleton

Baron Middleton

Baron Middleton, of Middleton in the County of Warwick, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1711 for Sir Thomas Willoughby, 2nd Baronet, who had previously represented Nottinghamshire and Newark in Parliament...

.

Thomas Willoughby

Thomas Willoughby (MP)

Thomas Willoughby , English politician, was the second son of Thomas Willoughby, 1st Baron Middleton and Elizabeth Rothwell. He was educated at Jesus College, Cambridge. He was MP for the university in 1720 and from 1721 to 1727; from 1727 to 1730 he was MP for Tamworth.He married Elizabeth Southby...

 (1694–1742), brother of Francis Willoughby, 2nd Baron Middleton

Francis Willoughby, 2nd Baron Middleton

Francis Willoughby, 2nd Baron Middleton was a baron in the Peerage of Great Britain.He was educated at Eton and at Jesus College, Cambridge, graduating MA in 1712....

, married Elizabeth Sotheby of Birdsall, and their son Henry inherited the barony and Willoughby estates in Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...

 and Warwickshire

Warwickshire

Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...

 from his cousin in 1781.

St Marys Church
The ruins of the ancient church of St Mary stand adjacent to Birdsall House. The present church was built in 1824 at the expense of Henry Willoughby, 6th Baron Middleton

Henry Willoughby, 6th Baron Middleton

Henry Willoughby, 6th Baron Middleton was an English nobleman, the only son of Henry Willoughby, 5th Baron Middleton....

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