Yeaveley and its smaller neighbour Rodsley are quite, brick built, little villages in a very rural setting, south of Ashbourne, that have hardly changed in size and shape in the past 200 years. It was the birthplace of one of the greatest architects of the Middle Ages, Henry Yevele, who travelled to London at the time of the Black Death and was responsible for the rebuilding of the great naves of Westminster Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral.
Yeaveley village school, which doubled up as an unofficial parish hall, closed more than 10 years ago and the main meeting points now are the pub, called theHorseshoe Inn, and small parish Church of the Holy Trinity opposite the pub.
The old manor Hall of Yeaveley, Stydd Hall, was once the hub of village life. Today it lies largely forgotten, about a mile to the west of the village, reached down an unmetalled private road. The Hall features the remains of a preceptior of the Knights Hospitallers, founded in 1190. One wall of the chapel remains, with lancet windows. The present brick and stone farmhouse stands on these medieval stone foundations, but is chiefly Elizabethan or Jacobean in date.
The current population is approximately 300, with most of the families having lived there for generations. There has been some new housing built to help the youger generation to stay in the village. Behind the pub is a thriving clay pigeon shooting ground.
