A COUPLE of weeks ago as I was seeking ideas for this column, the news broke that Yorkshire had been hailed as one of the world’s finest tourist destinations to visit during 2014.

It was placed third, being beaten only by the mountains of Sikkim in India, and the barren landscape of The Kimberley on the Western Australian coast.

This accolade, which means that Yorkshire is Europe’s finest travel destination, places it ahead of other famous locations such as the Pyramids, Victoria Falls, Paris, the fjords of Norway and hundreds more which are far too numerous to list here. The claim is made by the travel guide publishers, Lonely Planet.

Those of us, like me, who were born, bred and have worked in Yorkshire (with occasional excursions to foreign parts including London and Lancashire), have always referred to the county as God’s Own Country. In some places, I have seen this written as God’s Own County but there are those amongst us who regard our part of heaven as a country in its own right.

Indeed, Yorkshire is larger in area than some countries consequently that additional accolade may be justified.

We have our own languages, our own flag, our own anthem, some very clear boundaries, an abundance of self-sufficiency, industry and commerce to sustain the population and if Yorkshire had been regarded as a nation rather than a county during the 2012 Olympics, it would have been placed 12th in the medal table.

I have referred to Yorkshire languages in the plural because there is no such thing as a Yorkshire tongue or dialect – there are hundreds; each dale and town has its own special dialect.

Indeed, it may be said that even small villages have their own distinctive speech and linguists with a sharp ear can identify the place from which a speaker comes, even if it is only a small community.

So what makes Yorkshire so appealing despite a prevailing but false cartoon image of flat caps, whippets and uncultured people?

Comments I’ve heard from visitors invariably include the empty spaces that typify Yorkshire, and that includes the long views and empty roads of the three main attractions – the Yorkshire Dales, the North York Moors and the Wolds of the East Riding.

To this I can add praise for our cliffs and coastline, along with beaches that are made of sand, not pebbles, then there are our unspoilt coastal villages such as Robin Hood’s Bay, Staithes and Runswick Bay, not forgetting the busy resorts of Whitby, Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington.

To all this interest and beauty we can add history.

Our part in the nation’s history may be understated, but we can see and visit many reminders – think of Richmond Castle, Scarborough Castle, Helmsley Castle, Pontefract Castle, Skipton Castle, Knaresborough Castle, Whitby Abbey, Fountains Abbey, Rievaulx Abbey, Byland Abbey, Selby Abbey, Ampleforth Abbey and many others, not forgetting the mighty York Minster.

Researching their history and their vital role in our past is always fascinating and revealing.

I recall driving in a test car past the ruins of Byland Abbey when my passenger asked, “What happened to that?”

It took me a long time to explain.

In recent times, I’ve encountered praise for our inns and restaurants – we have more Michelin-starred restaurants than any other county outside London. Our hotels include some of the finest in the country whilst our stately homes can match many others both in this country and overseas. Lots are open to the public.

When visiting our stately homes and their gardens, we can also enjoy some splendid art works both indoors and out, one of our most splendid examples being Castle Howard near Malton but in addition we have some impressive museums and art galleries.

A few months ago we visited The Hepworth in Wakefield, but there are others such as the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Leeds Art Gallery and the Henry Moore Institute.

Among our intriguing smaller museums is Ryedale Folk Museum at Hutton-le-Hole near Kirkbymoorside and the Pannett Museum in Whitby, but we cannot ignore the impressive Castle Museum, Yorkshire Museum, National Railway Museum and Jorvik Centre, all in York.

For those with an interest in gardens, the county can offer some splendid examples.

One of our recent trips was to the Himalayan Garden near Masham and we should not forget a couple of arboretums (arboreta?) with their specialist crops of trees. One is at Thorp Perrow near Bedale and the other is the Yorkshire Arboretum near Castle Howard. This leads me to another accolade for Yorkshire – seven years ago it was named The Garden of England, a title previously held by Kent.

And finally a quote from Yorkshire – “Thoo can allus tell Yorkshire folk, but thoo can’t tell ‘em much.”

THE storm of late October, which caused severe disruption and damage to the southern area of England and Wales, was named after St Jude. The reason given was that he was the patron saint of hopeless causes but also because his feast day falls on October 28, a date he shares with St Simon. It was on that day that the worst of the storm hit Britain.

Jude was one of the apostles and he is sometimes confused with Judas Iscariot, the man who betrayed Christ.

He was not Judas, but he had the alternative name of Thaddeus which is a help when identifying aspects of his life. He is traditionally known as Jude, the brother of James whilst some accounts describe him as the brother of Christ. The latter might be a misinterpretation of history. It is also said he wrote one of the epistles in the New Testament but that has not been proved.

Jude accompanied St Simon to Persia where they were both martyred by being beaten to death with clubs in AD 65. Some accounts suggest Jude was killed with an axe which occasionally appears in images of him. It seems that his life was one of risk and danger, especially because confusion with Judas didn’t make him popular.

For such reasons the Catholic Church honours him as the patron saint of hopeless and desperate cases.

One account of his life says he was so long neglected by the faithful that he was available to show interest in impossible, hopeless or desperate cases. He seems to have made a huge success in that role because even in modern times, “thank you” letters of gratitude to St Jude for “prayers answered” sometimes appear in the personal or family columns of our newspapers whether religious, local or national, The Times in particular.

Now, thanks perhaps to his intercession during the storm that bears his name, there may have been fewer deaths or less damage than forecast, and so his feast day has become part of our meteorological history.