A DAMAGED memorial marking the site of The Battle of the Standard just north of Northallerton has been repaired.

The stone obelisk was vandalised last spring when thieves stole its bronze shield and metal plaque.

Repairs had been delayed because of a wrangle among local councils over who was responsible for maintaining the monument.

A working group was set up last year and Hambleton District Council agreed to fund the £3,670 repairs, boosted with a £1,000 grant from North Yorkshire County Council.

Some of the money will be spent on improving the site for visitors, which will include a new information board offering further details of the battle and an extended lay-by.

The leader of the district council, Councillor June Imeson, said: "The damage to this obelisk outraged a lot of people.

"We have been working hard to see it returned to its former glory, as well as improving the area around it.

"This is an important part of Northallerton's history and it is important that it is preserved for everyone to see."

The obelisk marks one of only 42 sites in Britain that are included in the English Heritage register of battlefields.

The Battle of the Standard took place in 1138, when an army of Yorkshiremen, raised by Archbishop Thurstan of York, defeated the invading hordes of King David I of Scotland. The fight is thought to have claimed 12,000 lives.