Celebrations were being held across the county today in honour of Yorkshire Day.

Now in its 38th year, the day was launched by The Yorkshire Ridings Society in 1975 to revel in the very best of the county after the introduction of new local government boundaries.

In York, society members were to carry the Yorkshire flag round the walls – by tradition, the boundaries of the ridings run to the walls, so by walking out of three of the bars it is possible to read the Yorkshire ‘‘declaration of integrity’’ in each Riding. At Monk Bar the reading is inside for the city.

The Deputy Lord Mayor of York, Coun Keith Hyman, was to read the final declaration in Parliament Street at 1pm.

The Lord Mayor, Coun Julie Gunnell, and the civic party would be joining the regional celebrations in Skipton for a civic parade, a church service and lunch.

Coun Gunnell said: “The event promises to be a huge celebration of all things Yorkshire and will be particularly poignant as the county is less than one year away from hosting the largest annual sporting event in the world, the Tour de France.”

Yorkshire MEP Timothy Kirkhope said Yorkshire’s economic recovery – ahead of all other regions except London and the South East – was just one reason to celebrate.

He also cited the success of Yorkshire athletes at the Olympics, the recent sunny Great Yorkshire Show and the anticipation of Le Grand Depart Yorkshire, which is expected to bring up to £100m into the local economy.

August 1 is also Swiss Day, making it a double celebration for Bettys, which was founded in 1919 by Swiss confectioner and chocolatier Frederick Belmont, who settled in the county and married a Harrogate girl.

Experts from Bettys Craft Bakery were to be at their tea rooms in St Helen’s Square from 10am to noon and in Stonegate from 1pm to 3pm, where customers would be able to watch them decorating hand-dipped Fondant Fancies with a special edition Yorkshire White Rose.

Richard III, played by Chris Cade, would be at the Yorkshire Museum to give his seal of approval to the 18-carat gold replica of a Richard III boar badge, which has been commissioned by the museum and is up for auction. He would then be entertaining visitors from Monday until August 25 to recount Richard III’s rise and fall.