The village is mentioned three times in the
Domesday Book of 1086 as Sudtune in the Bulford hundred. At the time of the
Norman Conquest in 1066 the land was split between the manors of Easingwold and Caldenesche. Therefore, there were several lordships, including
Earl Morcar, Gospatric, son of Arnketil, Uthred, Egelfride and Ligulf. Afterward all the land was claimed by the Crown. During the reign of
Henry I some land was granted to Bertram de Bulmer of Sheriff Hutton, and the lands then passed through the descent of the
Neville family. In the 15th century a settlement was made between the Nevills and Lord Fauconberg, to whom the manor passed. The land then passed to
Richard, Earl of Warwick until 1471 when it became forfeit and granted to
Richard, Duke of Gloucester, later to be King Richard III. When Richard came to the throne the lands were maintained by royal bailiffs. In 1629 the manor was sold to the citizens of London while its status was being decided. By 1649 the manor had been granted to
Lord Fauconberg of Newburgh, whose family held it up to the 18th century when it was acquired by the Harland family. In 1863 the manor passed to
Admiral Duncombe, who had married into the family. From 1738 until 1759, the novelist
Laurence Sterne was the Anglican vicar of Sutton. He retired from active ministry to pursue his literary career in 1759, writing the first two volumes of his novel
Tristram Shandy while living in the village. The origin of name is derived from the combination of the
Old English words "sud" and "tun", which combined mean "South Farm". The suffix relates to the village's location in the ancient
Royal Forest of Galtres. From 1941 to 1946, the RAF operated an airfield on the outskirts of the village. It was part of 4 Group, Bomber Command and originally had RAF Squadrons, but then transferred the site to bombers from the
RCAF. ==Governance==