Charney Bassett
Encyclopedia
Charney Bassett is a village and civil parish about 4.5 miles (7 km) north of Wantage
and 6 miles (10 km) east of Faringdon
in the Vale of White Horse
. It was part of Berkshire
until the 1974 boundary changes
transferred it to Oxfordshire
.
dredged a prehistoric flint axe-head from the River Ock in the parish.
About 1 miles (1.6 km) north of the village, between Charney and Pusey
is Cherbury Camp
, an Iron Age
earthwork. It looks like the nearby hill fort
s on the Berkshire Downs
but is unusual in being built on more or less level ground, away from any hill. Cherbury means "fort beside the River Cearn". It is larger than Uffington Castle
hill fort.
. The earliest known records of the locality's history records a grant of land to the Abbot
of Abingdon Abbey
in AD 811. The surrounding area was largely marshland and the meaning of Charney is "island in the River Cearn". This was an alternative name for the River Ock
, that runs close by and which supplies the mill stream.
The Church of England parish church
of Saint Peter
is Grade I listed. It has some 12th century parts and a turret containing two medieval chiming bells. Along with the churches of Longworth
, Hinton Waldrist
, Lyford
, Buckland
, Pusey
and Littleworth, it is part of the Benefice of Cherbury with Gainfield
.
On the village green stands a medieval stone pillar mounted upon three steps. This may have been a market cross
where goods could be offered for sale at certain times of the year. A sundial
was later added to the top and this would have been used as the village time-piece. After the First World War
the centre step was replaced with a dressed stone memorial to the fallen, whose names are inscribed thereon.
Charney Manor is a Grade I listed building. It was built in the 13th century as a grange for Abingdon Abbey, which then owned extensive land around the village. It is now owned by the Quakers
.
Charney Water Mill and its adjoining cottage are Grade II listed. The mill is owned by Oxfordshire County Council
and leased to the parish council. The machinery is mainly intact and the mill has been undergoing restoration by the Vale of White Horse Industrial Archaeology Group since about 1975.
The village has several further Grade II listed buildings.
Wantage
Wantage is a market town and civil parish in the Vale of the White Horse, Oxfordshire, England. The town is on Letcombe Brook, about south-west of Abingdon and a similar distance west of Didcot....
and 6 miles (10 km) east of Faringdon
Faringdon
Faringdon is a market town in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England. It is on the edge of the Thames Valley, between the River Thames and the Ridgeway...
in the Vale of White Horse
Vale of White Horse
The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. The main town is Abingdon, other places include Faringdon and Wantage. There are 68 parishes within the district...
. It was part of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
until the 1974 boundary changes
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
transferred it to Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
.
Archaeology
In 1978 Thames WaterThames Water
Thames Water Utilities Ltd, known as Thames Water, is the private utility company responsible for the public water supply and waste water treatment in large parts of Greater London, the Thames Valley, Surrey, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Kent, and some other areas of in the United Kingdom...
dredged a prehistoric flint axe-head from the River Ock in the parish.
About 1 miles (1.6 km) north of the village, between Charney and Pusey
Pusey, Oxfordshire
Pusey is a hamlet and civil parish east of Faringdon in the Vale of White Horse district. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The village is just south of the A420 and the parish covers about ....
is Cherbury Camp
Cherbury Camp
Cherbury Camp is the name given to the 'multi-vallate' hill-fort-like earthworks, situated at , 1 mile to the north of Charney Bassett, in the Vale of White Horse district of Oxfordshire, England. It is joined to the village by a footpath....
, an Iron Age
British Iron Age
The British Iron Age is a conventional name used in the archaeology of Great Britain, referring to the prehistoric and protohistoric phases of the Iron-Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding prehistoric Ireland, and which had an independent Iron Age culture of...
earthwork. It looks like the nearby hill fort
Hill fort
A hill fort is a type of earthworks used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Some were used in the post-Roman period...
s on the Berkshire Downs
Berkshire Downs
The Berkshire Downs are a range of chalk downland hills in southern England, part of the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
but is unusual in being built on more or less level ground, away from any hill. Cherbury means "fort beside the River Cearn". It is larger than Uffington Castle
Uffington Castle
Uffington Castle is all that remains of an early Iron Age hill fort in Oxfordshire, England. It covers about 32,000 square metres and is surrounded by two earth banks separated by a ditch with an entrance in the eastern end...
hill fort.
History
Charney Bassett has been settled since Anglo-Saxon eraHistory of Anglo-Saxon England
Anglo-Saxon England refers to the period of the history of that part of Britain, that became known as England, lasting from the end of Roman occupation and establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th century until the Norman conquest of England in 1066 by William the Conqueror...
. The earliest known records of the locality's history records a grant of land to the Abbot
Abbot of Abingdon
The following is a list of abbots of Abingdon. The Abbey of Abingdon was in northern Berkshire. The site is now in Oxfordshire.-Fictional abbots:Historian Susan E...
of Abingdon Abbey
Abingdon Abbey
Abingdon Abbey was a Benedictine monastery also known as St Mary's Abbey located in Abingdon, historically in the county of Berkshire but now in Oxfordshire, England.-History:...
in AD 811. The surrounding area was largely marshland and the meaning of Charney is "island in the River Cearn". This was an alternative name for the River Ock
River Ock
The River Ock is a small English river which is a tributary of the River Thames. It has as its catchment area the Vale of White Horse, a low-lying and wide valley in South Oxfordshire and flows into the River Thames, at Abingdon on the reach above Culham Lock.-Course:The River Ock rises near the...
, that runs close by and which supplies the mill stream.
Notable buildings and structures
Church of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
of Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
is Grade I listed. It has some 12th century parts and a turret containing two medieval chiming bells. Along with the churches of Longworth
Longworth
Longworth is a village and civil parish about west of Abingdon and a similar distance east of Faringdon and south of Witney. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire...
, Hinton Waldrist
Hinton Waldrist
Hinton Waldrist is a village and civil parish in the Vale of White Horse, England. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The village is between Oxford and Faringdon, southwest of Oxford. The parish includes the hamlet of Duxford.-History:In 1086...
, Lyford
Lyford, Oxfordshire
Lyford is a village and civil parish about north of Wantage. Historically it was part of the ecclesiastical parish of Hanney. Lyford was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred the Vale of White Horse to Oxfordshire.-Manors:...
, Buckland
Buckland, Oxfordshire
Buckland is a village and civil parish about northeast of Faringdon in the Vale of White Horse District. Buckland was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.-Character and geography:...
, Pusey
Pusey, Oxfordshire
Pusey is a hamlet and civil parish east of Faringdon in the Vale of White Horse district. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The village is just south of the A420 and the parish covers about ....
and Littleworth, it is part of the Benefice of Cherbury with Gainfield
Gainfield
Gainfield is a small ribbon development in Buckland civil parish about east of Faringdon in the Vale of the White Horse District of England. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire....
.
On the village green stands a medieval stone pillar mounted upon three steps. This may have been a market cross
Market cross
A market cross is a structure used to mark a market square in market towns, originally from the distinctive tradition in Early Medieval Insular art of free-standing stone standing or high crosses, often elaborately carved, which goes back to the 7th century. Market crosses can be found in most...
where goods could be offered for sale at certain times of the year. A sundial
Sundial
A sundial is a device that measures time by the position of the Sun. In common designs such as the horizontal sundial, the sun casts a shadow from its style onto a surface marked with lines indicating the hours of the day. The style is the time-telling edge of the gnomon, often a thin rod or a...
was later added to the top and this would have been used as the village time-piece. After the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
the centre step was replaced with a dressed stone memorial to the fallen, whose names are inscribed thereon.
Charney Manor is a Grade I listed building. It was built in the 13th century as a grange for Abingdon Abbey, which then owned extensive land around the village. It is now owned by the Quakers
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
.
Charney Water Mill and its adjoining cottage are Grade II listed. The mill is owned by Oxfordshire County Council
Oxfordshire County Council
Oxfordshire County Council, established in 1889, is the county council, or upper-tier local authority, for the non-metropolitan county of Oxfordshire, in the South East of England, an elected body responsible for the most strategic local government services in the county.-History:County Councils...
and leased to the parish council. The machinery is mainly intact and the mill has been undergoing restoration by the Vale of White Horse Industrial Archaeology Group since about 1975.
The village has several further Grade II listed buildings.