Horton-cum-Studley
Encyclopedia
Horton-cum-Studley is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire
about 6.5 miles (10.5 km) northeast of the centre of Oxford
.
of Studley was originally in two parts: one in Oxfordshire and the other in the Hundred of Ashendon
in Buckinghamshire
. Horton was always part of Oxfordshire. Horton and all of Studley, including the Buckinghamshire part, were originally part of the ancient parish of Beckley
. The Buckinghamshire part of Studley became a separate civil parish, but was then transferred to Oxfordshire under the Reform Act 1832
and the Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
. Meanwhile Horton and the Oxfordshire part of Studley had been separated from Beckley to form the civil parish of Horton-cum-Studley. The two parts of Studley were reunited in 1932, when the Studley and Horton-cum-Studley civil parishes were finally merged.
is derived from the Old English horh-tun meaning "muddy" or "dirty place". The oldest known record of Horton is from the reign of Æthelred the Unready: a charter of 1005-11 that records its agricultural land as five hides
. However, the Domesday Book
of 1086 has no separate entry for Horton as it had been part of the manor
of Beckley
since before the Norman Conquest of England
.
Until the Norman conquest of England
the manor
of Beckley was one of many that belonged to Saxon Wigod
, thegn
of Wallingford. Thereafter ownership of Horton followed the same descent as that of Beckley. After the Norman conquest of England
the Norman baron Robert D'Oyly
acquired Wigod's estates by marriage and then passed a number of them to his brother-in-arms Roger d'Ivry
. Beckley and Horton became part of the Honour
of St. Valery
in the 12th century, were held by the Earls of Cornwall in the 13th century, Hugh le Despenser
and then The Black Prince
in the 14th century and the Crown
in the 15th century. Beckley and Horton passed from Princess Elizabeth
via Sir Walter Mildmay
in 1550 to Sir John Williams, whose descendants were titled Baron Norreys
from 1572 and Earl of Abingdon from 1682. Beckley and Horton were broken up into lots and sold by Viscount Bertie, son of Montagu Bertie, 7th Earl of Abingdon
, in 1919.
, consort of Edward the Confessor
, held the manor of Lesa or Ash. Azor also had the manors of Iffley
in Oxfordshire and Lillingstone Lovell
in Buckinghamshire, and other Oxfordshire landhoodings at Chastleton
and Marsh Baldon
. The Domesday Book in 1086 recorded that Roger d'Ivry held the manor, which was assessed at two hides. Ash followed the same descent as Beckley and Horton until 1300, when they were estates of the Honour of St. Valery.
By 1190 the tenants of the Honour of St. Valery at Ash were the Ash and De Bosco families. Between 1190 and 1213 the two families granted land at either Ash or Marlake (see below) to the Knights Templar
. The Order may have disposed of the land before its dissolution in the 14th century, as the Hundred Rolls
for the Hundred of Bullingdon for 1279 do not record any Templar landholding in Beckley parish.
In 1361 John of Ash enfeoffed
John and Margaret Appleby, the lord and lady of Boarstall
. In 1365 the Applebys granted Ash to trustees, who in turn enfeoffed the manor to a second set of trustees. In 1389 the latter trustees were licenced to alienate
Ash to the Prioress of Studley. John Appleby died in 1371 and Margaret quitclaimed
her rights in 1391.
Studley Priory
is not known, but earliest known record of its existence is from 1176, when Bernard de St Valery
granted half a hide of land at Horton to the priory. Studley's toponym is derived from Old English meaning "pasture for horses". The priory's foundation led to the abandonment of Ash in favour of a new hamlet of Studley that grew up next to the priory. At one time the priory had 50 nuns but by 1445 their number had fallen to nine. In 1520 there were still only 10 nuns and the priory to be significantly in debt. In 1530 the debt was £60 and the buildings were in disrepair.
Under the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Studley Priory surrendered its lands to the Crown
in November 1539, which sold them off in February 1540. John Croke bought the priory's lands at Studley and Horton.
In 1621 another Sir John Croke sold Studley to George Croke, whoreversion
to their son Thomas and thence to other members of their immediate family. Thomas Croke was a Royalist
in the English Civil War
so Parliament sequestered his estates in 1644, but they were discharged in 1646.
Sir Alexander Croke
(1758-1842) succeeded to the estate in 1777. Alexander became a maritime lawyer and was the senior justice of the vice admiralty court
s of Nova Scotia
from 1801: a term of office that included the War of 1812
against the USA. Sir Alexander also wrote satirical verse, many letters and a genealogy of his family. In 1877 Sir Alexander's younger son John Croke sold Studley to John Henderson. In 1953 Studley was still in his family, with his grandson Captain John Henderson being lord of the manor
.
the Preceptory of the Knights Hospitaller
at Sandford-on-Thames
held land at Marlake. The Order was suppressed in England under Henry VIII
and the Crown
seized all its property. John Croke, who had bought Studley Priory's lands in 1542, bought the former Hospitaller estate at Marlake in 1542. In 1877 the Crokes sold Marlake and Studley to John Henderson.
Building of the country house
called Studley Priory began in the 16th century. The house's plan is irregular, which suggests that parts of the Benedictine priory buildings were absorbed into it. The house had been converted to an hotel by 1953 but ceased to be so in 2004.
About 1639 Sir George Croke had the north wing of Studley Priory converted into a chapel. The old village chapel was allowed to fall into disrepair and by 1685 it had fallen down. Villagers worshipped at the new Priory chapel, and the residents of the almshouse
s (see below) were duty bound to do so or else half of their weekly allowance would be stopped.
The Church of England parish church
of Saint Barnabas was built in 1867, apparently on or close to the site of the former village chapel. This made the Priory chapel unnecessary, so when the Croke family sold Studley to John Henderson in 1877 the chapel was converted into a kitchen and offices.
The Gothic Revival architect
William Butterfield
designed St. Barnabas. It is built of yellow brick relieved by red and blue brick detailing. It has a nave
, chancel
, north aisle. St. Barnabas' has no tower but there is a west bell-turret with two bells. The stained glass
windows are by Alexander Gibbs
.
Early in the 19th century there were a number of Protestant Nonconformists
in Horton and Studley, and some of their homes were licenced for them to worship in. The Methodist
chapel was built in 1878.
by 1539, when it was listed among the estates of the priory that had just been dissolved and sold to John Croke. It was recorded on maps in the 17th and 18th centuries and finally on the parish of Beckley's inclosure maps of 1827-31. Its site is recorded by the name Mill Field, at the end of Mill Lane.
Sir George Croke established the Studley Almshouse Charity in 1631 by an indenture
that gave it an income from land at Easington, Buckinghamshire
. The houses were built in 1639 for four local men over 60 years of age and four local women over 50 well reputed for religion, and of good character and conversation". A further endowment to the charity was added by Sir Richard Ingoldsby, Lady Elizabeth Ingoldsby and Alexander Croke in 1668. The Otmoor Inclosure Award of 1825 added two acres and eight perches to the charity's endowment. The number of beneficiaries was reduced to two men and two women in 1880.
In June 1643 during the English Civil War
a force of 500 of Prince Rupert's
cavalry reconnoitred Horton, unsuccessfully searching for an advancing force under the Earl of Essex
. A few days later Essex advanced and unsuccessfully attacked Islip
. After Essex withdrew, a Royalist force from Woodperry returned and drove the sheep off Horton Common.
By 1819 Horton had a schoolmaster and by 1833 it had two small schools. In 1871 there were still two schools, but one had a charitable endowment and had 47 pupils. In 1891 the larger school came under the Church of England parish and had 59 pupils. It was still open in 1952 but by then had only 20 pupils. It has since closed.
Horton had a post office in 1954 but it closed in October 2004.
.
By 1786 Horton had no large inclosures but about 150 small ones covering a total of 90 acres (36.4 ha). A further 460 acres (186.2 ha) continued to be worked as common fields. West Farm at Horton was built in the 17th century.
In 1829 Otmoor was inclosed and some of its land was added to the parish of Beckley, including 262 acres (106 ha) for Horton and 200 acres (80.9 ha) for Studley. In 1831 the parish of Beckley itself was inclosed.
, The Kings Arms, currently trading as The Otmoor Lodge Hotel Bar Restaurant. It also has a village hall
, the Millennium Hall.
There is a Studley Women's Institute and a Horton-cum-Studley Tennis Club.
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
about 6.5 miles (10.5 km) northeast of the centre of Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
.
Civil parish
The hamletHamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of Studley was originally in two parts: one in Oxfordshire and the other in the Hundred of Ashendon
Ashendon
Ashendon is a village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. It is about nine miles west of Aylesbury and seven miles north of Thame....
in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
. Horton was always part of Oxfordshire. Horton and all of Studley, including the Buckinghamshire part, were originally part of the ancient parish of Beckley
Beckley, Oxfordshire
Beckley is a village in the civil parish of Beckley and Stowood, overlooking Otmoor to the north. The village is about northeast of the centre of Oxford. It is noted for its towering TV mast.-Archaeology:...
. The Buckinghamshire part of Studley became a separate civil parish, but was then transferred to Oxfordshire under the Reform Act 1832
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
and the Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
The Counties Act 1844 , which came into effect on 20 October 1844, was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which eliminated many outliers or exclaves of counties in England and Wales for civil purposes....
. Meanwhile Horton and the Oxfordshire part of Studley had been separated from Beckley to form the civil parish of Horton-cum-Studley. The two parts of Studley were reunited in 1932, when the Studley and Horton-cum-Studley civil parishes were finally merged.
Horton
Horton's toponymToponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
is derived from the Old English horh-tun meaning "muddy" or "dirty place". The oldest known record of Horton is from the reign of Æthelred the Unready: a charter of 1005-11 that records its agricultural land as five hides
Hide (unit)
The hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...
. However, the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 has no separate entry for Horton as it had been part of the manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Beckley
Beckley, Oxfordshire
Beckley is a village in the civil parish of Beckley and Stowood, overlooking Otmoor to the north. The village is about northeast of the centre of Oxford. It is noted for its towering TV mast.-Archaeology:...
since before the Norman Conquest of England
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
.
Until the Norman conquest of England
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
the manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Beckley was one of many that belonged to Saxon Wigod
Wigod
Wigod was the eleventh century Saxon thegn or lord of the English town of Wallingford, and a kinsman of Edward the Confessor....
, thegn
Thegn
The term thegn , from OE þegn, ðegn "servant, attendant, retainer", is commonly used to describe either an aristocratic retainer of a king or nobleman in Anglo-Saxon England, or as a class term, the majority of the aristocracy below the ranks of ealdormen and high-reeves...
of Wallingford. Thereafter ownership of Horton followed the same descent as that of Beckley. After the Norman conquest of England
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
the Norman baron Robert D'Oyly
Robert D'Oyly
Robert D'Oyly was a Norman nobleman who accompanied William the Conqueror on the Norman Conquest, his invasion of England. He died in 1091.-Background:Robert was the son of Walter D'Oyly and elder brother to Nigel D'Oyly...
acquired Wigod's estates by marriage and then passed a number of them to his brother-in-arms Roger d'Ivry
Roger d'Ivry
Roger d'Ivry or d'Ivri was an 11th century nobleman from Ivry-la-Bataille in Normandy. He took part in William of Normandy's conquest of England in 1066 and founded the Abbey of Notre-Dame-d'Ivry in 1071...
. Beckley and Horton became part of the Honour
Honour (land)
In medieval England, an honour could consist of a great lordship, comprising dozens or hundreds of manors. Holders of honours often attempted to preserve the integrity of an honour over time, administering its properties as a unit, maintaining inheritances together, etc.The typical honour had...
of St. Valery
Saint-Valery-en-Caux
Saint-Valery-en-Caux is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:A small fishing port and light industrial town situated in the Pays de Caux, some west of Dieppe at the junction of the D53, D20, D79 and the D925 roads...
in the 12th century, were held by the Earls of Cornwall in the 13th century, Hugh le Despenser
Hugh le Despenser, 1st Earl of Winchester
Hugh le Despenser , sometimes referred to as "the Elder Despenser", was for a time the chief adviser to King Edward II of England....
and then The Black Prince
Edward, the Black Prince
Edward of Woodstock, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, Prince of Aquitaine, KG was the eldest son of King Edward III of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault as well as father to King Richard II of England....
in the 14th century and the Crown
The Crown
The Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
in the 15th century. Beckley and Horton passed from Princess Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
via Sir Walter Mildmay
Walter Mildmay
Sir Walter Mildmay was an English statesman who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer of England under Queen Elizabeth I, and was founder of Emmanuel College, Cambridge.-Early life:...
in 1550 to Sir John Williams, whose descendants were titled Baron Norreys
Baron Norreys
The title Baron Norreys of Rycote has been created in the Peerage of England, by writ. The creation was for Henry Norris in 1572. The 2nd Baron Norreys was created Viscount Thame and Earl of Berkshire, both titles became extinct on his death...
from 1572 and Earl of Abingdon from 1682. Beckley and Horton were broken up into lots and sold by Viscount Bertie, son of Montagu Bertie, 7th Earl of Abingdon
Montagu Bertie, 7th Earl of Abingdon
Montagu Arthur Bertie, 7th Earl of Abingdon was an English peer.-Background:He was the fifth child of Montagu Bertie, 6th Earl of Abingdon and Elizabeth Lavinia Vernon-Harcourt.-Family:...
, in 1919.
Ash
Before the Norman Conquest a man called Azor son of Toti, who held alliegance to Edith of WessexEdith of Wessex
Edith of Wessex married King Edward the Confessor of England on 23 January 1045. Unlike most wives of kings of England in the tenth and eleventh centuries, she was crowned queen, but the marriage produced no children...
, consort of Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
, held the manor of Lesa or Ash. Azor also had the manors of Iffley
Iffley
Iffley is a village in Oxfordshire, England, within the boundaries of the city of Oxford, between Cowley and the estates of Rose Hill and Donnington, and in proximity to the River Thames . Its most notable feature is its original and largely unchanged Norman church, St Mary the Virgin, which has a...
in Oxfordshire and Lillingstone Lovell
Lillingstone Lovell
Lillingstone Lovell is a village and civil parish about miles north of Buckingham in Aylesbury Vale the district of Buckinghamshire. The parish adjoins the Northamptonshire boundary and is about south of Towcester in that county. Lillingstone Lovell is about west of Milton Keynes...
in Buckinghamshire, and other Oxfordshire landhoodings at Chastleton
Chastleton
Chastleton is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in Oxfordshire, England, about northeast of Stow-on-the-Wold. Chastleton is in the extreme northwest of Oxfordshire, on the boundaries with both Gloucestershire and Warwickshire.-History:...
and Marsh Baldon
Marsh Baldon
Marsh Baldon is village and civil parish about southeast of Oxford in Oxfordshire.-Parish church:The Church of England parish church of Saint Peter dates from the 12th century. Its 14th century bell tower has a ring of five bells, the oldest of which was cast by John White of Reading in about...
. The Domesday Book in 1086 recorded that Roger d'Ivry held the manor, which was assessed at two hides. Ash followed the same descent as Beckley and Horton until 1300, when they were estates of the Honour of St. Valery.
By 1190 the tenants of the Honour of St. Valery at Ash were the Ash and De Bosco families. Between 1190 and 1213 the two families granted land at either Ash or Marlake (see below) to the Knights Templar
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
. The Order may have disposed of the land before its dissolution in the 14th century, as the Hundred Rolls
Hundred Rolls
The Hundred Rolls are a census of England and parts of what is now Wales taken in the late thirteenth century. Often considered an attempt to produce a second Domesday Book, they are named for the hundreds by which most returns were recorded....
for the Hundred of Bullingdon for 1279 do not record any Templar landholding in Beckley parish.
In 1361 John of Ash enfeoffed
Enfeoffment
Under the European feudal system, enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service. This mechanism was later used to avoid restrictions on the passage of title in land by a system in which a landowner would give land to one person for the use of another...
John and Margaret Appleby, the lord and lady of Boarstall
Boarstall
Boarstall is a village and civil parish in the Aylesbury Vale district of Buckinghamshire, about west of Aylesbury. The parish is on the county boundary with Oxfordshire and the village is about southeast of the Oxfordshire market town of Bicester.-History:...
. In 1365 the Applebys granted Ash to trustees, who in turn enfeoffed the manor to a second set of trustees. In 1389 the latter trustees were licenced to alienate
Alienation (property law)
Alienation, in property law, is the capacity for a piece of property or a property right to be sold or otherwise transferred from one party to another. Although property is generally deemed to be alienable, it may be subject to restraints on alienation....
Ash to the Prioress of Studley. John Appleby died in 1371 and Margaret quitclaimed
Quitclaim deed
A quitclaim deed is a legal instrument by which the owner of a piece of real property, called the grantor, transfers his interest to a recipient, called the grantee. The owner/grantor terminates his right and claim to the property, thereby allowing claim to transfer to the...
her rights in 1391.
Studley
The founding date of the BenedictineOrder of Saint Benedict
The Order of Saint Benedict is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict. Within the order, each individual community maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests...
Studley Priory
Studley Priory, Oxfordshire
Studley Priory was a small house of Benedictine nuns ruled by a prioress, founded before 1176 in the hamlet of Studley, in what is now the village of Horton-cum-Studley, seven miles north-east of Oxford, and in the County of Oxfordshire. In that year it received a grant from Bernard of St. Walery...
is not known, but earliest known record of its existence is from 1176, when Bernard de St Valery
Saint-Valery-en-Caux
Saint-Valery-en-Caux is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:A small fishing port and light industrial town situated in the Pays de Caux, some west of Dieppe at the junction of the D53, D20, D79 and the D925 roads...
granted half a hide of land at Horton to the priory. Studley's toponym is derived from Old English meaning "pasture for horses". The priory's foundation led to the abandonment of Ash in favour of a new hamlet of Studley that grew up next to the priory. At one time the priory had 50 nuns but by 1445 their number had fallen to nine. In 1520 there were still only 10 nuns and the priory to be significantly in debt. In 1530 the debt was £60 and the buildings were in disrepair.
Under the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
Studley Priory surrendered its lands to the Crown
The Crown
The Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
in November 1539, which sold them off in February 1540. John Croke bought the priory's lands at Studley and Horton.
In 1621 another Sir John Croke sold Studley to George Croke, who
Reversion (law)
A reversion is a type of "remainder" interest created when incomplete ownership in property is alienated subject to a condition subsequent. Upon the fulfillment of the condition subsequent, the incomplete possessory rights cease to exist and exclusive ownership returns to the holder of the...
to their son Thomas and thence to other members of their immediate family. Thomas Croke was a Royalist
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
in the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
so Parliament sequestered his estates in 1644, but they were discharged in 1646.
Sir Alexander Croke
Alexander Croke
Sir Alexander Croke was a British judge, colonial administrator and author influential in Nova Scotia of the early nineteenth century....
(1758-1842) succeeded to the estate in 1777. Alexander became a maritime lawyer and was the senior justice of the vice admiralty court
Vice admiralty court
Vice admiralty courts were juryless courts located in British colonies that were granted jurisdiction over local legal matters related to maritime activities, such as disputes between merchants and seamen. Judges were given 5% of confiscated cargo, if they found a smuggling defendant guilty...
s of Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
from 1801: a term of office that included the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
against the USA. Sir Alexander also wrote satirical verse, many letters and a genealogy of his family. In 1877 Sir Alexander's younger son John Croke sold Studley to John Henderson. In 1953 Studley was still in his family, with his grandson Captain John Henderson being lord of the manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
.
Marlake
Before the English ReformationEnglish Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
the Preceptory of the Knights Hospitaller
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
at Sandford-on-Thames
Sandford-on-Thames
Sandford-on-Thames is a village and Parish Council beside the River Thames in Oxfordshire just south of Oxford. The village is just west of the A4074 road between Oxford and Henley.-Early history:...
held land at Marlake. The Order was suppressed in England under Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
and the Crown
The Crown
The Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
seized all its property. John Croke, who had bought Studley Priory's lands in 1542, bought the former Hospitaller estate at Marlake in 1542. In 1877 the Crokes sold Marlake and Studley to John Henderson.
Building of the country house
English country house
The English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a London house. This allowed to them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country...
called Studley Priory began in the 16th century. The house's plan is irregular, which suggests that parts of the Benedictine priory buildings were absorbed into it. The house had been converted to an hotel by 1953 but ceased to be so in 2004.
Chapels and church
Horton and Studley are more than 2.5 miles (4 km) from the church of their ancient parish of Beckley. There is an isolated record of a chaplain serving Horton in the 13th century, but no subsequent records for about the next 300 years However, there is a record from 1553 of a chapel at Horton that had clearly been there for some time.About 1639 Sir George Croke had the north wing of Studley Priory converted into a chapel. The old village chapel was allowed to fall into disrepair and by 1685 it had fallen down. Villagers worshipped at the new Priory chapel, and the residents of the almshouse
Almshouse
Almshouses are charitable housing provided to enable people to live in a particular community...
s (see below) were duty bound to do so or else half of their weekly allowance would be stopped.
The Church of England parish church
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 Barnabas was built in 1867, apparently on or close to the site of the former village chapel. This made the Priory chapel unnecessary, so when the Croke family sold Studley to John Henderson in 1877 the chapel was converted into a kitchen and offices.
The Gothic Revival architect
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
William Butterfield
William Butterfield
William Butterfield was a Gothic Revival architect and associated with the Oxford Movement . He is noted for his use of polychromy-Biography:...
designed St. Barnabas. It is built of yellow brick relieved by red and blue brick detailing. It has a nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
, chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, north aisle. St. Barnabas' has no tower but there is a west bell-turret with two bells. The stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows are by Alexander Gibbs
Alexander Gibbs
Alexander Gibbs was the name of a British firm of several generations of the Gibbs family, who commenced business in 1813 and in 1848 began producing stained glass windows.- See also :* Stained glass* Stained glass - British glass, 1811-1918* Victorian Era...
.
Early in the 19th century there were a number of Protestant Nonconformists
Nonconformism
Nonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
in Horton and Studley, and some of their homes were licenced for them to worship in. The Methodist
Methodist Church of Great Britain
The Methodist Church of Great Britain is the largest Wesleyan Methodist body in the United Kingdom, with congregations across Great Britain . It is the United Kingdom's fourth largest Christian denomination, with around 300,000 members and 6,000 churches...
chapel was built in 1878.
Economic and social history
Studley had a windmillWindmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
by 1539, when it was listed among the estates of the priory that had just been dissolved and sold to John Croke. It was recorded on maps in the 17th and 18th centuries and finally on the parish of Beckley's inclosure maps of 1827-31. Its site is recorded by the name Mill Field, at the end of Mill Lane.
Sir George Croke established the Studley Almshouse Charity in 1631 by an indenture
Indenture
An indenture is a legal contract reflecting a debt or purchase obligation, specifically referring to two types of practices: in historical usage, an indentured servant status, and in modern usage, an instrument used for commercial debt or real estate transaction.-Historical usage:An indenture is a...
that gave it an income from land at Easington, Buckinghamshire
Easington, Buckinghamshire
Easington is a hamlet in the civil parish of Chilton, Buckinghamshire, about north of the Oxfordshire market town of Thame. The hamlet is between the villages of Chilton and Long Crendon and consists of around 30 houses....
. The houses were built in 1639 for four local men over 60 years of age and four local women over 50 well reputed for religion, and of good character and conversation". A further endowment to the charity was added by Sir Richard Ingoldsby, Lady Elizabeth Ingoldsby and Alexander Croke in 1668. The Otmoor Inclosure Award of 1825 added two acres and eight perches to the charity's endowment. The number of beneficiaries was reduced to two men and two women in 1880.
In June 1643 during the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
a force of 500 of Prince Rupert's
Prince Rupert of the Rhine
Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria, 1st Duke of Cumberland, 1st Earl of Holderness , commonly called Prince Rupert of the Rhine, KG, FRS was a noted soldier, admiral, scientist, sportsman, colonial governor and amateur artist during the 17th century...
cavalry reconnoitred Horton, unsuccessfully searching for an advancing force under the Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex was an English Parliamentarian and soldier during the first half of the seventeenth century. With the start of the English Civil War in 1642 he became the first Captain-General and Chief Commander of the Parliamentarian army, also known as the Roundheads...
. A few days later Essex advanced and unsuccessfully attacked Islip
Islip, Oxfordshire
Islip is a village and civil parish on the River Ray, just above its confluence with the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, England. It is about east of Kidlington and about north of Oxford. This village in Oxfordshire is not related to Islip, New York...
. After Essex withdrew, a Royalist force from Woodperry returned and drove the sheep off Horton Common.
By 1819 Horton had a schoolmaster and by 1833 it had two small schools. In 1871 there were still two schools, but one had a charitable endowment and had 47 pupils. In 1891 the larger school came under the Church of England parish and had 59 pupils. It was still open in 1952 but by then had only 20 pupils. It has since closed.
Horton had a post office in 1954 but it closed in October 2004.
Inclosures
A map of 1641 shows that by then inclosure had embraced at least two thirds of the Manor of Studley: 670 acres (271.1 ha). This included only a small proportion of the land around the manor house but a much larger proportion of the land of the former hamlets of Ash and Marlake. Studley Mill Field continued to be cultivated under an open field systemOpen field system
The open field system was the prevalent agricultural system in much of Europe from the Middle Ages to as recently as the 20th century in some places, particularly Russia and Iran. Under this system, each manor or village had several very large fields, farmed in strips by individual families...
.
By 1786 Horton had no large inclosures but about 150 small ones covering a total of 90 acres (36.4 ha). A further 460 acres (186.2 ha) continued to be worked as common fields. West Farm at Horton was built in the 17th century.
In 1829 Otmoor was inclosed and some of its land was added to the parish of Beckley, including 262 acres (106 ha) for Horton and 200 acres (80.9 ha) for Studley. In 1831 the parish of Beckley itself was inclosed.
Amenities
Horton-cum-Studley has a public housePublic house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, The Kings Arms, currently trading as The Otmoor Lodge Hotel Bar Restaurant. It also has a village hall
Village hall
In the United States, a village hall is the seat of government for villages. It functions much as a city hall does within cities.In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building within a village which contains at least one large room, usually owned by and run for the benefit of the local...
, the Millennium Hall.
There is a Studley Women's Institute and a Horton-cum-Studley Tennis Club.