Radley
Encyclopedia
Radley is a village and civil parish about 2 miles (3.2 km) northwest of the centre of Abingdon
, Oxfordshire
. The parish includes the hamlet
of Lower Radley on the River Thames
. It was part of Berkshire
until the 1974 boundary changes
transferred it to Oxfordshire.
of Saint James the Great was built in about 1290. The church is built of stone, but unusually its roof is supported by wooden pillars installed by a medieval
Abbot of Abingdon who was told in a vision to "seek [them] in the forest". The present south aisle dates from the 14th century but the chancel
, nave
and bell tower
were rebuilt in the 15th century. The windows contain Royal heraldic
stained glass
from the latter part of the 15th century and from the Tudor period
. In the tower
is a stained-glass portrait believed to represent King Henry VII
. The tower has a ring
of six bells, five of which were cast in 1754.
The church is missing its north aisle and transept
, which were destroyed during the Civil War
. Gouging damage to the church door can be seen and is said to have been caused in an attack by Parliamentarian
troops. There is a fine Renaissance
style monument
to the lord of the manor
, Sir William Stonhouse (died 1632), sculpted by Nicholas Stone
. The canopy over the pulpit
is said to have originally stood behind the Speaker
's chair in the House of Commons
and was given to the church by local man, Speaker William Lenthall
, in 1643. If this is so, it is the canopy from under which Oliver Cromwell
's men dragged Lenthall at the end of the Long Parliament
.
The former vicarage next to the church was built in the 15th century.
held the manor of Radley until the dissolution of the monasteries
in 1538. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth I
, George Stonhouse built a house in Radley Park, but in 1727 the Stonhouse family replaced this with a new mansion
, Radley Hall. Early in the 19th century the house was leased for a time as a Nonconformist
school, and from 1847 it was leased to William Sewell
who founded Saint Peter's College, Radley
. The school is now generally referred to as Radley College.
opened an extension from Didcot
to Oxford, passing through Radley parish. In 1873 the GWR opened Radley railway station
0.5 miles (804.7 m) southwest of the village. It is now served by First Great Western
trains.
. In June 2005 RWE
npower
applied for permission to fill in two more lakes. RWE npower soon withdrew Bullfield Lake from its proposal, but continued with its proposal for the larger Thrupp Lake. Local opposition formed into a protest campaign called Save Radley Lakes. In December 2008 RWE npower finally announced that it "no longer needed" Thrupp Lake and withdrew its application.
primary school, a post office, a village hall and a Women's Institute. There is a public house
, the Bowyer Arms, controlled by Greene King Brewery
. Radley Cricket Club plays in Oxfordshire Cricket Association Division Three.
Abingdon, Oxfordshire
Abingdon or archaically Abingdon-on-Thames is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places that claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town, with...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. The parish includes the hamlet
Hamlet (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 Lower Radley on the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. 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.
Parish church
The Church of England parish churchChurch 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 James the Great was built in about 1290. The church is built of stone, but unusually its roof is supported by wooden pillars installed by a medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
Abbot of Abingdon who was told in a vision to "seek [them] in the forest". The present south aisle dates from the 14th century but the 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...
, 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...
and bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
were rebuilt in the 15th century. The windows contain Royal heraldic
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
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...
from the latter part of the 15th century and from the Tudor period
Tudor period
The Tudor period usually refers to the period between 1485 and 1603, specifically in relation to the history of England. This coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII...
. In the tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
is a stained-glass portrait believed to represent King Henry VII
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
. The tower has a ring
Change ringing
Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuned bells in a series of mathematical patterns called "changes". It differs from many other forms of campanology in that no attempt is made to produce a conventional melody....
of six bells, five of which were cast in 1754.
The church is missing its north aisle and transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
, which were destroyed during the Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. Gouging damage to the church door can be seen and is said to have been caused in an attack by Parliamentarian
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...
troops. There is a fine Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
style monument
Church monument
A church monument is an architectural or sculptural memorial to a dead person or persons, located within a Christian church. It can take various forms, from a simple wall tablet to a large and elaborate structure which may include an effigy of the deceased person and other figures of familial or...
to the 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...
, Sir William Stonhouse (died 1632), sculpted by Nicholas Stone
Nicholas Stone
Nicholas Stone was an English sculptor and architect. In 1619 he was appointed master-mason to James I, and in 1626 to Charles I....
. The canopy over the pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
is said to have originally stood behind the Speaker
Speaker of the British House of Commons
The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the United Kingdom's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is John Bercow, who was elected on 22 June 2009, following the resignation of Michael Martin...
's chair in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
and was given to the church by local man, Speaker William Lenthall
William Lenthall
William Lenthall was an English politician of the Civil War period. He served as Speaker of the House of Commons.-Early life:...
, in 1643. If this is so, it is the canopy from under which Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
's men dragged Lenthall at the end of the Long Parliament
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...
.
The former vicarage next to the church was built in the 15th century.
Radley Hall
Abingdon AbbeyAbingdon 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:...
held the manor of Radley until 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...
in 1538. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth I
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...
, George Stonhouse built a house in Radley Park, but in 1727 the Stonhouse family replaced this with a new mansion
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...
, Radley Hall. Early in the 19th century the house was leased for a time as a Nonconformist
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:...
school, and from 1847 it was leased to William Sewell
William Sewell
William Sewell , English divine and author, was born at Newport, Isle of Wight, the son of a solicitor.He was educated at Winchester and Merton College, Oxford, was elected a fellow of Exeter College in 1827, and from 1831-1853 was a tutor there. From 1836-1841 he was White's Professor of Moral...
who founded Saint Peter's College, Radley
Radley College
Radley College , founded in 1847, is a British independent school for boys on the edge of the English village of Radley, near to the market town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire, and has become a well-established boarding school...
. The school is now generally referred to as Radley College.
Railway
In 1844 the Great Western RailwayGreat Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
opened an extension from Didcot
Didcot Parkway railway station
Didcot Parkway is a railway station serving the town of Didcot in Oxfordshire in England. The station was opened as Didcot on 12 June 1844, and renamed Didcot Parkway on 29 July 1985 to reflect its role as a park and ride railhead....
to Oxford, passing through Radley parish. In 1873 the GWR opened Radley railway station
Radley railway station
Radley railway station serves the villages of Radley and Lower Radley, and the town of Abingdon, both in Oxfordshire, England.-History:The station was built primarily for the boys of Radley College. It was formerly a junction station for a now-dismantled branch to the adjacent town of Abingdon...
0.5 miles (804.7 m) southwest of the village. It is now served by First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
trains.
Radley Lakes
South of the village are current and former gravel pits. The disused pits have flooded, forming a number of lakes. In 1985 the Central Electricity Generating Board began filling some of these lakes with waste ash from Didcot Power StationDidcot Power Station
Didcot Power Station refers to a combined coal and oil power plant and a natural-gas power plant that supply the National Grid. They are situated immediately adjoining one another in the civil parish of Sutton Courtenay, next to the town of Didcot in Oxfordshire , in the UK...
. In June 2005 RWE
RWE
RWE AG , is a German electric power and natural gas public utility company based in Essen. Through its various subsidiaries, the energy company contributes electricity and gas to more than 20 million electricity customers and 10 million gas customers, principally in Europe...
npower
Npower (UK)
RWE Npower plc is a UK-based electricity and gas supply generation company, formerly known as Innogy plc. As Innogy plc it was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index...
applied for permission to fill in two more lakes. RWE npower soon withdrew Bullfield Lake from its proposal, but continued with its proposal for the larger Thrupp Lake. Local opposition formed into a protest campaign called Save Radley Lakes. In December 2008 RWE npower finally announced that it "no longer needed" Thrupp Lake and withdrew its application.
Amenities
Radley has a Church of EnglandVoluntary controlled school
A voluntary controlled school is a state-funded school in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in which a foundation or trust has some formal influence in the running of the school...
primary school, a post office, a village hall and a Women's Institute. There is a public house
Public 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 Bowyer Arms, controlled by Greene King Brewery
Greene King Brewery
Greene King is a British brewery established in 1799 in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. It has grown to become one of the largest British owned breweries in the UK through a series of takeovers which have been the subject of some criticism. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent...
. Radley Cricket Club plays in Oxfordshire Cricket Association Division Three.