Wardington
Encyclopedia
Wardington is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire
, about 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Banbury
. The village consists of two parts, Lower Wardington and Upper Wardington. The parish includes the hamlet
of Williamscot, about 1 miles (1.6 km) southwest of Wardington.
of 1086 records Wardington as part of the Cropredy
manor of Remigius de Fécamp
, Bishop of Lincoln
.
Between Lower and Upper Wardington is Wardington Manor house, which dates from the middle of the 16th century or possibly earlier. The house was remodelled in 1665 and twice early in the 20th century. From 1917 Wardington Manor was the seat of Baron Wardington
. In 2004 the house was severely damaged by fire but it has since been restored.
of Saint Mary Magdalen has a 12th century chancel
and 13th century nave
. In the 14th century new Decorated Gothic windows were added to the chancel. In the 15th century a clerestory
was added to the nave and a west tower
was built.
The tower has a ring
of six bells. Henry I Bagley of Chacombe cast the oldest in 1669, Henry II Bagley cast the tenor bell in 1682 and Henry II and Matthew I Bagley cast the treble bell in 1685. John Briant of Hertford
cast two more of the bells in 1791 and 1795. John Taylor cast the youngest bell in 1841, presumably at his then foundry in Oxford.
St. Mary Magdalene parish is now part of the Benefice of Shire's Edge along with those of Claydon
, Cropredy
, Great Bourton
and Mollington
.
A congregation of Wesleyans
was established in the village by 1815 and had built a chapel by 1827. In 1894 a larger chapel was built next to the old one, which was sold to the owner of the manor house. The chapel was Methodist
from 1932, and was still open as part of the Banbury Methodist Circuit
in 1964, but has since closed and been converted into private homes.
the Battle of Edgecote Moor
was fought near Wardington. In 1644 during the English Civil War
some of Battle of Cropredy Bridge
was fought at Wardington.
From 1574 Wardington was served by the Free School at Williamscot. The Free School was closed in 1857 but the building survives. By 1833 a school had been established at Wardington itself. This became a National School
and acquired its own purpose-built premises in 1845. After 1947 it became a primary school, with children older than 11 being schooled in Banbury. The school was closed in 1991 and is now a private house.
In 1753 Lower Wardington had three public house
s: the Green Man, the Hare and Hounds and the Wheatsheaf (also called the White Swan and the White Lion). The Green Man seems to have ceased trading by 1787. In 1966 Upper Wardington had two public houses: the Plough and the Red Lion. Today only the Plough and the Hare and Hounds remain in business (see below): the remainder have become private homes.
Wardington Memorial Hall was built in 1920 as a memorial to members of the village who were killed on active service during the First World War
.
s:
Wardington Cricket Club plays in South Northants Cricket League Division Two.
and Byfield
.
Until August 2011 Geoff Amos Coaches of Eydon
operated a bus service between Rugby
and Banbury
via Daventry
, including three stops in Wardington village. The service ran hourly between 7am and 7pm Monday to Friday, with a less frequent service on Saturdays between 8am and 6pm. In April 2011 Northamptonshire County Council reduced its English National Concessionary Travel Scheme
payment to bus operators from 53 pence to 38 pence per passenger and Geoff Amos Coaches warned that this would threaten the viability of its bus services. On 4th August 2011 Geoff Amos Coaches announced the withdrawal of its scheduled bus services with effect from 5th August until further notice.
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, about 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Banbury
Banbury
Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
. The village consists of two parts, Lower Wardington and Upper Wardington. 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 Williamscot, about 1 miles (1.6 km) southwest of Wardington.
Manor
The Domesday BookDomesday 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 records Wardington as part of the Cropredy
Cropredy
Cropredy is a village and civil parish on the River Cherwell, north of Banbury in Oxfordshire.-Early history:The village has Anglo-Saxon origins and is recorded in the Domesday Book...
manor of Remigius de Fécamp
Remigius de Fécamp
Remigius de Fécamp was a Benedictine monk who was a supporter of William the Conqueror.-Early life:...
, Bishop of Lincoln
Bishop of Lincoln
The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
.
Between Lower and Upper Wardington is Wardington Manor house, which dates from the middle of the 16th century or possibly earlier. The house was remodelled in 1665 and twice early in the 20th century. From 1917 Wardington Manor was the seat of Baron Wardington
John Pease, 1st Baron Wardington
John William Beaumont Pease, 1st Baron Wardington , was a British banker.Pease was the son of Helen Maria and John William Pease of Pendower, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and of Nether Grange, Northumberland....
. In 2004 the house was severely damaged by fire but it has since been restored.
Churches
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 Mary Magdalen has a 12th century 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...
and 13th century 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...
. In the 14th century new Decorated Gothic windows were added to the chancel. In the 15th century a clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
was added to the nave and a west 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...
was built.
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. Henry I Bagley of Chacombe cast the oldest in 1669, Henry II Bagley cast the tenor bell in 1682 and Henry II and Matthew I Bagley cast the treble bell in 1685. John Briant of Hertford
Hertford
Hertford is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. Forming a civil parish, the 2001 census put the population of Hertford at about 24,180. Recent estimates are that it is now around 28,000...
cast two more of the bells in 1791 and 1795. John Taylor cast the youngest bell in 1841, presumably at his then foundry in Oxford.
St. Mary Magdalene parish is now part of the Benefice of Shire's Edge along with those of Claydon
Claydon, Oxfordshire
Claydon is a village in Claydon with Clattercot civil parish, about north of Banbury in Oxfordshire. The village is about above sea level on a hill of Early Jurassic Middle Lias clay. Claydon is the northernmost village in Oxfordshire...
, Cropredy
Cropredy
Cropredy is a village and civil parish on the River Cherwell, north of Banbury in Oxfordshire.-Early history:The village has Anglo-Saxon origins and is recorded in the Domesday Book...
, Great Bourton
Great Bourton
Great Bourton is a village about north of Banbury in Oxfordshire, England. It is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Bourton.-History:...
and Mollington
Mollington, Oxfordshire
Mollington is a village and civil parish about north of Banbury in Oxfordshire, England. It has an area of about .-History:Æthelstan Ætheling, eldest son of Æthelred the Unready willed an estate at Mollington to his father in 1014 or 1015...
.
A congregation of Wesleyans
Wesleyan Methodist Church (Great Britain)
The Wesleyan Methodist Church was the name used by the major Methodist movement in Great Britain following its split from the Church of England after the death of John Wesley and the appearance of parallel Methodist movements...
was established in the village by 1815 and had built a chapel by 1827. In 1894 a larger chapel was built next to the old one, which was sold to the owner of the manor house. The chapel was 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...
from 1932, and was still open as part of the Banbury Methodist Circuit
Methodist Circuit
The Methodist Circuit is part of the organisational structure of British Methodism,or at least those branches derived from the work of John Wesley. It is a group of individual Societies or local Churches under the care of one or more Methodist Ministers. In the scale of organisation, the Circuit...
in 1964, but has since closed and been converted into private homes.
Social and economic history
In 1469 during the Wars of the RosesWars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York...
the Battle of Edgecote Moor
Battle of Edgecote Moor
The Battle of Edgecote Moor took place 6 miles northeast of Banbury , England on 26 July 1469 during the Wars of the Roses. The site of the battle was actually Danes Moor in Northamptonshire, at a crossing of a tributary of the River Cherwell. The battle pitted the forces of Richard Neville, 16th...
was fought near Wardington. In 1644 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...
some of Battle of Cropredy Bridge
Battle of Cropredy Bridge
The Battle of Cropredy Bridge was a battle of the English Civil Wars, fought on 29 June 1644 between a Parliamentarian army under Sir William Waller and the Royalist army of King Charles...
was fought at Wardington.
From 1574 Wardington was served by the Free School at Williamscot. The Free School was closed in 1857 but the building survives. By 1833 a school had been established at Wardington itself. This became a National School
National school (England and Wales)
A national school was a school founded in 19th century England and Wales by the National Society for Promoting Religious Education.These schools provided elementary education, in accordance with the teaching of the Church of England, to the children of the poor.Together with the less numerous...
and acquired its own purpose-built premises in 1845. After 1947 it became a primary school, with children older than 11 being schooled in Banbury. The school was closed in 1991 and is now a private house.
In 1753 Lower Wardington had three 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...
s: the Green Man, the Hare and Hounds and the Wheatsheaf (also called the White Swan and the White Lion). The Green Man seems to have ceased trading by 1787. In 1966 Upper Wardington had two public houses: the Plough and the Red Lion. Today only the Plough and the Hare and Hounds remain in business (see below): the remainder have become private homes.
Wardington Memorial Hall was built in 1920 as a memorial to members of the village who were killed on active service during 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...
.
Amenities
Wardington has two 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...
s:
- The Hare and Hounds (Hook Norton BreweryHook Norton BreweryHook Norton Brewery is a regional brewery in Hook Norton, Oxfordshire, England, founded in 1849. The brewing plant is a traditional Victorian "tower" brewery in which all the stages of the brewing process flow logically from floor to floor; mashing at the top, boiling in the middle, fermentation...
) - The Plough
Wardington Cricket Club plays in South Northants Cricket League Division Two.
Transport
The A361 runs through Wardington, with some sharp bends where there has been a number of crashes. Northamptonshire County Council's Transport Prioritisation Framework includes plans for an A361 bypass of Wardington, Chipping WardenChipping Warden
Chipping Warden is a village in Northamptonshire, England about northeast of the Oxfordshire town of Banbury. The parish is bounded to the east and south by the River Cherwell, to the west by the boundary with Oxfordshire and to the north by field boundaries....
and Byfield
Byfield, Northamptonshire
Byfield is a village and civil parish forming part of the Daventry district in Northamptonshire, England.- History :Byfield, with Westhorp, was mentioned in the Domesday Book. It has been close to many of the important events in history. During the Wars of the Roses, in 1469 the battle of Edgecote...
.
Until August 2011 Geoff Amos Coaches of Eydon
Eydon
Eydon is a village and civil parish in South Northamptonshire, England. It is about north-east of Banbury. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 422.-Buildings:...
operated a bus service between Rugby
Rugby, Warwickshire
Rugby is a market town in Warwickshire, England, located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 61,988 making it the second largest town in the county...
and Banbury
Banbury
Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
via Daventry
Daventry
Daventry is a market town in Northamptonshire, England, with a population of 22,367 .-Geography:The town is also the administrative centre of the larger Daventry district, which has a population of 71,838. The town is 77 miles north-northwest of London, 13.9 miles west of Northampton and 10.2...
, including three stops in Wardington village. The service ran hourly between 7am and 7pm Monday to Friday, with a less frequent service on Saturdays between 8am and 6pm. In April 2011 Northamptonshire County Council reduced its English National Concessionary Travel Scheme
English National Concessionary Travel Scheme
The English National Concessionary Bus Travel Scheme is a national scheme by the Department for Transport in conjunction with Local Authorities across England....
payment to bus operators from 53 pence to 38 pence per passenger and Geoff Amos Coaches warned that this would threaten the viability of its bus services. On 4th August 2011 Geoff Amos Coaches announced the withdrawal of its scheduled bus services with effect from 5th August until further notice.