Oxfordshire

Oxfordshire
County
Flag
Motto: Sapere Aude ('Dare to be Wise')[1]
Oxfordshire shown within England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Country	England
Region	South East England
Ceremonial county
Area	2,605 km2 (1,006 sq mi)
– Ranked	22nd of 48
Population (mid-2014 est.)	654,800
– Ranked	35th of 48
Density	251/km2 (650/sq mi)
Ethnicity	95.1% White 1.7% S. Asian
Non-metropolitan county
County council	Oxfordshire County Council http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk
Executive	Conservative
Admin HQ	Oxford
Area	2,605 km2 (1,006 sq mi)
– Ranked	19th of 27
Population	654,800
– Ranked	16th of 27
Density	251/km2 (650/sq mi)
ISO 3166-2	GB-OXF
ONS code	38
NUTS	UKJ14
Unitary   County council area Districts of Oxfordshire
Districts	City of Oxford Cherwell South Oxfordshire Vale of White Horse West Oxfordshire
Members of Parliament	Victoria Prentis (C) David Cameron (C) (Prime Minister) Nicola Blackwood (C) John Howell (C) Andrew Smith (L) Ed Vaizey (C)
Time zone	GMT (UTC)
– Summer (DST)	BST (UTC+1)

Oxfordshire (/ˈɒksfərdʃər/ or /ˈɒksfərdʃɪər/; abbreviated Oxon) is a county in South East England bordering on Warwickshire (to the north/north-west), Northamptonshire (to the north/north-east), Buckinghamshire (to the east), Berkshire (to the south), Wiltshire (to the south-west) and Gloucestershire (to the west).

The county has major education and tourist industries and is noted for the concentration of performance motorsport companies and facilities. Oxford University Press is the largest firm among a concentration of print and publishing firms; the University of Oxford is also linked to the concentration of local biotechnology companies.

The main centre of population is the city of Oxford. Other significant settlements are Banbury, Bicester, Kidlington and Chipping Norton to the north of Oxford; Carterton and Witney to the west; Thame and Chinnor to the east; and Abingdon, Wantage, Didcot, Wallingford and Henley-on-Thames to the south.

The highest point is White Horse Hill, in the Vale of White Horse, reaching 261 metres (856 ft).^[2]

Oxfordshire's county flower is the Snake's-head Fritillary.^[3]

History

Oxfordshire was recorded as a county in the early years of the 10th century and is situated on land between the River Thames to the south, the Cotswolds to the west, the Chilterns to the east and the Midlands to the north, with spurs running south to Henley-on-Thames and north to Banbury.

Historically the area has always had some importance, since it contains valuable agricultural land in the centre of the county. Largely ignored by the Romans, it was not until the formation of a settlement at Oxford in the eighth century that the area grew in importance. Alfred the Great was born across the Thames in Wantage, Vale of White Horse. The University of Oxford was founded in 1096, though its collegiate structure did not develop until later on. The university in the county town of Oxford (whose name came from Anglo-Saxon Oxenaford = "ford for oxen") grew in importance during the Middle Ages and early modern period. The area was part of the Cotswolds wool trade from the 13th century, generating much wealth, particularly in the western portions of the county in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds. Morris Motors was founded in Oxford in 1912, bringing heavy industry to an otherwise agricultural county. The importance of agriculture as an employer has declined rapidly in the 20th century though; currently under one percent of the county's population are involved due to high mechanisation. Nonetheless, Oxfordshire remains a very agricultural county by land use, with a lower population than neighbouring Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, which are both smaller.

Throughout most of its history the county was divided into fourteen hundreds, namely Bampton, Banbury, Binfield, Bloxham, Bullingdon, Chadlington, Dorchester, Ewelme, Langtree, Lewknor, Pyrton, Ploughley, Thame and Wootton.

The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, the main army unit in the area, was based at Cowley Barracks on Bullingdon Green, Cowley.

The Vale of White Horse district and parts of the South Oxfordshire administrative district south of the River Thames were historically part of Berkshire, but were added to the administrative county of Oxfordshire in 1974. Conversely, the Caversham area of Reading, now administratively in Berkshire, was historically part of Oxfordshire as was the parish of Stokenchurch, now administratively in Buckinghamshire.

Economy

This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Oxfordshire at current basic prices published by the Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.^[4]

Politics

Oxfordshire County Council, currently controlled by a Conservative Independent Alliance, is responsible for the most strategic local government functions, including schools, county roads, and social services The county is divided into five local government districts: Oxford, Cherwell, Vale of White Horse (after the Uffington White Horse), West Oxfordshire and South Oxfordshire, which deal with such matters as town and country planning, waste collection, and housing.

Education

Brasenose Lane in Oxford city centre, a street onto which three colleges back.

The University of Oxford's Chemistry Research Laboratory.

Oxfordshire has a completely comprehensive education system with 23 independent schools and 35 state schools. The state schools are from the ages of 11 to either 16 or 18. Only eight schools do not have a sixth form; these are mostly in South Oxfordshire and Cherwell districts.

The county has two universities: the ancient University of Oxford and the modern Oxford Brookes University, both located in Oxford. In addition, Wroxton College, located in Banbury, is affiliated with Fairleigh Dickinson University of New Jersey.

Buildings

The "dreaming spires" of the buildings of the University of Oxford play a large contribution in Oxford being the sixth most visited city in the United Kingdom for international visitors.^[9] Notable University buildings include the Sheldonian Theatre, built 1664–68 to the design of Sir Christopher Wren, and the Radcliffe Camera, built 1737–49 to the design of James Gibbs.

Blenheim Palace close to Woodstock was built by the great architect John Vanbrugh for John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, after he had won the battle of Blenheim. The gardens, which can be visited, were designed by the landscape gardener "Capability Brown", who planted the trees in the battle formation of the victorious troops. In the palace, which can also be visited by the public, Sir Winston Churchill was born in 1874.

Chastleton House, on the Gloucestershire and Warwickshire borders, is a great country mansion that was built on property bought from Robert Catesby, who was one of the men involved in the Gunpowder Plot with Guy Fawkes. Stonor Park, another country mansion, has belonged to the recusant Stonor family for centuries.

Mapledurham House is an Elizabethan stately home in the far south-east of the county, close to Reading.

Settlements in Oxfordshire

Wantage Market Place

• Abingdon (in Berkshire until 1974)
• Banbury
• Bicester
• Burford
• Carterton
• Charlbury
• Chinnor
• Chipping Norton
• Didcot (in Berkshire until 1974)
• Faringdon (in Berkshire until 1974)
• Henley-on-Thames
• Islip
• Kidlington
• Oxford
• Thame
• Wallingford (in Berkshire until 1974)
• Wantage (in Berkshire until 1974)
• Watlington
• Witney
• Woodstock

Settlements by population

Places of interest

Key
	Abbey/Priory/Cathedral
	Accessible open space
	Amusement/Theme Park
	Castle
	Country Park
	English Heritage
	Forestry Commission
	Heritage railway
	Historic House
	Museum (free/not free)
	National Trust
	Theatre
	Zoo

See also

• Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire
• High Sheriff of Oxfordshire
• Oxford University (including links to the individual colleges).
• Oxford Canal
• Dr. Thomas Hinde, born in Oxfordshire and personal physician to Patrick Henry.

References

Further reading

• Philip Powell – The Geology of Oxfordshire (Dovecote Press, 2005) ISBN 1-904349-19-6

External links

Look up Oxfordshire in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Oxfordshire.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Oxfordshire.

• Oxfordshire County Council
• Thisisoxfordshire Oxfordshire news, sport & information
• The Oxfordshire Association
• Flags of Oxfordshire
• Visit South Oxfordshire
• Banbury & District National Trust Association
• Images of Oxfordshire at the English Heritage Archive
• Oxfordshire at DMOZ

Neighbouring counties

	Warwickshire	Warwickshire, Northamptonshire	Northamptonshire
	Gloucestershire		Buckinghamshire
		Oxfordshire
	Wiltshire	Berkshire	Berkshire

Ceremonial county of Oxfordshire Oxfordshire Portal Boroughs or districts District of Cherwell City of Oxford District of South Oxfordshire District of the Vale of White Horse District of West Oxfordshire Major settlements Abingdon Banbury Bicester Burford Carterton Charlbury Chipping Norton Didcot Faringdon Henley-on-Thames Oxford Thame Wallingford Wantage Watlington Witney Woodstock See also: List of civil parishes in Oxfordshire Topics Flag Parliamentary constituencies County Council elections* Places Sites of Special Scientific Interest Places Schools Country houses Grade I listed buildings History Lord Lieutenants High Sheriffs Museums

Districts of South East England Berkshire Bracknell Forest Reading Slough West Berkshire Windsor and Maidenhead Wokingham Buckinghamshire Aylesbury Vale Chiltern Milton Keynes South Bucks Wycombe East Sussex Brighton and Hove Eastbourne Hastings Lewes Rother Wealden Hampshire Basingstoke and Deane East Hampshire Eastleigh Fareham Gosport Hart Havant New Forest Portsmouth Rushmoor Southampton Test Valley Winchester Isle of Wight Isle of Wight Kent Ashford Canterbury Dartford Dover Gravesham Maidstone Medway Sevenoaks Shepway Swale Thanet Tonbridge and Malling Tunbridge Wells Oxfordshire Cherwell Oxford South Oxfordshire Vale of White Horse West Oxfordshire Surrey Elmbridge Epsom and Ewell Guildford Mole Valley Reigate and Banstead Runnymede Spelthorne Surrey Heath Tandridge Waverley Woking West Sussex Adur Arun Chichester Crawley Horsham Mid Sussex Worthing

Coordinates: 51°45′N 1°17′W / 51.75°N 1.28°W / 51.75; -1.28