Bampton (Oxfordshire)

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Bampton
Bampton-in-the-Bush
Saint Mary the Virgin Church
Saint Mary the Virgin Church
Coordinates 51 ° 44 ′  N , 1 ° 33 ′  W Coordinates: 51 ° 44 ′  N , 1 ° 33 ′  W
OS National Grid SP315031
Bampton (England)
Bampton
Bampton
Residents 2505 (status: 2001)
administration
Post town Bampton
ZIP code section OX18
prefix 01993
Part of the country England
region South East England
Shire county Oxfordshire
District West Oxfordshire
Civil Parish Bampton
British Parliament Witney
Website: Bampton Oxfordshire

Bampton , also known as Bampton-in-the-Bush , is a village in Oxfordshire , England , in the Thames Valley , about 7 km southwest of Witney . The parish also includes the settlement of Weald and is on the border with the Cotswolds . Bampton is sometimes also described as a city because the place was a market town until the 19th century. Bampton has both a town hall and a parish hall .

history

Bampton's origins go back to the Iron Age and Roman times . The earliest settlement was probably a little east of what is now the center of Bampton, the triangular area that served as a marketplace. Bampton was also an important place in the Saxon times and in the Middle Ages .

St Mary the Virgin Church

Former Bampton Post Office
Tadpole Road Bridge and a Narrowboat

The church of Saint Mary the Virgin (Sankt Marien) dates from the 12th century. It was built in place of a late Anglo-Saxon minster , the tower of which has been preserved. The church tower was built in the 13th century. The church has a stone altarpiece with a representation of Jesus Christ and the apostles (around 1400). William the Conqueror gave the original church building to the Bishop of Exeter , Leofric . Over the centuries, the church has been rebuilt and expanded several times, most recently in 1870 when it received its present form.

The former parish was one of the largest in Oxfordshire and included the parishes of Weald, Lew, Aston, Cote, Shifford, Chimney and Lower Haddon. In 1857 the parish was divided into three parishes: Bampton Proper, Bampton Lew and Bampton Aston, all of which are now part of the combined parish of Bampton with Clanfield. The rectory has a building block on which its year of construction is given as 1546; it was rebuilt in 1799 by Daniel Harris .

traffic

From 1861 to 1961, the place was connected to the railway network via the 3.5 km north of the railway station of "Brize Norton and Bampton", which was on the single-track line Oxford, Witney and Fairford Railway .

At present, the bus routes numbers 18 (Bampton- Oxford ) and 19 ( Carterton -Bampton-Witney) run by the RH bus company through the town .

Over the first time in 1784 mentioned Tadpole Road bridge over the River Thames , the Bampton with Buckland joins, also leads Thames Path .

Social life

A youth center was founded in 1984 to offer children and young people leisure activities. It is located in the former elementary school from the Victorian era . Bampton Skatepark was built for skateboarders and BMX cyclists. Bampton's Garden Association has held two flower shows annually since 1972. A citizens' association was formed in 1993 to maintain and improve the quality of life in the town; In addition, a local environmental protection group has been working since 1989. The Bampton Pumpkin Club was founded as early as 1969 . Every October there is a weighing competition for the pumpkins grown by the participants . A prize will be awarded to the winner, and the pumpkins will be auctioned for charity along with flowers, fruit and vegetables. Finally, Bampton Football Club is a member of the Oxfordshire Football Association.

Others

Probably from the 12th or 14th century - the sources are not clear here - until it was destroyed before 1789, Bampton Castle was located in the village . Parts of it were moved to the Ham Court building , which is listed as a Grade II * architectural monument.

During the Second World War , US troops were billeted in Bampton several times .

In particular, the church of St Mary the Virgin with the surrounding buildings and streets served as the backdrop for the exterior shots of the fictional village of Downton in the English television series Downton Abbey . The place and Bampton Castle were also the setting for the fictional crime stories set in the Middle Ages The Chronicles of Hugh de Singleton by Mel Starr .

The Shill Brook flows west and south of the village. The Highmoor Brook flows into the Shill Brook in the west of the village.

Bampton is the home of Bampton Classical Opera , which specializes in the production of lesser-known classical operas.

literature

Web links

Commons : Oxfordshire  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Nikolaus Pevsner, Jennifer Sherwood: Buildings of England. Oxfordshire. Penguin Books, London 1974, ISBN 0-14-071045-0 , p. 432.