Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 3.djvu/162

Rh OXFORD-ROAD. 150 OXFORD SHIRK. the University of Oxford," also ediietl l>y Gutch, and printed at the Clarendon in 1786 ; and Ingrain's " Me- morials of Oxford" (which contains engravings of the various colleges, halls, public institutions, and various objects of interest in the University and city), in 3 vols., 4to., published at Oxford in 1837. OXFORD-ROAD, a station on the Manchester, War- rington, and Liverpool section of the London and North-Western railway, three quarters of a-mile from Manchester. OXFORDSHIRE, an inland co. of England, lying in the S. part of the island. It is situated between Sl 28', and 52 10' N. lat., and between 50', and 1 44' W. long. It is bounded on the S. by Berkshire and the river Thames, on the E. by Buckinghamshire, on the N.E. by Northamptonshire and the river Cherwell, on the N.W. by Warwickshire, and on the W. by Glouces- tershire. In form it approaches a quadrilateral figure, and extends in length about 50 miles from N. to S., and in breadth about 30 miles in its widest part. It is about 180 miles in circuit, and comprises an area of 76G square miles, or about 472,887 statute acres, inhabited by a population of 172,266, according to the census of 1861, against 170,459 in 1851, showing an increase of 1,827 in the decennial period. In the earliest period of our his- tory this district belonged to the two Celtic nations, the Catyeuchlani and the Dobuni ; of whom the former held the eastern, and the latter the western parts. The Dobuni were subject to the Catyettchlani, and speedily submitted to the Romans on their arrival under Aulus Plotius, the Proprietor. Under the Roman dominion it was included in that division of the island which was named Flavia Casariensis. The whole county is inter- sected by ancient roads, many of which are of Roman origin. After the withdrawal of the Romans, the county became part of the kingdom of Mercia under the Saxons, who called it Oxenfordscyre, It contained many Danish settlements in various parts from the 9th to the llth century. When the kingdom was divided in 1016 be- tween Canute and Edmund Ironside, this county appears to have been included in Canute's share ; and about this time two great councils, or assemblies of English and Danes, were held at Oxford. At the time of the Norman conquest, Oxfordshire was included in the earldom of Gurth, the brother of Harold. In the reign of Richard II., Robert de Vere, Earl of Oxford, was defeated at Radcot Bridge, near Bampton, by the insurgent nobles in 1387. A great conflict took place in the wars of the Roses in 1469, near Baubury, when the Earl of Pembroke, com- mander of the Yorkists, was defeated, and taken by the northern Lancastrians, under Robinof Redesdale. During the Great Rebellion, Oxfordshire was the scene of some of the severest struggles. The University, like that of Cambridge, took the king's side, and testified its devotion by giving up its plate for the royal service. Abingdon, in the adjoining county of Berkshire, was the head- quarters of the Parliamentarians, from whence they frequently sallied forth and harassed the besieged city of Oxford. The surface of this county is mostly level, or gently undulating. In the W. a long range of hills runs in a northerly direction from the left bank of the Evenlode to Chipping Norton, and thence eastward towards Deddington. On the S. the southern projection of the county is occupied by the Chiltern hills, extend- ing across it fromBuckinghamshire to Berkshire. Nettle- bed Hill, 2 miles E. of Nuffield, rises to an elevation of 820 feet, while Nuffield Common is 757 feet high. Broom Hill, the most north-western point in the county, is 836 feet high. The Chiltern hills were formerly covered by a forest of beech-trees, which has to a large extent disappeared, and the surface thus cleared has been converted into arable land, or into extensive sheepwalks. Another range of hills lies to the E. of Oxford, between the Cherwell and the Thames, the highest of which, Shotover Hill, rises to an elevation of 599 feet, and com- mands an extensive prospect over the city and univer- sity of Oxford. The principal rivers of this county arc the Isis, the Cherwoll, the Evenlode, the Thame, and the Windrush. The Isis enters Oxfordshire from Glou- cestershire at Lechlade, where the navigation commences, vessels of 90 tons being able to reach this point. After a very sinuous course it passes Oxford, where it receives the Cherwell, and finally leaves the shire at Henley. The Cherwell, rising in Northamptonshire, enters the county near Claydon, about 9 miles from its source, and after flowing for 30 miles in a southerly direction past Banbuiy, reaches Oxford, where its waters unite with those of the Isis. This stream is not navigable, but it receives several small tributaries in its course, such as the Sorbrook, the Ray, and others. The Evenlode, rising in Worcestershire, flows for 22 miles in a south- easterly direction through Oxfordshire, and falls into the Isis near Ensham. The Thame has its source in Buck- inghamshire, and enters this county near the town of Thame, and after skirting the border for some distance, flows through the county till it joins the Thames at Dorchester. The Windrush rises in the Cotswold Hills, and, entering Oxfordshire, passes by Witney and Bur- ford, and finally falls into the Isis. The Oxford canal, the only one in the shire, enters it some distance N. of Banbury, and follows the valley of the Cherwell to Oxford, where it unites with the Isis. By means of this canal and the Isis, Oxfordshire possesses communication by water with every part of England. The climate of this county, though generally considered healthy, is rather colder than other southern parts of England. The elevated land in the north-western part, near the Chiltern hills, is particularly bleak and exposed. The soil is various, but the greater part of the land is com- paratively fertile. The stonebrash district, extending from the borders of Gloucestershire to the N. of Oxford and Witney, is inferior in fertility to the red loam dis- trict, being formed of sandstone and decomposed chalk. The low-lying lands in the river valleys are mostly covered with luxuriant herbage, and afford good pasture for large herds of cattle. A great portion of the soil is under cultivation as arable land, and produces large crops of turnips, wheat, beans, clover, and barley. The cows kept on the Oxfordshire farms are of various breeds, the Alderney and Devonshire being the most common. The breeds of sheep are chiefly the Southdown and Lei- cester, and crosses between these and the Cotswold. Oxfordshire is divided for civil purposes into 14 hun- dreds, as follows viz. Bampton, Banbury, Binfield, Bloxam, Central and East Bullingdon, Chadlington, Dorchester, Ewelme, Langtree, Lewknor, Pirton, Plough- ley, Thame, Wootton, together with the city and liberties of Oxford. The county contains abont 273 parishes, and forms the archdeaconry of Oxford, in the diocese of Canterbury, and has 11 market towns viz. Oxford, the county town and seat of a university, Banbuiy, Woodstock, Bicester, Chipping Norton, Thame, Witney, Henley, Bampton, Burford, and Watlington. The county is divided into nine Poor-law Unions viz. those of Bampton, Banbury, Bicester, Chipping Norton, Head- ington, Henley, Thame, Witney, and Woodstock. There are seven County-Court districts Oxford, Banbury, Woodstock, Bieester, Chipping Norton, Thame, and Wit- noy. Oxfordshire is in the home military district and the Oxford circuit. ,The assizes are held at Oxford, where the county gaol and house of correction stand. Quarter sessions are held at Oxford and Banbuiy. Three representatives are returned to parliament by the county, two by the University, two by the city of Oxford, and one by Woodstock. The county election takes place at Oxford. The local government is vested in a lord- lieutenant, and custos, high sheriff, about 40 deputy- lieutenants, and 160 magistrates. The University has separate jurisdiction over its own members, and also exercises a superiority over the city of Oxford, which has a separate court of quarter sessions. Oxfordshire is not the seat of any important manufactures. Blankets are made at Witney, shag at Banbuiy, and gloves and polished steel at Woodstock. Some lace-making is aho carried on by the country women. There is a largo printing establishment at Oxford, a great number of erudite books being annually printed by the University press. The chief railway in this shire is the Great