The village of Horton is one of the seven towns of Otmoor, and Studley, with its Priory, only became attached to it later. Both are in Bullingdon Hundred that included Stanton St John, Stowood, Beckley and villages to the west plus an unconnected area of Merton, Ambrosden and Piddington. Islip, Noke, Oddington and Charlton were in the Ploughley Hundred. Hundreds were the main administrative areas until the 19th century and have since been replaced by District Councils. The village of Horton cum Studley was once partly in Oxfordshire and partly in Buckinghamshire until 1882. The enclosure act of 1827 puts the Oxfordshire part as Horton and Studley Bucks over the border. The enclosure act of the parish of Beckley did not include Studley. The county border was then nearer the village and followed the lane from Brill Road to Gardener's Barn.
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An earlier small settlement known as Ash or Asham (Atunash - at the ash tree) existed at one time in the Buckinghamshire part. but this has entirely disappeared. Horton and Studley were originally in Beckley Parish. Following the 1881 census the acreages were recorded with Beckley 3,620 acres, Horton cum Studley 1,287 acres and Studley (Bucks), 952 acres. (Kelly’s Dir. Oxon. 1920). In 1844 Studley Bucks was transferred to Oxfordshire. This included part of Whitecross Green woods and the hamlet of Whitecross Green.
The boundaries were revised in 1932 when 2,194 acres of Beckley were transferred to Fencott & Murcott.
The county border prior to 1882 was the stream that went from near Studley Farm House down onto Otmoor. The stream still exists mainly as a ditch crossed by a single plank when crossed from Mill Lane.
There are signs of Roman occupation on top of the hill near the old county boundary where fragments of Roman tiles can be found while a Roman lamp with five coins from the third century have been found by visitors with metal detectors about 100 yards from Gardener’s Barn house. The lamp and coins are believed to be with the British Museum. The Otmoor area had a number of Roman settlements with the Temple at Woodeaton and significant buildings in the Noke - Islip area. Roman pottery was made near Noke and there were probably other settlements yet to be discovered. A Roman round crossed Otmoor from the south to the town of Alchester near Bicester.
Fragment of a Roman almost 30mm thick found at the site of the Horton windmill. This is the type of tile used in substantial buildings and was thrown up by badgers from their set.
There were also Saxon settlements with a village at Woodperry near the house, and Asham may also have originally been a Saxon settlement. The name of Beckley is Saxon for lea of Becca or beck.
At the time of the Norman Conquest, Horton and Ashe were probably small settlements surrounded by forest to the south, east and north and Otmoor to the west. It is probable that in Roman times, Otmoor was much drier as they built their road from Dorchester to Alchester across the moor. It has been suggested that the water level rose after an earthquake in 1666. This seems a little unlikely as there is no sign of any occupation of the area and the villages and lanes were established before that date.
The name Otmoor is supposed to be derived from Otta’s Moor but no documentary evidence of this can be found. It is probable that Otmoor was a wet area before the Norman Conquest otherwise it is unlikely to have been given the pre-conquest name of Otta’s Moor.
The first record of Otmoor by name appears in an undated charter drawn up between 1006 and 1011 by which King Æthelred II granted to a Dane called Toti five mansi at Hortun and one at Beccalege (Horton and Beckley?). This was preserved in the Red Book of Thornley. The bounds of the lands are described as: " ... up of there ealden ea in to ottanmere. Of ottanmere thuyrsover bugenroda. of bugeroda into maer mer. of mearmere on merthorn .. "
Bugenroda may be the Roman road and Maerthorn or Maermere may have been Marlake. The lands were probably what is now Horton cum Studley, Beckley and Whirtecross Green, west to the Roman road. This is also the first mention of Horton or Hortun as a village.
The Roman occupation goes back to at least AD95 following dendrochronological examination of piles at a crossing point on the river Ray. In the Roman period up to AD410 bronze and Iron metal work would have been carried out and pottery made locally. Maybe Tile Close, named on the 1641 map, may have been the area where tiles were made. From the Roman tiles found it is likely that there were substantial Roman period buildings on the high ground while subsistence farming took place on the fertile area of Horton. Fresh water shellfish were certainly on their menu as many shells can be found in the area.
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Roman Coins and brooches found in the area of Ash in September 2000. The coins are mostly from Constantinus (wearing helmet) and two are earlier.
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Detail of one of the silver coins a Dinaris from the reign of Faucina
Fragments of Mediaeval Tiles found near the site of Ash Hall in the area of Little Marchams that may have been the site of the Mill House. The upper fragments were found about 100 yards from the lower, and from the location of other debris there were probably two buildings in the area.
Asham can never have been a big village and the “Hall” probably consisted of a main room reaching to the roof with a hole for the smoke from the fire to escape. There may have been one or two other rooms. The house was probably made of timber with wattle and daub in filling although stone could also have been used as there are the remains of a small quarry nearby and there are signs of stone at the probable site as well as brick fragments. Like the Priory, the façade could have been stone with the rest of brick.
Before the Norman Conquest Ash had been held by Azor, son of Titi, Queen Edith’s man (VCH Bucks) who had also held Ifley and other areas. Like Beckley, Ash became part of the honor of St Valery. At the time of the Doomsday book, the village of Studley or Ash was in 1086, held by Roger d’Ivry. Roger d’Ivry held 2 hides of land at ‘Lesa (Ash) and Picot held of him, with 2 serfs on the demesne and 4 villeins and 2 bordars. (Beckley itself had 6 serfs on the demesne, 11 villeins and 6 bordars (A smallholder) making the combined village of about 100 persons). (A Vellein is a Norman term for a tenant of manorial land) Ash therefore had four farms and six smallholdings and probably covered the area marked in the 1641 as Asham Mead, Asham Marsh and Asham Mead as well as lands around Hall Close. The doomsday book records a wood at Beckley and one at Ash for 200 swine. The latter may be Priors Wood (part of Whitecross Green) at Studley. At one time the woodland in the area of Studley Wood Golf Club was more extensive and formed part of Henry II’s hunting park.
At the Norman conquest and until
1884, most of Ash or Asham was in Buckinghamshire as a part of the Hundred of
Ashendon. There is no evidence that it was ever included in the parish of
Boarstall, although the map in the Victoria County History for Buckinghamshire (VCH)
suggest that was the case.
As Asham is not mentioned
in the Doomsday book for Buckinghamshire (or does not have a single mention in
the VCH) suggests that the hamlet was of little significance at the time.
It maybe that as Asham was on the Oxford side of Bernwood Forest and only
easily accessible from Oxford Direction, it was not considered a part of
Buckinghamshire by the lords of Boarstall or Brill, especially as Asham had been
granted to other lords of the manor.
Boarstall in turn had
previously been in the Parish of Brill. Only Brill is mentioned in the
Doomsday book as the Manor of Brunhalle. Boarstall is mentioned after
1213, probably within the serjeanty of Bernwood Forest, known as Burchestala.
When Boastall Tower and manor was built in about 1312 by John Handlo it was
called Burcstall or Borgstall and later Borstall. It was not known as
Boarstall until 16th Century.
Boarstall Tower was
not fortified until much later but that is another story.
Bernwood Forest was granted to "Neil" by Edward the Confessor, and this included Boarstall. Part of the forest that is now part of Whitecross Green Woods was granted to Oriel Cottage in 1586 and the Victoria County History for Buckinghamshire suggests that Old and New Arngrove fields along with Stonehouse fields were enclosed before 1577. There were also habitations at Pauncehall (Paunsale or Pancell), in the Forest of Bernwood. The name is now retained as "Panshill".
There was occupation since the Roman period and Roman pottery, tiles and glass fragments can also be found in the area of Ash and Horton, along with thousands of oyster shells, once the diet of the peasants. The Roman fragments were found on the site where the windmill once stood. Not that the windmill was Roman but because it stood on the highest point that was chosen for a Roman building. There are also signs of smelting at the site.
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Possible locations of the buildings in Ash area prior to the 17th century showing the location of Ash Hall. The lane from the hall leads down to what is now the end of Mill Lane carrying on to Asham Marsh. The circle to the east of Gardener's is marked on the map in the VCH as the presumed site of Asham.
Marlake now a part of Murcott, (or Moorcot) was a part of Ash and Studley. Merelake was formerly part of the preceptory of St John of Jerusalem at Sandford. It is possible that the Hospitaller’s estate at Marlake in Ash was part of lands granted to the Templars between 1190 and 1212 by the Ash and De Bosco families. The Templars had probably left the lands before 1279; for the Hundred Rolls do not record that they have any holdings in Beckley parish. The Croke family described Marlake as a separate manor.
In the 13th century we see fields being divided, The Terrier (a written description of landed property by acreages and boundaries) records that Horton fields to the southwest to the northeast had been divided into smaller fields Westfield, Morefield, Eastfield (later known as Ash field). In 1292 two enclosures were called Newland and Northcroft and two open fields at Ash (Esses), Essemfield (Later Ashamfield) and Holdburyfield, later to become Great and Little Oberry. There were also several crofts and enclosures. At Marlake, in the manor of Ash, there was common land at White Cross Green and assards (Land cultivated out of felled woodland) from Otmoor and Bernwood (Fattingsacre, Blackred, Middlefurlong, Betneeshall, Six Acres) and two strips called East and West Stoneyfield later to become the Mill Field in Studley.
According to The History of Oxfordshire (V. C. H.) there are some 13th century references to the lord’s mill referring to the mill at Beckley and also another mill at Horton. The vicar had a “Mill House” in the vicarage grounds of the 17th century Studley Mill, which John Croke acquired with the priory estates in 1539. This “Mill House” is not shown on the 1641 map and presumably was demolished. This may have been a house in “Ash” and may have been the house below the Windmill where medieval tiles have been found. Marlake was also an early settlement (now Murcott) and the name survives as Marlake Lane and Marlake House (once a public house) and Nash End on the OS map.
Between 1190 and 1200 three brothers, John, William and Walter of Ash held the manor of the St Valery’s and another part was held by their kinsman William de Bosco whose lands in Ash were assessed at 4 carucates in 1220. (carucate – originally a Danelaw area of plough land assessed for taxation between 160 & 180 acres but by 1086 it had come to mean a unit of taxation).
In 1242-3 John of Ash held the manor of Richard of Cornwall of the fee of Beckley. In 1278-9 Nicholas of Ash held 10 virgates there of Edmund of Cornwall by military service. (virgate - usually a quarter of a hide, about 30 acres of arable land scattered among the common fields of the manor but could vary, sometimes known as a yardland). It can be assessed that Ash covered an area of 300 acres and this will have covered the area that includes Studley.
It was during this period that the only surviving house in the village from the 13th century was built. The Old Weir is the oldest house in Horton cum Studley and probably in Oxfordshire with cruck construction dated to about 1250. Side Purlins and Wind Brace can be seen in the bedrooms with the Cruck Blades visible downstairs.
Internal view of The Old Weir
The prioress of Studley Priory, William Lock and Peter of Ash were tenants at Ash for 6 of the 10 virgates. In 1300 Nicholas of Ash’s lands were described as three parts of a knights fee belonging to the honor of St Valery.
Neil of Ash was said to hold Ash with Marlake in 1316. Roger, son of Nicholas of Ash, is mentioned in 1323 and the manor passed to Roger’s son John, who in 1361 “enfeoffed” (passed over the land) to John Appleby, Lord of Boarstall and his wife Margaret, granddaughter of Sir John de Hadlow. In 1389 Ash was passed to the Prioress of Studley who held the lands until the sale of the Priory to John Croke in 1539.
Asham Hall had disappeared by 1641. The Hall probably went into disuse after the lands had passed to the priory in 1389 and the stone and bricks used to extend the Priory buildings. It is not surprising that little remains, although remains of foundations could be seen until the 1970s when they were destroyed when the land was ploughed. The original hand made bricks in the domestic area of Studley Priory have yellow streaks the same as found on brick fragments from the area of “Ash”. There is some doubt about exactly when the Hall and other buildings were demolished as 17th century tiles and pottery can be found on the site.
Firstly we need to know where is the boundary between Horton and Studley. The clearest definition is given in the 1827 enclosure act of the Parish of Beckley. A copy is held in the county record offices in Cowley. It clearly defines Horton as the Oxfordshire part in the parish of Beckley, and Studley being over the border in Buckinghamshire. The border then being the lane from the Brill Road to Gardener's barn then the stream flowing down to Otmoor. So why was Studley Priory not called Horton Priory? It could be that the lands given to the prioress was half in Buckinghamshire, and maybe they first used the buildings at Asham, Bucks. However that is speculation. The 19th century censuses talk of Studley, Bucks but after a county boundary change in the late 19th century (the act preceded the actual acceptance of the border changes and there is no evidence as to exactly when the Studley became part of Horton). Latterly it has been assumed that Horton is the area west of Mill Lane and the Oxford Road, corresponding to the original Earl of Abingdon's estate, and Studley to the east, corresponding to the original Priory estate. This clearly is not true.
The interesting fact is that there is no mention of Studley (or Asham) in the Buckinghamshire county history or any document in the Aylesbury library. There is mention in the Oxfordshire County History (VCH Oxfordshire). It seem therefore that although Studley was in Buckinghamshire and because the Prioress and later owners of the Priory administered the village that it became a de-facto part of Horton from early times.
Horton had
a number of owners from the time of the Norman Conquest.
The map of the Parish taken from the 1641 map and later OS Maps
The barony passed to John de St. John and Roger St. Valery, either jointly or in turn, but it is likely that it came to them with an Ivry heiress or heiresses. Roger (II) d’Ivry had a sister, Adeline, but little is known of her history. Reynold of St. Valery supported Empress Maud against King Stephen in the civil wars, and in 1158 went on crusade. He died probably in 1166-7 and was succeeded by his eldest son Bernard, who in 1166-7 paid a fine for livery of Beckley and Horton. He seems to have died shortly after 1191, and was succeeded by his second son Thomas, who paid a relief in 1191--2. Not long afterwards, Beckley and Horton, along with his other lands, were seized by the king, and in 1196-7 they appear among the escheats, no doubt as a consequence of Thomas's support of Philip Augustus in Normandy. Between 1198 and 1215 Thomas changed sides at least three times, alternately regaining and forfeiting his English lands. He finally made his peace with King John in 1215 and died early in 1219 leaving as his heiress his only daughter Annora.
In 1210 or 1211 Annora had married Robert de Dreux, eldest son of Count Robert II o£ Dreux, and brother of Peter de Dreux later Duke of Brittany. Robert consistently supported Philip Augustus against King John, but made his peace with Henry III in 1217. He became Count of Dress in 1218 and in February 1219 was awarded the lands that Thomas of St. Valery had held in England. By the end of 1226, as he had again chosen to side with France, Henry III seized all his English lands.
In 1227 Henry III granted all Robert de Dreux's English lands to his brother, Richard of Cornwall. The grant was confirmed by charter to 1231. Under Richard of Cornwall, Beckley, as a part of the honor of St. Valery, was the most important of the five demesne manors of the honor in Oxfordshire‑the others being Willaston, Blackthorn with Ambrosden, Asthall, and Yarnton; the honor was sometimes called 'of St. Valery of Beckley'; or simply `of Beckley'.' Richard's tenure at Beckley suffered one brief interruption after his capture by the Montfortiana at Lewes in 1264, but he recovered his lands in 1265 after Evesham Richard died in 1272 and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son, Edmund, who held the manor of St Valery, including Beckley and Horton for 28 years.
He died in 1300, leaving no children, and his cousin, King Edward I, inherited his lands. Beckley and Horton were among the lands which Edward I granted for life to Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk. In 1302, on Roger's death in 1306 they reverted to the Crown.
In 1308 Edward II gave Beckley to Hugh Despenser the elder, who later in the same year, leased the manor for life to his follower Sir John de Hadlow, who had been keeper of the manor and park in 1307. When the honor o£ St. Valery was conferred upon Piers Gaveston in 1309, Beckley was excluded.
The alliance with Edward II's favourite brought trouble to Hadlow, when the marchers ravaged the Despenser lands in 1321, his manors in Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire were looted. Sir John held onto Beckley and in 1337, Edward III conceded that he should hold the manor for life.
Although Boarstall was Sir John's principal residence, there is evidence that he lived at Beckley, where his granddaughter was christened. The manor does not appear in the inquisition taken after Sir John's death in 1346 and the lands passed to the Black Prince, perhaps because as caput of the honor of St. Valery it was considered to belong rightly to the, prince's duchy of Cornwall. In 1356 the prince granted Beckley to Sir John Chandos as part of his reward for his good service in France. Chandos was to hold the manor. However, only for the life of Juliana, Countess of Huntingdon and Beckley Park remained in the prince's hands.
Juliana died in 1367 and in 1371 Beckley was granted to Sir Nicholas Bond, a squire of the prince's chamber but by 1374 it was back in the possession a£ the Crown. William Montage, Earl of Salisbury, secured an exemplification of his father's grant in 1378, he did not obtain possession and in 1382 Richard II gave Beckley to Queen Anne in dower. In 1346 Richard le Forester had been appointed by the Black Prince to keep Beckley Park and held his office for nearly forty years. He lived nearby at Stanton St. John.
In 1394, after the death of Queen Anne, Richard II granted both the manor and the park to Sir John Golafre, a knight of his household whose family held a number of manors in Oxfordshire and Berkshire. After his death in 1396, Beckley was granted to Philip de la Vache, another of the king's knights. Philip served as Chamberlain to the Queen under Henry IV, who confirmed him in possession of Beckley. Philip was dead by 1408. Henry V's grant of Beckley in dower to Queen Katharine was confirmed by his son's first Parliament and she was recorded as in possession of the manor in 1428.
For the rest of the 15th century the manor remained in the hands of the Crown, though numerous administrative appointments, some of them sinecures, were made there: the Stewardship of Beckley, for instance, was one of many offices held by the Duke of Suffolk. Beckley Park, however, changed hands frequently between the death of Queen Catharine (Catherine de Valois, wife of the late Henry V) in 1437 and 1550, when it was reunited with the manor.
In 1438 another John Golafre and Sir Edmund Hampden were appointed joint Keepers of Beckley Park The former died in 1442, and in 1445 Hampden was confirmed as sole keeper for life and seems subsequently to have lived at Beckley. Sir Edmund, one of the famous Buckinghamshire families, was a Lancastrian. He was consequently attainted on the accession of Edward IV in 1461, and Beckley Park passed into the keeping of a Yorkist. Ten years later Sir Edmund was slain at the battle of Tewkesbury.
His successor at Beckley was John Stokes of Bignell, Bicester, who kept the park until his death in 1476. From 1465 onwards William Stavely of Broughton Stavely (Bucks) was associated with him as joint keeper. In 1484 Thomas Fowler, a trusted follower of Richard III, was made Parker of Beckley, but his tenure of office did not survive the change of dynasty in the following year.
In 1486 he was replaced by Ralph Verney, the Lancastrian grandson of the prominent Yorkist of the same name. Henry VIII renewed Ralph's grant in 1513 and included in it his son John, of whom nothing seems to be known. Ralph died in 1525 and John must have predeceased him, for in 1526 Beckley Park was to be let. In 1530 Sir John Wellesbourne of Fulwell (Oxon.), squire of the body to Henry VIII, received a lease for 21 years. In July 1547 the Protector Somerset acquired Beckley Park in augmentation of his honor of Ewelme, but later granted its reversion to Sir John Williams. In March 1550 Beckley manor was granted to the Princess Elizabeth in accordance with Henry VIII's will but in April Sir Walter Mildmay, a surveyor of the Court of Augmentations, obtained a grant of it, and conveyed it to Sir John Williams, later Lord Williams of Thame, who reunited park and manor.
Lord Williams died in 1559, and passed Beckley and Horton to his daughter Margeret and her husband Sir Henry Norreys, who became Lord Norreys of Rycote in 1572. In 1580 Beckley was held of Lord Norreys by Christopher Edmonds and Richard Huddlestone, for an unknown term of years, but in 1598 Lord Norreys and his wife passed the manor to Sir Anthony Powlett and others for certain uses, perhaps connected with its settlement upon their grandson and heir Francis, son of Sir William Norreys.
Horton had been held with Beckley by Edmonds and Huddlestone, but in 1589 it was separately conveyed to Lord Burghley and others as security for a loan made to Lord Norreys. Francis succeeded to his grandfather's title and estates in 1601. In 1602 he conveyed Beckley and Horton to his uncle, Sir Edward Norreys, but regained possession on the latter's death in the following year. In 1621 Francis was created Viscount Thame and Earl of Berkshire, but in 1624 he ended his notably violent career by committing suicide. Beckley next passed to Francis's daughter, Elizabeth, Baroness Norreys, and her husband Edward Wray, a Groom of the Bedchamber to James I.
On Elizabeth’s death in 1645 her title and the lands descended to her daughter Bridget, whose first husband, Edward Sackville, died a prisoner of the parliamentary Forces. Her second husband was Montague Bertie, Earl of Lindsey, a prominent royalist, and on her death in 1657 her estates passed to her son James Bertie, Lord Norreys who was created Earl of Abingdon in 1682. Beckley and Horton remained part of his lands and remained in the hands of successive Earls until 1919 when it was sold in Lots. The early 19th century maps of Horton cum Studley shows that Horton was mostly owned by the Earl of Abingdon and the Croke family owned Studley.
By the late 16th century there were four open fields at Horton. By 1609, the entire manor of Ash with the exception of the Mill Field was enclosed in compact farms. Rents of enclosed farms in the fields totaled £54 18s 3d of which part was for strips in the Nash and Horton. By contrast, rents of the enclosed farms totaled £330. The yearly sum of £140 was paid for Marlake and Asham Fields and Oxvent and £45 for Middle Marlake. The rent for Warren Farm was 300 couple of conies (rabbits) valued at £40. There appeared to have been disputes over the land between the Norrey’s and Croke over the area towards what is now Whitecross Green Woods. Both claimed the right to enclose Asham Marsh, Pinfold Green Long Acre, Short Acre and Arnegrove. After legal wrangling Croke won by verdict of Aylesbury court in 1557-8. There were other disputes at the time especially over waste ground known as the Stonehurst of 400 acres used as common by Horton, Studley, Stanton St John, Wormingall, Boarstall and Oakley.
The grazing rights on Otmoor were controlled by the lords of Beckley and in 1582 “a servant of Master Croke” was charged with keeping sheep dogs on Otmoor contrary to court orders.
There were many rules for the use of Otmoor, laid down between 1580 and 1656. The moor court chose two men each from Beckley, Horton, Fencott, Charlton, Oddington and Noke to regulate the rights of the common. This appears to have gone with occupancy of a house. The court laid down the number of sheep and geese that could be grazed and laid down heavy penalties for keeping diseased horses and pigs.
Fines for
breaches of the orders were normally shared between the lord of the manor of
Beckley and the hayward (official of the manor responsible for the hedges) and
moor men. Forfeits went to the
lords of Beckley, as in 1657, when John Coxhead's cattle and 6o sheep which he
had on the moor were declared forfeited after he had `murthered himselfe'
Enclosure
Act and Draining
of the Moor.
The
draining of the Moor and enclosures seems to have come from the surveyor of the
Abingdon estates in 1728, when it was his chief proposal for improving the value
of the manor Some small enclosures had already been made, but he said that they
were so ill used that they were chiefly overrun with bushes.
No action followed, but in 1787 Sir Alexander Croke put forward a scheme
for drainage and enclosure. Arthur
Young also thought it ‘a scandal to the national policy' that Otmoor, within
five miles of Oxford and the Thames, should remain unenclosed; and considered
that its `good loam would form valuable farms, if drained, for tillage or
pasturage'‑certainly for the latter Opposition, however, from the Earl
of Abingdon, who was supported by the representatives of 340 families of the
Otmoor villages, defeated the plans to secure a parliamentary bill.
The next
proposal to enclose came to Parliament from George, Duke of Marlborough, and
others, in 1801, but this time Croke and John Mackarness claimed that their
interests as landowners had been disregarded, and the bill failed in committee.
On 12 July
1815 an enclosure bill, including a major drainage scheme, was at last passed.
The final award was not completed until 15 April 1829, though in the
lawsuits which followed, the proprietors claimed to have enjoyed fourteen years'
peaceful possession of their new lands before 1830.
Beckley
parish interests received the following allotments: Beckley township, 303 a.;
Horton hamlet, 262 a.; Studley hamlet, 200 acres; the Earl of Abingdon, for the
lord paramount's right of soil, 107 acres; Sir Alexander Croke for tithes, 102
acres.; and the Revd. Theophilus Cooke for tithes, 63 acres. The commissioner
was empowered to split up the communal awards among individuals if those
entitled to the major part in any village desired it. But the Beckley parish awards were not apportioned until the
general enclosure of the parish. Beckley's
allotment went almost entirely to Abingdon and Cooke, Horton's to Abingdon
except for a small amount to Cooke, and Studley's to Sir Alexander Croke.
The open
fields of Beckley parish were enclosed by Act of Parliament in 1827 though the
award was not completed until January
1831. The Earl of Abingdon, as
lord of the manor of Beckley with Horton, Sir Alexander Croke, as lord of
Studley and lay impropriator of most of the tithes in the parish, George Leigh
Cooke, rector of Cubbington, as the impropriator of Beckley rectory, and his
nephew, Theophilus Leigh Cooke, as perpetual curate of Beckley, shared the award
between them and bought in almost all the land which was sold to defray the
expenses of the award. The only other freehold allotments, four in number, were
all small. Ralph Butler of the New
Inn bought 8 acres under the sales. There followed many exchanges among the
three main beneficiaries to consolidate their holdings, in the course of which
Horton Wood was acquired by Sir Alexander Croke of the Earl of Abingdon.
The
copy of the act Act is held at the Centre for Oxfordshire Studies in Cowley,
“For enclosing the lands in the Parish of Beckley 28 May 1827”
The act designates the public roads
and footpaths in the Parish as follows:
Horton and Oxford Road
One other Public Carriage Road and Highway of width 33 feet from the King’s
Arms, Bicester Road to SE corner of Chapel Close, to Beckley. (Chapel Close
must be what is now Church Lane, although the church was not built until 1868.
This indicates that there was once a chapel on the site.)
The Bicester Road.
One other Public Carriage Road and Highway of width 33 feet leaving the said
Horton & Oxford Road at the south east corner of Chapel Close and proceeding
in a westerly direction nearly in its present track by the pound to a cottage in
the occupation of John White on Lower Green, thence in a northerly direction
over the said Green into the Little Marsh and then continuing in a northern
direction over the same to the commencement of a road set out under the Otmoor
enclosure.
(This describes what is now
Ragnall’s Lane. The pound used to be at the start of what is now Ragnall’s
Lane next to Ragnall’s House. John
White probably lived in what is now Ragnall’s House.
Note: there is no mention of Ragnall in any old document or archives and
the origin remains a mystery. )
Ragnall’s
House as a cottage circa 1930
The Brill Road One
other Public Carriage Road and Highway of width 33 feet leading out of the last
described road and commencing at the west end of Upper Green near the premises
of Abraham Hillesden and proceeding in its present track until it enters the
township of Studley in Buckinghamshire. (This is now known as Brill Road.
Abraham Hillesden probably lived in the thatched cottage once known as
Corner Cottage at the junction with Oakley Road and Horton Hill)
The Thame Road
one other Public Carriage Road and Highway of a width of 33 feet leading out of
the last described road at the commencement thereof and proceeding in a south
east direction over the Upper Green and Horton and Carbridge Commons to the
parish of Boarstall at Poor Folks Pasture Oak.
The Lower Green Road
One other Private Carriage and Occupation Road and Public Highway of a width of
30 feet leading out of the Bicester Public Road and proceeding along the west
side of Horton Lower Farm into Holland’s Field. (This is the road from
Church Lane to West Hill Farm)
Mills Lane Road
One other Private Carriage and Occupation Road and Public Highway of a width of
30 feet leading out of Bicester Public Road at the cottage in the occupation of
William Haynes and proceeding along Mills Lane to a house and ancient enclosure
belonging to the Earl of Abingdon with occupancy of Edward Crick.
(This is now Mill Lane, it was probably named after Thomas Mills who lived in the Lane and had land in the village (see 1641 map). William Haynes probably lived in the Thatched Cottage that was once the village shop.)
The Stanton Wood Road
One other Private Carriage and Occupation Road and Public Highway of a width of
20 feet leading out of Horton and Oxford Public Road and proceeding along Horton
Common to the gate in the Parish of Stanton St John. (This could be the
public footpath that goes from opposite the entrance to Beckley Park past the
gas sub-station)
Other minor roads and footpaths
The Stanton Footway
4 feet wide from the Beckley Oxford Road
Horton Noke Footway
Horton Beckley Footway
The above are not described as they
led across then un-enclosed land. However footpaths remain to Beckley, Noke etc
Horton to Bicester Footway
4 feet wide leading out of Horton at the homestead of Samuel and Mary Blake and
proceeding in a north westerly direction into and across the Bicester Public
Road over the Nash Field until it enters Studley in Buckinghamshire at the stile
in Otmoor Furlong near Cuckoo Pen.
The Brill Footway.
4feet leading out of the village of Horton between two small old enclosures
belonging to the Earl of Abingdon in the occupation of Thomas Budd and
proceeding in or near its present track over the Mill Field and past the
windmill until it enters Studley in Buckinghamshire.
The Oakley Footway
4 feet out of the Thame Public Road and proceeding in or near the present track
across Horton and Carbridge Commons to a stile in the boundary fence in the
parish of Boarstall.
Studley and Stanton Footway
… out of the Thame Public Road at the bridge or tunnel over the same and
proceeding in a south westerly direction over Carbridge Common into the Stanton
St John Public Road opposite to a gate there in the parish of Oakley.
Horton and Stanton Footway
… Horton and Oxford Public road two yards west of the Bridge over the public
drain and proceeding in a south direction to a stile in the boundary fence of
the parish of Stanton St John.
Horton Common Drain one public drain
width of seven feet commencing at the pond on Horton Common and proceeding in a
north westerly direction over Vent Field and Holland Field into the drain on the
south side of Otmoor.
And I do hearby award that
the grass and herbage arising on the said roads which are not within or leading
over any attachment or allotment shall ever belong to and be the sole right of
the proprietors of the lands and grounds within the said parish of Beckley next
adjoining the said roads respectively on either side thereof as far as the crown
of the road.
Each page is signed by Thomas Barford
As well and the big landowners – The Earl of Abingdon and the Croke family, the act also mentions grants to Elizabeth Bulford, widow, and Samuel Jacobs in 1770 and 1774.
In
the meantime, the Otmoor enclosure had been having unexpected consequences. The
immediate social effects were distressing: contemporary evidence shows that the
small-holders and cottagers had been able to make £20 a year out of keeping
geese on the coarse aquatic grass of the moor, and that the fowling and fishing
had provided valuable food. Enclosure deprived them of these sources of income,
while the mitigation of the chronic disease called the moor evil, possibly foot
and mouth disease, of which the improving landlords had complained, was perhaps
more advantageous to the large farmer than to the small one.
Furthermore, the sanguine hopes of the 'improvers' were not realized.
It seems that the floodwater which they had considered the moor's chief
bane may have given it what fertility it possessed. Instead of the land becoming
worth some 30s or 40s an acre, as Arthur Young had predicted, it was considered dear,
some ten years after enclosure, at 5s an acre.
Also the vast amount of hedging, ditching, and major drainage operations
involved made it one of the costliest of parliamentary enclosures, and only the
large landowners could afford to take up their allotments.
General discontent came to a head in 1830, when much valuable land was flooded because the commissioner had cut a new channel for the River Ray at a higher level. Twenty-nine farmers who had suffered considerable loss united to cut the new dykes to allow the river to return to its ancient course. They were sued by the rectors of Oddington and Beckley; indicted for felony at Oxford Assizes, and acquitted. Wholesale uprooting of fences and mass perambulations of the moor followed this verdict. The summoning of troops, the arrest of 44, men, the attempt to convey them to Oxford castle through the midst of St. Giles' Fair and their rescue by the mob, were fully described in the local newspapers. Some of the rioters were later sentenced at the assizes to imprisonment and fines, but recommended to mercy. Subscriptions were opened in aid of the Otmoor villagers by an Oxford wine merchant, who was later successfully sued for libel by Sir Alexander Croke. A pamphlet war ensued and associations, called Otmoor Associations, were formed to fight for the rights of Otmoor commoners.
As late as 1833 two men were indicted for malicious destruction of a bridge built by order of the trustees of the Otmoor drainage scheme.
Otmoor
Farming
In the 13th century Horton was the most prosperous part of the parish. In 1279 after the lands had come into the lands of Richard of Cornwall, Horton had 11 villein virgaters, 11 cottagers and 1 free tenant. Horton land was more productive than Beckley or Studley. A tax list of 1327 shows that of the 13 Beckley contributors, only 4 paid as much as 3s to 4s, and in Studley out of 11, only 1 passed the 3s level with his 6s contribution. At Horton 14 out of 23 contributors paid between 3s and 6s 6d. The 1377 poll tax figures show the same trend. They give an adult population of 78 to Beckley, 96 to Horton and 53 to Studley. Horton being the biggest hamlet.
By 1582 Beckley had 35 taxpayers and Horton 47. In 1676 there were 336 churchgoers at Horton and only 16 in Beckley. In 1676 many of the churchgoers worked at the Priory. The first census report of 1801 gave a Beckley Parish (including Horton and Studley) number as 691 and reached 825 by 1821, after which there was a steady decline to 513 in 1901.
There were other wealthy families other than the Croke family in the 16th century, Thomas Biggs was assessed on £10 of goods in 1559 and in 1563 he was left lands in Woodstock and Hansborough by the widow of John Coventre, gentleman who appears to have come to Horton from London in the service of Sir John Croke. Thomas Biggs died in 1611. Among other families mentioned were Vicars, Brown, Badger and Chillingworth, living at Horton.
The Survey Book of 1786 shows that James and Thomas Ledwell held 47 and 43 acres respectively in Horton manor.
From the early Middle Ages much of the land between Beckley and Horton was an enclosed park where the lords of St Valery and later Kings of England hunted. The earliest record of it occurs in 1175-76 it was being enclosed between 1192 and 1197 with a stone wall, the remains can still be seen east of Beckley and in 1229 Richard of Cornwall stocked it with deer and then constructed a deer’s leap. Lower Park Farm was the location of the hunting lodge (now called Beckley Park). Some of the ancient wood survive (not necessarily a part of the hunting park), Studley Wood (once Horton Wood), Upper Wood (formerly Lady’s Gore) and Whitecross Green (once Prior’s Wood)
The village of Horton houses were scattered and many of them had no road outlet. On the hill above, where Studley Priory was built in 1176, several new houses are appeared at the same time. There is evidence that there were houses in the lower part of Horton cum Studley, in the area to the north of Church Lane. An early map shows a circle of houses round the green. The village ponds still remain in the field.
Part of an 1641 map showing Horton and Nash. This map has north to the bottom. There is no mention of Studley but the map is titled "Nash Field"
Horton cum Studley 1811 - showing old county boundary with Bucks being just beyond Studley Farmhouse. Also note the Priory "by pass" and a lane and buildings opposite today's playing fields and village hall.
Studley
Priory
Studley Priory was built in 1176 as the Church of St Mary for holy women of the Benedictine order in the reign of King Henry II, by Bernard de Valoni, a friend of Price Richard (Coeur de Lion). The priory was supported by lands in Crawcombe in Somerset and Corsley in Wiltshire plus local lands in Ash and Marlake (now Murcott). The valuation of the income in 1539 was £102.6.7d. The Ash lands as shown on the 1641 map as part of the Priory estate show lands opposite the Priory to the north where the windmill once stood. Marlake is retained in a local field name in Murcott and was once the name of the area now called Murcott but also spelt Moorcot in the past.
Marshall, in his Oxfordshire Byways, gave a very good description of the country in the old days:
“In their seclusion the Benedictine sisters saw the herds of cattle feeding in the green pastures, and in the winter flood-time they watched the wild duck winging its way. On May-day year by year they welcomed the men of Charlton who came across the moor to the Priory, carrying with them the image of the Virgin, the patron saint of the convent and their church. The herdsmen of the district paid them a tithe of their beasts and their cartulary contains a description of that land of Otmoor which was held in common by the dwellers in the seven towns. It is so great and notable a quantity of ground, so beneficial a common, so profitable for fowling and fishing to all the inhabitants of six or seven townships, bordering round it . . . who have ever used and enjoyed the right of common for all their flocks of sheep, herds of beasts and all manner of cattle at all time, and have taken and enjoyed the fishing and fowling at their pleasure at all times, none of the said townships claiming any pre‑eminence or greater right than the rest.”
At the time of the Black Death in 1356 it was reported that there were about 50 nuns at the Priory. This is considered an exaggeration and it is thought that the number was more like twelve. The visitations of 1440, 1445 and 1530 gives details of the nuns:
The visitation by Lord William Alnewyke, Bishop of Lincoln lists the nuns and gives an insight into the way of life. The Nuns listed were:
Dame Elinora Cobcote, Prioress
Margareta Niernute, Sub-Prioress
Agnes Devyle, Tercia prioressa
Agnes Devyle said that nuns may visit friends for nor more than 3 to 4 days, that they wore silken veils and robes, with veils down to the eyebrow. She said that the last prioress for 58 years never rendered an account. Thomas Halle was the steward.
The Priory
was in the Archdeaconry of Oxford and Deanery of Cuddesdon.
The visitation of 26 April 1520 says that the Prioress was Katherine Cobot (1515-1529) with Isabel Copcote sub-prioressa; Alice Smyth, sacrisa; Alice Wychill, precentrix; Margaret Welsh, refrector aria; Alice Copcot; Alice Edmund; Agnes Banyard; Johana Williams; Joanna Dormer. Johanna Willams became prioress in 1529.
The visitation of 20 September 1530 to the Prioratis de Studdelegh by Ricardum Hill lists the nuns:
Alice Whyghyll (Whitehill) Prioress but about to hand over to Alice Richardson
Margaret Walshe, Alice Copcote, Alice Yemens, Felice Asshley, Lettice Wyncot, Margaret Hampden, Helen Smythe, Joan Hede.
It is interesting to note the number of Copcots who joined the Priory.
Cardinal Wolsey is believed to have obtained the permission of one of the Prioresses of Studley Priory to cut down timber for his new college at Oxford that was to be called Cardinal College (now Christ’s Church) and thus decimated Studley woods.
Following the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII the Priory was bought by Master John Croke who made his way in the royal service to become Master in Chancery under Edward Vl. Master Croke bought land and built his manor house at Chilton, near Thame, adding Studley Priory to his land purchases in 1539 at a cost of £1,187 7s 11 d. The purchase of Studley Priory had all the hallmarks of a good investment to rival that of the famous "Little Jack Horner" of nursery rhyme fame, the lead from the church roof making a considerable contribution towards the purchase price. The estate survey of 1641 with minor boundary changes is the Priory estate transferred to Master Croke.
Master John Croke was succeeded by his son, a second John. The latter was appointed the first High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire and at the same time received his knighthood. The very fine tomb in Chilton church commemorates Sir John and his wife; a line of small figures along the front of the tomb indicates by their costumes the honours acquired by his children during their lifetimes.
Studley Priory was deeded by the above named to his eldest son, a third John, in 1584. This John Croke followed the legal profession and ultimately held important appointments, being Recorder of London and Speaker in the last Parliament of Queen Elizabeth, he was appointed to the King's Bench and knighted under James 1. Sir John Croke carried out the alterations to the Priory building to form his manor house though he moved to the family manor at Chilton on the death of his father. The second son of the first Sir John Croke, Henry, who became Clerk to the Pope in the reign of Charles I, married an heiress Bridget Hawtry and built his manor house at Chequers in the Chilterns, now the country residence of the Prime Minister
George Croke in common with his elder brother followed the legal profession; he was knighted in 1623 and became a justice of the King's Bench in 1628. His legal arguments survived him by many years and even today are quoted by lawyers. One of the most famous cases in which he participated was that of the 'Ship Money' trial; Charles I in one of his endeavours to raise money without the sanction of Parliament extended the tax paid by the coastal counties for the provision of naval vessels to inland counties. As a result of his refusal to pay the tax John Hampden was tried and sentenced to imprisonment. Sir George's arguments caused both Houses of Parliament to vote against the judgment and secured Hampden's release. Sir George added the chapel and provided a stipend for a clergyman to preach there, he also built and endowed the nearby almshouses. Sir George had one son, Thomas, of whom little is known.
By Sir George's will Studley Priory passed to his brother William for his lifetime with entail to William's son, Alexander. Possibly due to confusion of records during the Civil War years the death of William is not recorded, there is therefore no certainty that he occupied the manor.
Alexander built the stable block to the north of the chapel using materials recovered by demolishing the east range of Priory buildings. Alexander Croke married twice and at his death left Studley Priory to his grandson by his first marriage, John Croke; to his son, Wiliam, by his second marriage he left that part of his property in Buckinghamshire. John Croke left three children, John, James and Charlotte. John being incapable of managing the estate passed his interest to James in return for an annuity and on James's death made similar arrangements with Charlotte and her husband, William Ledwell. On Charlotte's death Studley Priory was reunited with the other part of the property under the ownership of Alexander Croke, a cousin and descendent of the first Alexander by his second marriage.
The son of Alexander, another Alexander, inherited the estate in 1796. He was trained in the legal profession and after a conflict with the Earl of Abingdon over the provisions of the enclosure of Otmoor, spent the years from 1800 to 1815 as a judge in the Admiralty court in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On his retirement from this post he received a knighthood. Sir Alexander made some adjustments to the Elizabethan levels of the house and added an extension of three storeys with one room on each floor on the east side of the Priory. Benefiting by the enclosure of Otmoor the estate increased to some two thousand acres and Sir Alexander left this estate in trust to his widow and ten surviving children. By 1877, there being no issue from any of Sir Alexander's children, the two survivors arranged for the trust to be broken and the estate was sold.
In 1877 the estate was bought by John Henderson. His heir Captain Ronald Henderson, served as Member of Parliament for the Mid‑Oxon Division; his alterations included raising the roof of the stable block to provide extra bedrooms in 1924 and extensive improvements of the water supply and drainage.
During the Second World War Studley Priory was used first as a B.B.C. hostel for evacuated London Staff and later came under military requisition. In 1947 the house was let to a tenant who commenced to run it as a country club; the estate was sold and broken up in 1954 and on the termination of the lease the house and gardens were purchased by Mr. E. E. Parke who established the present hotel.
From the history of the owners we now turn to the buildings. When John Croke purchased Studley Priory in 1539 the description of the buildings in the deed of transfer was `ecclisiam cum campanile et domus (church with bell tower and house)'. Fortunately the monastic orders, having established a design dictated by their rules, built to one pattern with minor variations to allow for local topography. The level lawns surrounded on three sides by a low bank on the east side of the existing buildings contain the foundations of those demolished.
The church at the north end together with domestic buildings on the remaining three sides would enclose the cloister garth (a piece of enclosed ground) with the cloisters on the interior walls of the west, north and east sides. Entrance to the cloister garth would be obtained by a passageway through the south range of the buildings, admittance to outsiders being prevented by a locked gate. Access to the domestic buildings surrounding the cloister garth would be from the cloisters. The kitchen and storerooms to the south would form part of the outer court that would be used by the lay servants of the Priory.
Of the surviving buildings, the west range of the Priory buildings was raised to two stories prior to 1450, the construction being that of a trussed rafter roof. Re-roofing of the kitchen appears to date from about 1500.
The land grant to found the Priory establishes the church as being in existence in about 1184, remnants of the worked stone which include pillar capitals provides two dates to the buildings, late Norman and thirteenth century, which may be ascribed respectively to the church and cloisters.
The lay appropriator was required by law to demolish monastic buildings purchased from the Crown, presumably to prevent the return of church inhabitants, though up and down the country the observance of the law varied from one extreme to the other. At Studley Priory it was thought sufficient to demolish the church and no doubt the proceeds from the sale of the lead roof gave an adequate return for this work.
Standing on the circular lawn to the west of the house, the buildings give the impression of having been constructed at one period though, as may be seen from the plan above right there are five building dates.
The porch is an Elizabethan addition to the earlier building, on the left one half of a pair of windows has been eliminated, on the right a three-light window has been reduced to two lights. Above the entrance are the Croke coat of arms impaled with those of the wives of the first three generations: Cave, Unton, Blount and Bennett above that is the family motto `virtutis amore'. The date of 1587 is related to the first three, the Croke-Bennett arms are a later insertion with the date 1622, the three coats of arms having been moved to make space for the insertion. The Greek orders present a mixture of styles that frequently occurred in England before the Inigo Jones period.
Early 19th Century map of the lower part of Horton, map showing ownership of the land
Allotments at the end of Ragnall's Lane where Otmoor Farm now stands.
The
17th Century
The Hearth Tax return of 1665 lists the head of households and the number of hearths that give an indication of the size and wealth of the families.
The return was divided into:
Horton:
Edward Viccars 1, Widdow Goodman 1, Widdow Collins 2, Christopher Boswell 3. These four families are thought to have lived round the old Green at the bottom of the field behind the present church.
Studley:
Mr Alexander Croke 13, Henry Parker 3, William Surman 1, William Hitchcook 1, William Neibour 2, William Kinge 2, Robert Coxhead 3 (Whitecross Green).
(It appears that in 1665, Studley included the Priory and dwellings in Oxfordshire, and Horton the west part of the villages.)
At the Reformation, the reigning prioress Johanna Williams, who was related to Sir John Williams of Thame (later Lord Williams), in November 1539, signed the deed of surrender to the king and left the priory with those of her nuns who still remained. In February 1540, according to Dunkin, Henry VIII granted to “John Croke and his heirs the site of the Priory of Studley, the rectory and advowson of Beckley as fully as the Prioress had them at the time of the Dissolution”. John Croke paid £1,187.7.11d for the estate. John’s son John became High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire and speaker in Queen Elizabeth’s Parliament.
The earliest map in existence is dated 1641 and shows the village with nine cottages on the Oxford Road (Horton Hill) below the Priory and four above. It also shows the Almshouses built in 1639 while opposite the Almshouses was a large building in front of the Priory that may have been servants quarters. . There are a further seven cottages on Brill Road and three in The Lane (Millss Lane or Mill Lane). There are about four cottages over the border in Brill Road into Buckinghamshire.
The windmill is shown at the north end of the path that extends from Oxford Road to Warren Farm as it joins Shyre Way that roughly aligns to the track to Gardener’s Barn. By this time Ash Hall has gone but the field where it stood is called Hall Close. The map is entitled Nash Field with Horton shown as the area around the King’s Arms (Otmoor Lodge Hotel). The area now Church Lane is not shown on the map and is replaced by the title “A Plot and true Description of the Mannour of Studley in the County of Oxon and Bucks.”
The Mill is shown as owned by Robert Saunders. In 1765 William Ledwell had leased the mill for three lives to another Sanders, and a William Sanders held it in 1786. Robert was probably his son.
The Almshouses are shown. In 1636 Sir George Croke built the almshouses and drew up a set of regulations as to the behaviour of the inmates, who, selected by the owner of the Studley Priory and were to come from Chilton, Waterstock and Beckley. Each inhabitant was to have two shillings a week and every two years “a livery gown of broadcloth ready made for them, of colour London russet”. They could not swear or stay too long in an ale‑house on pain of being expelled, and public prayers were to be held in the almshouse rooms or in Studley Chapel.
Whitecross Green Woods are split into three and called The Lady’s Gore, Oriell Colledge Wood and Pryors Wood. Otmoor is spelt Oatmore. The names of all the cottagers and their land is given. The village of Nash, Ash or Asham is recorded in the field names Asham Marsh (now the BBOWT owned pasture), Asham Field and Asham Mead.
Another prominent name was John Coxhead who farmed at Whitecross Green but also had strips in the Mill Field. It was he who made a survey of the manor in 1639 and was probably the bailiff. By the time of the 19th century censuses Whitecross Green was farmed by the Cox family. This may have been the same family who had dropped the “head”. John Coxhead appeared to have committed suicide in 1657, when John Coxhead's cattle and 6o sheep which he had on the moor were declared forfeited after he had `murthered himselfe'.
The
Warren is another field name on the map, now Warren Farm. There were also a number of farm buildings.
The names are difficult to read but one crofter may have been Bryre?
Radford and another John Coxhead. The
field surrounding Gardiner’s Barn was called Gardiners.
The area to the east of Mills Lane (Mill Lane and up the hill) was divided into Windmill Field and Little Mill Field. The top of the hill surrounding the windmill and the pasture at the end of the lane was divided into strips for local crofters to grow their produce. The names given on the strips include Gom, Parker, Payne and Fellis. There were three cottages down The Lane (Millss Lane), one in the area of the present green barn and two on the other side of the lane. The field (Millfield) surrounding the windmill includes enclosures called Claret Well Furlong. The pond and small copse was market and still is there today. Some of the stones found in the area surrounding the windmill site are painted white. Was the inside or the outside whitewashed?
Also shown as having strips on the Mill Field were Richard Gom whose house was just below the path from the Oxford Road (Horton Hill) to the Mill Field. His family lived in the same house until 1952 and the remaining descendant lives in the Almshouses. Next to him lived George Payne.
Other names going up the hill were Richard Parker, Almshouses, Katherine Towne, Tomas Jelly and William Neighbour living on the Oxford Road (Horton Hill). On Brill Road were the Thomson family at corner cottage, then Clarkes?, William White, Ed Hitchcock, William Winchester, Thomas Nicholls, William Surman and another Parker property who had relatively extensive properties. There were two more names further along the Brill Road in Studley Bucks possibly Yomans and Symons. There were also families called John Mills, Thomas Tellis. There were three houses down The Lane (Millss or Mill Lane) one occupied by William ? where the green barn is situated. One of the others may have been John Mills after whom Millss Lane was named. There were two cottages on the right in what is now the field owned by the Badger family, on being situated on what is now a small hump is the middle of the field where sheep are fed.
In Studley, Bucks Marlake Estate was held by John Dickerson and John Coxhead and the Warren estate (now Warren Farm) of 218 acres was held by Richard Dolbey, leased from the Croke family.
The 1665 Hearth Tax return for Studley shows the houses that were big enough to have hearthe. They were the Priory 13 hearths, Henry Parker 3 hearths (Richard Parker’s son?), Willaim Surman 1 hearth, William Hitchcock 1 chimney, William Neighbour 2 hearths, William Kinge (a newcomer) 2 hearths and Richard Coxhead at Whitecross Green 3 hearths.
The Hearth Tax return for Horton was separate and named four households: Edward Viccars 1 hearth, Widdow Goodman 1 hearth, Widdow Collins 2 hearths, and Christopher Boswell 3 hearths. The Vicars were given as subsidy men in the 16th century. In 1641 Thomas Vicars (father if Edward?) held 14 acres.
The
18th Century
The next map we have that gives us an insight into the village was an estate map of 1786 that shows considerable changes in the area of the old closures. (The current location of this map is a mystery. It is not recorded in the Bodleian, County Archives or Westgate Library). Several fields had been divided into two. Great Marlake had been divided into four and Asham Field divided into six. The average field size was now about 15 acres. It also indicates that the Great and Little Millfields had been separated by hedges as had Goosey (the former Goosehurst furlong). Today in one field off Ragnall’s Lane the strips can still be seen disappearing into the hedge, indicating the new hedging at this time. In theory Studley was owned by the Croke family and Horton by the Earl of Abingdon. In fact there were strips belonging to the Earl of Abingdon in Studley and vice versa.
Marlake house is not marked in the 1786 map and the land had been divided into four farms. Three are farming from Whitecross Green, Hewett 88 acres, Coates 54 acres and Clark 123 acres including Asham field. The fourth, was held by Moses Blake with most of John Coxhead’s estate plus part of the Warren estate with a farm house at the west end of the Warren. William Tipping held Warren Farm with 180 acres all of which was held by Richard Dolbey in 1641.
James Meers held 33 acres including a homestead at the southern end of Lady’s Gore (top part of Whitecross Green Wood) and three closes between the Warren and Studley village.
John Falkener held the tenancy of 130 acres from probably from what is now Studley Farm House. The land included the Mill Field, Nash Field and Holland Field.
One other tenant Richard Budd leased 9 acres from Alexander Croke who had leased it from the Earl of Abingdon.
In 1786 the manor of Horton consisted of about 1,140 acres. The manor included four common fields; Vent Field, Holland Field, Cut Field and Hash Field. There were also about 150 acres of small enclosures concentrated around Horton village. The largest holding was that of John Faulkener with 95 acres with 9 other tenants with over 30 acres.
The main crops grown were wheat, maslin (rye mixed with wheat), rye, barley, pease (peas) and oats. The open fields were cultivated on a rotation of two crops and a fallow. Sir Alexander Croke incorporated in his leases a stipulation that their farms divided into four parts with a four crop rotation of roots, summer corn, grass seeds and winter corn.
On 18th April 1856, Mallam Auctioneers sold 150 Oak trees and 124 saplings from Whitecross Green and Studley Woods. Although they have been partly re-grown only to be cut down again in World War I and since re-grown again. However no ancient trees remain.
The main building of the hamlet of Horton on the lower ground in the 18th century was West Farm. In 1786 the village had two greens, Budd’s Green and Goose Green At the west end, opposite West Hill Farm, there were two large ones belonging to two farmers, John Faulkener and James Ledwell. There was another substantial house on the corner of Oxford Road and Horton Road (now Church Lane and Straight Mile)
There was a windmill at Nash/Studley from the 13th Century. It is difficult to say when the windmill went out of action. If is shown on the 1811 map. At the 1841 census the following household is recorded:
David Andrew 35 Baker & Miller no
Martha Andrew 30 no
Ann Andrew 12 no
Martha Andrew 10 no
Edward Andrew 8 no
Elizabeth Andrew 6 yes
Sarah Andrew 4 yes
Mary Andrew 2 yes
John Eales 15 Bakers App no
William Leech 15 Bakers App yes
Ann Ray 15 Bakers App no
The “no” means not born in Oxfordshire.
Elizabeth was born circa 1835 in the village while her older brother Edward was born outside the county indicating that they moved to the village about 1834. The family is not recorded on the 1851 census but the miller is then William Cox. By 1861 census John Coates is the baker but no mention of being a miller. As David Andrew gave up after a few years indicates that the business was not flourishing.
