> Marshalls Home
Visitors to Kirtlington today will see an attractive village, with two greens,
thatched cottages and a pond with ducks and daffodils in the spring. A walk
round the village can take you through Tinkers Ditch, along Molly Minns lane
and to the church via Betty Bulls lane. The track from South Green leads into
Kirtlington Park with its many fine trees, including three ancient cedars
bordering the sports field. From North Green, Mill Road passes a disused quarry
where the bones of a dinosaur were discovered and where once stone was quarried
and cement manufactured. At the end of the track is the Oxford Canal with
Pigeons Lock, Flights Mill and the river Cherwell. The working narrow boats of
the past have been replaced by holiday barges. The floodgate near Flights Mill
has an eel trap incorporated in its structure.
The village is listed in the Domesday Book as a thriving community. Centuries
later, in 1742 workmen began clearing the site to build the house in Kirtlington
Park for Sir James Dashwood and his family, then living at the manor of
Northbrook. The Dashwood family moved into the completed house in 1746 and many
generations of the family lived there until the beginning of the 20th century.
The school log book started in April 1887 records the tea parties given by Sir
George and Lady Mary Dashwood for the schoolchildren, which were the highlight
of the school year. The old school, which had been converted from a barn, had
156 pupils in 1894 who paid sums varying from ld to 4d per week for their
education depending on their fathers occupation. Holidays included half days
for blackberrying and for the Church Temperance Fete. This building was used
until 1966 when staff and pupils moved into the new school built on the same
site. There are at present over 50 pupils who take an active and lively role in
village life.
The church of St Mary the Virgin has been used by worshippers for centuries, the
Norman arch and chancel being the oldest part. An interesting church character
was James Sandford who was appointed Parish Clerk in 1702 at the age of eleven
and held office for 54 years, recording the births of his five children in the
parish register in capital letters. At 19 he was appointed schoolmaster and
taught in the village for 45 years.
Two events, one traditional and one started in recent years, take place in the
village each year. The Lamb Ale Festival has been recorded in many contemporary
writings of the past. A piece of land was set aside to grow wheat to make a cake
and barley to make beer. Early writings tell of the maids of the village, on
Trinity Monday, running after a fat live lamb with their thumbs tied behind them
and the maid that with her mouth takes and holds the lamb is declared Lady of
the Lamb, which was later cooked and eaten at the Feast. Later accounts describe
the dray with the load of ale being escorted into the village by the Morris
dancers. The lamb was carried on the mens shoulders to different farmhouses
where, after a dance, beer and money was given to the dancers to help pay for
the feast. Today the Lamb Ale Festival is a weekend of celebrations with a
procession and dancing, with Morris sides from many parts of this country and
abroad taking part. The Feast is held on Trinity Monday and there is a fair on
the South Green.
Another sporting activity which takes place in the village is polo. The
Kirtlington Polo Club was started in 1926 by the Budgett family. In the
beautiful setting of Kirtlington Park matches are keenly contested, with the
ponies skilfully guided and controlled by their riders. Prince Charles is a
frequent visitor, playing for the Cambridge Old Blues team.
A study of the 1881 census shows the many changes that have taken place in
village life. Then the majority of villagers worked in the village, which was
well served with five bakers, two of them Master Bakers, five dressmakers, a
tailor, five wheelwrights and many other tradesmen. Today most people go out of
the village to work in Oxford or other neighbouring towns. Despite this, village
life continues and the community looks forward to a thriving future.
Click here
for a quote and to instruct your survey online
> Marshalls Home