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Viewed from the embankment of the busy A34 bypass, Wytham appears an idyllic
village. The Great Wood, once the haunt of highwaymen, is a splendid
back-cloth and also provides an indication of stormy weather to come, hence
the old rhyme:
When Wytham Hill wears a cap,
Farmers all, beware of that!
The site on which the village stands has been inhabited since early times. The
name Wytham is generally interpreted as meaning the dwelling at the bend of
the river, the river being the Seacourt stream, which winds its way through the
water meadows to join the Thames.
Wytham retains some aspects of a feudal settlement, for with the exception of
the inn, the church, rectory, and two houses built on glebe land, the entire
estate has one landowner, at the present time the University of Oxford. The
estate was bequeathed to the University under the will of Colonel ffennell, the
last lord of the manor to live in Wytham Abbey.
Before it was sold in 1920 to Raymond ffennell, Wytham Abbey was the seat of the
Earls of Abingdon. Despite its name, the Abbey has no ecclesiastical
connections, and until the middle of the 19th century was known as Wytham House.
It was the 5th Earl who had the old Norman church pulled down and in 1811-12
rebuilt the present church. He used materials from the ruined Cumnor Place,
former home of the ill-fated Amy Robsart; the archway over the churchyard gate
is one instance. There are some interesting examples of stained glass in the
church from the late 14th to the early 20th century. Some of the old glass came
from the earlier church, as did the 17th century altar table and chest.
Not all the residents of Wytham have added to its good name. In the early 18th
century, the miller John Mauge murdered his sweetheart Annie Kite, and was
hanged for the crime. The event is commemorated in a ballad, a copy of which is
now lodged in the British Museum, entitled The Wittam Miller.
The University has brought many benefits to Wytham, not least the careful
modernisation and maintenance of the 17th or 18th century houses, with their
roofs of tiles or thatch. The wild life in the woods and surrounding fields is
protected, and made the subject of careful research. For this reason, visitors
to the woods must obtain permits from the University.
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