Ambrosden

Ambrosden is about southeast of Bicester (the nearest railway station), connected by the A41 road. The site of Alchester Roman town is about west of the village, and the village of Arncott is about to the south. In 1932 Langford, Wretchwick, and Middle Wretchwick Farms, which were formerly part of the Bicester Market End township, were added to Ambrosden. The townships of Blackthorn and Arncott were part of Arncott but in the 20th century were detached to form separate parishes. The present Ambrosden parish is about wide both north–south and east–west. Three bridges cross the River Ray in the parish: Heath Bridge and Arncott Bridge, and Blackthorn Bridge. Arncott Bridge is on the road between Arncott and Ambrosden and is a five-arched bridge built in the 18th century. The land is relatively level, about above sea level, apart from Graven Hill north-west of the village, which is high. ==Toponym==

In the 19th century it was believed that the toponym "Ambrosden" came from a diminutive derivative of the name Ambrosius Aurelianus, a 5th-century British commander of Roman descent, and that the commander had encamped close the present site of Ambrosden to help the neighbouring military garrison at Alchester in conflicts with the Anglo-Saxons. The word don or den, an Old English word meaning "a place on a hill or ascent", was added as a suffix. Thus, a Roman name and an English syllable may have been combined as "Ambrosden". This interpretation, however, has been rejected by historians who believe the toponym was derived not from Ambrosius, but from the Old English for "Ambre's hill". This seems unlikely however, as 'ambre' means bucket in old English. The forms Ambresdone, Ambresden, or Aumbresden were all recorded in the Middle Ages. ==Archaeology==

The course of Akeman Street Roman road, which linked Watling Street with the Fosse Way, passes through the parish less than north of the village. Roman pottery has been found in the area. When the scholar and antiquarian White Kennett was Vicar of Ambrosden (from 1685 to 1708), ancient Danish remains were found in the parish. ==Manor==

During the reign of King Edward the Confessor a lady called Elviva (probably a Latin rendering of the Old English name Ælfgifu), held the manor of Ambrosden. The Domesday Book of 1086 records that by that date she had been replaced by Hugh d'Ivry, butler of William the Conqueror and brother of Roger d'Ivry, who owned several manors in Oxfordshire. Hugh's nephew Roger II d'Ivry inherited Ambrosden and by 1194 it was part of the Honour of St. Valery. Ambrosden thus passed to Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall, who in 1288 gave the manor to Ashridge Priory of the Augustinian order of the Brothers of Penitence. Ashridge Priory retained Ambrosden until the priory was dissolved in 1539 in the Dissolution of the Monasteries. In its construction, the house reused stone from the manor house, mixed with local limestone from the Stone Pitts quarry at Blackthorn, Oxfordshire and Cotswold stone from Bibury in Gloucestershire. The architect was Sanderson Miller, who also designed ornamental buildings in the grounds. A landscaped park with lakes and statues was laid out around the house, and the drive to the house was along a semicircular avenue of trees. Sir Edward died in 1766. Sir Gregory Page-Turner, 3rd Baronet considered the house too large, so in 1767 he sought to demolish part of it to create a smaller house. This proved impossible so in 1768 he had the entire house demolished. Ambrosden remained with the Turner (later Page-Turner) baronets until 1874 when Sir Edward Henry Page-Turner, 6th Baronet died childless. The 6th Baronet left all his estates to his nephew, Frederick Augustus Blaydes. The Blaydes took the Page-Turner name and coat of arms in 1903, but sold the estate in 1930. ==Parish church==

The earliest part of the Church of England parish church of St Mary the Virgin is the 12th-century Norman north doorway. The Early English Gothic west tower was built slightly later. The church plan, as existed and as chronicled in 1823 records, and in possession of John Wayland, esq. of Woodeaton, had a large courtyard entered through two elegant gates with a cross fixed at the northern part. The southern end of courtyard also had a cemetery. The main church building comprised: The south porch leads to an aisle that is lit by four two-light windows. Between the aisle and the nave is a four-bay arcade. The nave has three clerestory windows similar to those in the north wall of the church. The nave pews are 17th-century. The pulpit and reading desk are late 17th-century, added in the reign of James II. The pulpit was refurbished in 1819 with cushion and cloth given by Lady Turner, bearing insignia of the Turner family. The nave had a west gallery where there was a painting of the Resurrection of Jesus. According to inscriptions it was given by the parishioners. of Woodstock in 1697. and St Mary's also serves as the British Army garrison chapel. The nearby vicarage dates from 1638. The Reverend White Kennett (1660–1728) was vicar of Ambrosden from 1685 until 1708. During his incumbency, Kennett became tutor and vice-principal at St Edmund Hall, Oxford and published a number of scholarly works. Kennett was also Rector of St Botolph's Aldgate in London from 1700, Archdeacon of Huntingdon from 1701 and Dean of Peterborough from 1707. It therefore seems likely that Kennett may have been largely absent from Ambrosden in the latter years of his tenure. He relinquished the living of Ambrosden in 1708. Kennett was consecrated Bishop of Peterborough in 1718. ==Economic and social history==

There is a record of a windmill at Ambrosden in 1300. A document of 1633 records a Windmill Field and Windmill Way. Ambrosden was farmed by an open field system until at least the 17th century. By 1623 there had been several small Enclosures of agricultural land in the parish and by 1685 some common lands were reported to have been enclosed, with further enclosures reported between 1702 and 1785. By 1809 Ambrosden's field system was described as being completely enclosed. The coal was landed at Arncott Bridge and delivered thence by wheelbarrows to Sir Edward Turner, 2nd Baronet at Ambrosden House. The 1876 school building is now the village hall. The Buckinghamshire Railway's Oxford and line was built through the northwest corner of the parish and opened in 1851. ==Amenities==

Ambrosden's amenities include the parish church, the Turner Arms pub, a post office, a village hall (the former school) and the current primary school. The village has also a hair salon, a car dealer and garage and a craft shop. The Army provides its personnel and their families with a community centre that includes a library, a gymnasium, a careers centre and an indoor swimming pool. Two Stagecoach in Oxfordshire bus routes serve Ambrosden. Route 29 links the village to Bicester and HM Prison Bullingdon and provides a limited service to Arncott. Route H5 links the village to Bicester, and also to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Headington via Islip and Barton. ==Notes==