By 1150 the Augustinians of Osney Abbey had absorbed the college, and in 1278–79 it held three hides at Stowe.[3] Osney Abbey retained Stowe until it was forced to surrender its estates to the Crown in the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539.[3] In 1542 the Diocese of Oxford was instituted and Osney Abbey was consecrated as its first cathedral.[3] The abbey's former estates, including Stowe, formed the bishopric's endowment.[3]
In 1590 John Underhill, Bishop of Oxford, conveyed Stowe to Elizabeth I, who in the same year granted it to new secular owners.[3] They sold it to John Temple of Burton Dassett in Warwickshire, whose grandson Sir Peter Temple, 2nd Baronetenclosed a deer park in 1651.[3] The village was probably abandoned at this time. The estate remained with the Temple-Grenville family until 1921, when it was sold by the Reverend Luis C.F.T. Morgan-Grenville (1889–1944).[3]Stowe School was founded here in 1923.
Parish church
The earliest mention of the parish church of the Assumption of the Blessèd Virgin Mary[4] is in Henry I's charter of 1130.[3] The oldest part of the building is the late 13th-century three-bayarcade between the nave and the north aisle.[3] The west tower was added in the first half of the 13th century, followed by the chancel in about 1350 and the south aisle and arcade in the latter part of the 14th century.[3] Late in the 15th century both aisles were rebuilt and the Perpendicular Gothic nave clerestory and south porch were added.[3] In the 16th century the Perpendicular Gothic north chapel was added, with an arcade of two bays between it and the chancel.[3] The church was altered in the 18th century and is now a Grade II* listed building.[5]
In the late 17th century a ring of five bells was hung in the bell tower.[3] James Keene, who had foundries at Woodstock, Oxfordshire and Bedford,[6] cast the second, fourth and fifth bells in 1654.[7] Richard Keene cast the third bell in 1660 and the tenor in 1665.[7] In 1988 John Taylor & Co of Loughborough cast a new treble bell, increasing the ring to six.[7] The church has a Sanctus bell that was cast in about 1799.[7]
Formerly the country seat of the Dukes of Buckingham and Chandos, Stowe House is now occupied by Stowe School. The landscaped gardens and its many monuments were acquired by the National Trust in 1990, and are open to the public. The National Trust is overseeing a restoration programme of the grounds, temples and follies.
Ickford is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of Buckinghamshire, England. It is on the boundary with Oxfordshire, about 4 miles (6.4 km) west of the market town of Thame.
Little Missenden is a village and civil parish on the River Misbourne in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the Chiltern Hills, about 3 miles (5 km) southeast of Great Missenden and 3 miles (5 km) west of Amersham. The village lies on the River Misbourne in the Misbourne valley.
Towersey is a village and civil parish about 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) east of Thame in Oxfordshire. Towersey was part of Buckinghamshire until 1933, when the county boundary was moved and Towersey was exchanged for Kingsey. The 2011 Census recorded Towersey parish's population as 433.
Turweston is a village and civil parish in north-west Buckinghamshire, England. The village is beside the River Great Ouse, which bounds the parish to the north, west and south. Turweston is the most northwesterly parish in Buckinghamshire: the Ouse here forms the county boundary with Northamptonshire to the north and west and Oxfordshire to the south. Across the river, the Northamptonshire market town of Brackley is just west of Turweston, with the town centre about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the village. The parish has an area of 1,295 acres (524 ha) and had a population of 211 at the 2011 Census.
Ambrosden is a village and civil parish in Cherwell, Oxfordshire, England, 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Bicester to which it is linked by the A41 road, and 13 miles (21 km) from Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 2,248. The parish is bounded by the River Ray to the south, its tributary the River Bure to the west, the outskirts of Bicester to the north and field boundaries to the east.
Robert D'Oyly was a Norman nobleman who accompanied William the Conqueror on the Norman conquest, his invasion of England. He died in 1091.
Arncott or Arncot is a village and civil parish about 3+1⁄2 miles (5.6 km) southeast of Bicester in Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,738.
Aston Rowant is a village, civil parish and former manor about 4+1⁄2 miles (7 km) south of Thame in South Oxfordshire, England. The parish includes the villages of Aston Rowant and Kingston Blount, and adjoins Buckinghamshire to the southeast. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 793. The Lower Icknield Way passes through the parish southeast of the village.
Bletchingdon is a village and civil parish 2 miles (3 km) north of Kidlington and 6 miles (10 km) southwest of Bicester in Oxfordshire, England. Bletchingdon parish includes the hamlet of Enslow just over 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the village. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 910.
Woodeaton or Wood Eaton is a village and civil parish about 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Oxford, England. It also has a special needs school called Woodeaton Manor School.
Beckley is a village in the civil parish of Beckley and Stowood, in the South Oxfordshire district, in the county of Oxfordshire, England. It is about 4.5 miles (7 km) northeast of the centre of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the parish of Beckley and Stowood's population as 608. The village is 400 feet (120 m) above sea level on the northern brow of a hill overlooking Otmoor. The hill is the highest part of the parish, rising to 463 feet (141 m) south of the village near Stow Wood. On the eastern brow of the hill is Oxford transmitting station, a television relay mast that is a local landmark. In 1931 the parish of Beckley had a population of 288. On 1 April 1932 the parish was abolished to form "Beckley and Stowood", part also went to "Fencott and Murcott".
North Leigh is a village and civil parish about 3 miles (5 km) northeast of Witney in Oxfordshire. The parish includes the hamlet of East End and since 1932 has also included the hamlet of Wilcote. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,929.
Weston-on-the-Green is a village and civil parish in the Cherwell district of Oxfordshire, England, about 4 miles (6 km) southwest of Bicester. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 523.
Rousham is a village and civil parish beside the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire. The village is about 6+1⁄2 miles (10.5 km) west of Bicester and about 6 miles (10 km) north of Kidlington. The parish is bounded by the River Cherwell in the east, the A4260 main road between Oxford and Banbury in the west, partly by the B4030 in the north, and by field boundaries with Tackley parish in the south. The 2001 Census recorded the parish's population as 80. Rousham was founded early in the Anglo-Saxon era. Its toponym is derived from Old English meaning Hrothwulf's ham or farm.
Church Hanborough is a village in Hanborough civil parish about 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Witney in Oxfordshire.
Mixbury is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about 2.5 miles (4 km) southeast of Brackley in Northamptonshire.
Chesterton is a village and civil parish on Gagle Brook, a tributary of the Langford Brook in north Oxfordshire. The village is about 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) southwest of the market town of Bicester. The village has sometimes been called Great Chesterton to distinguish it from the hamlet of Little Chesterton, about 3⁄4 mile (1.2 km) to the south in the same parish. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 850.
Forest Hill is a village in the civil parish of Forest Hill with Shotover, in the South Oxfordshire district, in Oxfordshire, England, about 4.5 miles (7 km) east of Oxford. The village which is about 330 feet (100 m) above sea level is on the northeastern brow of a ridge of hills. The highest point of the ridge is Red Hill, which rises to 440 feet (130 m) just south of the village. The 2011 Census recorded Forest Hill with Shotover's population as 856.
Caversfield is a village and civil parish about 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) north of the centre of Bicester. In 1844 Caversfield became part of Oxfordshire, but until then it was always an exclave of Buckinghamshire. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,788.
Steeple Barton is a civil parish and scattered settlement on the River Dorn in West Oxfordshire, about 8+1⁄2 miles (13.7 km) east of Chipping Norton, a similar distance west of Bicester and 9 miles (14 km) south of Banbury. Most of the parish's population lives in the village of Middle Barton, about 1 mile (1.6 km) northwest of the settlement of Steeple Barton. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,523. Much of the parish's eastern boundary is formed by the former turnpike between Oxford and Banbury, now classified the A4260 road. The minor road between Middle Barton and Kiddington forms part of the western boundary. Field boundaries form most of the rest of the boundaries of the parish.
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