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Oadby is a town in the borough of Oadby and Wigston in the county of Leicestershire, England. Oadby is a district centre south east of Leicester city centre on the A6 trunk road. Leicester Racecourse is situated on the border between Oadby and Stoneygate. The
University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_la ...
Botanical Garden is in Oadby. Oadby had a population of 23,849 in 2011 and like its neighbour Wigston, Oadby is made up of five wards. The Borough of Oadby and Wigston is twinned with Maromme in France, and
Norderstedt Norderstedt (Northern Low Saxon: ''Noordersteed'') is a city in Germany and part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region (''Metropolregion Hamburg''), the fifth largest city (with approximately 80,000 inhabitants) in the federal state of Schleswig-Hol ...
in Germany.


History


Angles, Danes and Normans

There has been a habitation in Oadby since an Anglian settlement in the early Anglo-Saxon period. Though the name Oadby is Danish (meaning "Outi's dwelling") it must have existed long before the Danish invasions as is shown by the existence of a pagan Anglian cemetery. The original Anglian name has been lost. In 1760, on Brocks Hill, evidence of an Anglian burial ground was discovered. The
Middle Angles The Middle Angles were an important ethnic or cultural group within the larger kingdom of Mercia in England in the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon period. Origins and territory It is likely that Angles broke into the English Midlands, Midlands from ...
came under the rule of the kings of
Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era= Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ...
and were later conquered by the Danish invaders. Oadby is one of seventy Danish settlements in Leicestershire ending with "-by", which means
village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...
or settlement. Its name probably came from
Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
''Auðarbýr'' = "Auði's settlement". Danish rule continued until 920, when
King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ...
Alfred the Great won his battles against the Danes: the Oadby area is supposed to be the site of at least one of these battles. In the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
, 1086, Oadby's name was recorded as Oldebi. Other early forms are Oladebi, Outheby (Feet of Fines, 1199), Onderby and, finally, Oadby. When
King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ...
Harold had been defeated,
William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, ...
gave Oadby to Hugh de Grandmesnil, Governor of Leicestershire, who founded the parish church of Oadby on the site of the present St Peter's Church. The tenants of the manor of Oadby were Roger who held one and half carucates, and Countess Judith who held 9 carucates and 2 bovates, and 30 acres of meadow. On the Countess's land were 46 socmen, 11 bordars and 3 serfs; 2 carucates were let to Robert de Buci. The manor was held in 1444 by William Ferrers; in 1457 it was held by William Grey, Lord Ferrers of Groby. In 1541 the manor was held by John Waldron; his successor John Waldron sold it in 1629 to Sir John Lombe. In 1831 the main landed proprietors were the trustees of the late George Wyndham (patrons of the vicarage), George Legh Keck (lord of the manor) and Thomas Pares.


Modern times

Oadby remained a small settlement until the late 19th century when it became a fashionable suburb for the businessmen of Leicester, such as the factory-owners of Leicester's shoe and stocking manufacturers. Many substantial houses were built in Oadby, some of which are now used by the
University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_la ...
. Stoughton Road in Oadby contains 2 sets of houses of historical interest. Some of the Framework Knitters Homes date back to 1909, while the North Memorial Homes, financed by Sir Jonathan North (former Mayor of Leicester) were built in 1927 and opened in the same year by the
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...
. As well as a series of houses, the North Memorial Homes site also houses the North Memorial Hall, built in a neo-Georgian style, which has been leased to Oadby Evangelical Free Church since 1974. Expansion of Oadby took place rapidly in the 20th century and was still continuing in 2017. Many residential developments have been constructed meaning the population in 2011 reached 23,849.


Oadby today

Oadby is a large district centre with a good range of shops, services and facilities which are mostly located along The Parade. It is predominantly a residential area for families. Oadby has a diverse population, by age, country of origin and religion. In the region of 20% of the population is under 17 years, 21% over 65 years, 17% were born outside the British Isles and 22%-29% (depending on source) come from ethnically diverse communities. The town has a mixture of properties, including Edwardian houses, new purpose-built accommodation blocks, three major supermarkets and restaurants across all price points. Oadby Student Village is situated in the north-east of the town, including residences for the local university students. Oadby Industrial Estate, situated to the south-west of the town, contains a large number of small and medium-sized businesses. Notable local parks include Coombe Park, Rosemead Park, Uplands Park and Brockshill Country Park.


Sport and culture

The local football club, GNG Oadby Town F.C., play in the United Counties League. Leicester Tigers, the premiership
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...
club, train at their centre at Oval Park on Wigston Road, Oadby. Oadby's other local football club is Oadby Owls F.C., who cater for many ages up to under-18s. They play at the municipal Coombe Park and are a very popular football club in Leicester. The club is known to be very successful around the Leicestershire area. Oadby's Parklands Leisure Centre is home to the Dolly Rockit Rollers
roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (j ...
league. Members of the UKRDA, they were ranked amongst the top eight teams in the country in 2011. The local tennis club (Oadby Granville Tennis Club) is situated on London Road and caters for all standards of tennis and ages and has produced county players and county champions amongst past members.


Education

Oadby is the home of Beauchamp College (formerly Kibworth Beauchamp Grammar School) and Gartree High School, both of which were attended by John Deacon of Queen. The
University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_la ...
has its halls of residence in the northern part of the town.


Transport

The main A6 dual carriageway passes through the town, bypassing the commercial centre. The
A563 The A563 is the designation for the ring road of Leicester, England. It forms a near-complete circuit except for a gap of around in the east of the city. An indirect route linking the gap involves the ( A47) A6030, and A6. The A563 was form ...
Leicester Ring Road intersects with the A6 close to Leicester Race Course to the north of Oadby town centre.


Rail

The nearest railway stations are Leicester and South Wigston both less than away.


Bus

Oadby and the surrounding areas are served by Arriva Midlands route 31/31E which operate a loop around the housing estates, Arriva X3 and
Stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
X7 both serving nearby villages including Kibworth and Market Harborough. Centrebus operate service 40 Circle Line which links Oadby to nearby Wigston and General Hospital.


Notable residents

* Margaret Cooper, innovative nurse and tutor * John Deacon, bass player of Queen


References


External links


Borough Website
{{authority control Towns in Leicestershire Unparished areas in Leicestershire Oadby and Wigston