Steeple Aston is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

on the edge of the

Cherwell Valley The River Cherwell ( or ) is a tributary of the River Thames in central England. It rises near Hellidon, Northamptonshire and flows southwards for to meet the Thames at Oxford in Oxfordshire. The river gives its name to the Cherwell local ...

, in the

Cherwell District Cherwell ( ) is a local government district in northern Oxfordshire, England. The district takes its name from the River Cherwell, which drains south through the region to flow into the River Thames at Oxford. Towns in Cherwell include Banbu ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

, England, about north of

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, west of

Bicester Bicester ( ) is a historical market towngarden town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Cherwell (district), Cherwell district of northeastern Oxfordshire in Southern England that also comprises an Eco-towns, eco town at North Wes ...

, and south of

Banbury Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...

. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 947. The village is above sea level. The

River Cherwell The River Cherwell ( or ) is a tributary of the River Thames in central England. It rises near Hellidon, Northamptonshire and flows southwards for to meet the Thames at Oxford in Oxfordshire. The river gives its name to the Cherwell local g ...

and

Oxford Canal The Oxford Canal is a narrowboat canal in central England linking the City of Oxford with the Coventry Canal at Hawkesbury (just north of Coventry and south of Bedworth) via Banbury and Rugby. Completed in 1790, it connects to the River Thame ...

pass east of the village. The river forms part of the eastern boundary of the parish. The parish's southern boundary, south of the village, also forms part of Cherwell District's boundary with

West Oxfordshire West Oxfordshire is a local government district in northwest Oxfordshire, England, including towns such as Woodstock, Burford, Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Carterton and Witney, where the council is based. Area The area is mainly rural downland ...

History

The earliest evidence of occupation in the area is an

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

burial site in the west of the parish near Hopcroft's Holt. 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 ...

of 1086 records Steeple Aston as ''Estone'', derived from East Tun meaning "east village". By 1220 it was ''Stipelestun'', with the "steeple" prefix probably referring to the church tower. The

of 1086 records that

Odo Odo or ODO may refer to: People * Odo, a given name; includes a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Franklin Odo (born 1939), Japanese-American historian * Seikichi Odo (1927–2002), Japanese karateka * Yuya Odo (born 1990), J ...

Bishop of Bayeux The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bayeux and Lisieux (Latin: ''Dioecesis Baiocensis et Lexoviensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Bayeux et Lisieux'') is a diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is coextensive with the Department of Calvados and is ...

was overlord of the

manor Manor may refer to: Land ownership *Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of medieval Europe, notably England *Lord of the manor, the owner of an agreed area of land (or "manor") under manorialism *Man ...

of Steeple Aston. The Holt Hotel at Hopcroft's Holt, about southwest of the village on the A4260 main road began as a coaching inn in 1475. It was frequented by the 17th century highwayman

Claude Duval Claude Du Vall (or Duval) (164321 January 1670) was a French highwayman in Restoration England. He came from a family of decayed nobility, and worked in the service of exiled royalists who returned to England under King Charles II. Little else ...

who is said to haunt it. In 1754 the licensee and his wife at Hopcroft's Holt were murdered. In 1774 the inn at Hopcroft's Holt was called the King's Arms. The village has several 17th-century buildings from the

Great Rebuilding A Great Rebuilding is a period in which a heightened level of construction work, architectural change, or rebuilding occurred. More specifically, W. G. Hoskins defined the term "The Great Rebuilding" in England as the period from the mid-16th cent ...

of England. The School formerly occupied a building in North Side built in 1640. Next to it are Radcliffe's

Almshouses An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) was charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the medieval era. They were often targeted at the poor of a locality, at those from certain ...

which Brasenose College founded in the 1660s. In South Side, Grange Cottage is early 17th century and Manor Farm House is late 17th century.

Church and chapel

The

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...

Saints Peter and Paul Peter and Paul may refer to: * Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle considered together ** Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, 29 June in the Catholic liturgical calendar ** St. Peter and St. Paul's Church (disambiguation) * ''Peter and Paul'' (film), 1 ...

is 13th century, with subsequent

Perpendicular Gothic Perpendicular Gothic (also Perpendicular, Rectilinear, or Third Pointed) architecture was the third and final style of English Gothic architecture developed in the Kingdom of England during the Late Middle Ages, typified by large windows, four-c ...

alterations, and the architect

John Plowman John Plowman (c.1773–1843) was an English architect based in Oxford. His younger son John Plowman (1807–1871) also worked on buildings on Oxford, leading to issues with attribution. From 1812 until 1837 Plowman worked in partnership with th ...

restored it in 1842. The parish church is the source of the

Steeple Aston Cope The Steeple Aston Cope is a cope made between 1320 and 1340. It is notable for being one of the few surviving examples of English medieval embroidery (also known by the Latin name '' Opus Anglicanum''), and is the earliest known depiction of a l ...

, an important piece of 14th-century

embroidery Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on c ...

now on loan to the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

in London. The church

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

has a

ring Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

of eight bells. Richard Keene of

Burford Burford () is a town on the River Windrush, in the Cotswolds, Cotswold hills, in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England. It is often referred to as the 'gateway' to the Cotswolds. Burford is located west of Oxford and southeas ...

cast Cast may refer to: Music * Cast (band), an English alternative rock band * Cast (Mexican band), a progressive Mexican rock band * The Cast, a Scottish musical duo: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis * ''Cast'', a 2012 album by Trespassers William * ...

the three oldest bells in 1674 and 1675. A further bell was cast in 1700 by one of the Chandler family of bell-founders from

Drayton Parslow Drayton Parslow is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of Buckinghamshire, England, about south of Bletchley. In the 2001 census the parish had a population of 596, increasing at the 2011 census to 614. Toponym In the 1 ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

. Two bells were added in the 19th century cast by the

Whitechapel Bell Foundry The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was a business in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. At the time of the closure of its Whitechapel premises, it was the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The bell foundry primarily made church bells a ...

: one cast by Thomas Mears II in 1827 and the other, the present tenor, cast by Mears and Stainbank in 1879. This completed a ring of six bells, with the smallest of the Keene bells being the treble. In 1986 the Whitechapel Bell Foundry cast two slightly smaller bells which were added as a new treble and second bell, increasing the ring to eight. St Peter and St Paul also has a Sanctus bell, cast in 1701 by Henry Bagley II, who had foundries in the

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

villages of

Chacombe Chacombe (sometimes Chalcombe in the past) is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England, about north-east of Banbury. It is bounded to the west by the River Cherwell, to the north by a tributary and to the south-east by the B ...

and Ecton. Steeple Aston had a small number of

recusants Recusancy (from la, recusare, translation=to refuse) was the state of those who remained loyal to the Catholic Church and refused to attend Church of England services after the English Reformation. The 1558 Recusancy Acts passed in the reign ...

in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries and a small number of

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

in the 17th century.

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

meetings were held in the home of one of the villagers for a few years early in the 19th century but had ceased by 1817. Meetings were held in 1838 and 1839 to hear

Primitive Methodist The Primitive Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination with the holiness movement. It began in England in the early 19th century, with the influence of American evangelist Lorenzo Dow (1777–1834). In the United States, the Primiti ...

preachers and were well-attended despite uproarious organised protests. A

chapel in South Street was opened in 1852. It was used for worship until 1968 when it was converted into a private residence.

Governance

Steeple Aston has a parish council that meets monthly in the village hall. The village forms part of The Astons and The Heyfords ward of

Cherwell District Council Cherwell may refer to: Geography * Cherwell, Queensland, a locality in the Fraser Coast Region, Australia *Cherwell District, an administrative district in Oxfordshire, England *River Cherwell The River Cherwell ( or ) is a tributary of the ...

and has two councillors. For

Oxfordshire County Council Oxfordshire County Council is the county council (upper-tier local authority) for the non-metropolitan county of Oxfordshire in the South East of England. It is an elected body responsible for some local government services in the county, includ ...

the village is in the Deddington ward. The parish is in the Banbury Parliamentary constituency.

Transport

Steeple Aston lies east of the A4260 road between

and

. To the east it is linked with Bicester by the B4030. About south-east of the village is

Heyford railway station Heyford railway station serves the village of Lower Heyford and surrounding areas in Oxfordshire, England. It is on the Cherwell Valley Line and is ideally located for visiting the Oxford Canal and Heyford Wharf, which are both alongside. The ...

providing a rail link to

and

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

. The nearest motorway access is ''via'' junctions 9 or 10 of the M40.

Amenities

Steeple Aston village has one

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

. The Red Lion opened in 1903 and is controlled by

Hook Norton Brewery Hook Norton Brewery is a regional brewery in Hook Norton, Oxfordshire, England, several miles outside the Cotswold Hills. Founded in 1849, the brewing plant is a traditional Victorian 'tower' brewery in which all the stages of the brewing pr ...

. It previously had another pub, The White Lion, which opened in 1870. There is also The Holt Hotel public house on the edge of the parish on the A4260 main road about southwest of the village. The village has a village shop and

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

, school, pre-school,

village hall A village hall is a public building in a village used for various things such as: United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building which contains at least one large room (plus kitchen and toilets), is owned by a local ...

, and a sports and recreation club and sports pitch. Annual parish events include the

Whit Whit may refer to: * Whit or Whitsun, another name for the holy day of Pentecost * Whit (given name) * Whit (novel), by Iain Banks * WHIT, a radio station licensed to Madison, Wisconsin, United States, which holds the call sign WHIT beginning 2009 ...

Races, and the spring and summer flower shows. A mobile library also calls at the village on alternate Thursdays. The Steeple Aston Players is an amateur dramatic group that regularly perform plays in the village. Steeple Aston Village Archive (SAVA) holds annual talks and exhibitions and has produced CDs and books, all on the subject of the village's history. In September 2013, SAVA moved into its new Village History Centre adjacent to the Village Hall, which is open every Saturday morning or by appointment. Steeple Aston Cricket Club is an inclusive village side with players aged between 10 and 59, playing against surrounding villages. In the last ten years, the club has won two thirds of its matches. In 1988 parts of the village were designated a conservation area.Steeple Aston Online – 'About Our Village'
/ref> On the edge of the village is the narrow-gauge Beeches Light Railway owned by

Adrian Shooter Adrian Shooter (22 November 1948 – 13 December 2022) was a British transport executive. Career Shooter joined British Rail in 1970 as a management trainee. He became maintenance engineer at Bletchley in the mid-1970s, then depot manager at ...

Beeches Light Railway - interesting vehicle (geograph 4111684)

Education

Steeple Aston has one school, Dr. Radcliffe's

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Primary School A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

, in Fir Lane. Dr. Samuel Radcliffe, principal of

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the mi ...

, founded it in 1640 along with a pair of

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) was charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the medieval era. They were often targeted at the poor of a locality, at those from certain ...

s. Most secondary school pupils from the village attend

The Warriner School, Bloxham The Warriner School is a coeducational secondary school situated on the edge of Bloxham, Oxfordshire, England. The school was founded in 1971 and now has 1,500 pupils in the 11–18 age range, having opened a sixth form in September 2013. It has ...

near Banbury.

Parish magazine and website

''Steeple Aston Life'', which was first printed in August 1973, is a monthly magazine delivered freely to all residents and sold at the village shop. There is also a parish website.Steeple Aston Oxfordshire
/ref>

In popular culture

Early in

John le Carré David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British and Irish author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. ...

's novel ''

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy ''Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'' is a 1974 spy novel by British author John le Carré. It follows the endeavours of taciturn, aging spymaster George Smiley to uncover a Soviet mole in the British Secret Intelligence Service. The novel has receive ...

'',

George Smiley George Smiley OBE is a fictional character created by John le Carré. Smiley is a career intelligence officer with "The Circus", the British overseas intelligence agency. He is a central character in the novels ''Call for the Dead'', ''A Mur ...

, after a disagreeable dinner, contemplates selling up and leaving London to live in the country and thinks to himself: "Steeple Aston sounds about right."

References

Sources and further reading

* * *

External links

Steeple Aston, Oxfordshire

Steeple Aston Village Archive (SAVA)
{{authority control Villages in Oxfordshire Civil parishes in Oxfordshire