Lower Oddington and Upper Oddington are a pair of adjoining villages in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. Together they form the

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 authorit ...

of Oddington. In 2010 the parish had an estimated population of 477, decreasing at the 2011 census to 417. The two villages are located to the south of the A436 road two miles east of the town of

Stow-on-the-Wold Stow-on-the-Wold is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, on top of an 800-foot (244 m) hill at the junction of main roads through the Cotswolds, including the Fosse Way (A429), which is of Roman origin. The town was founde ...

History

In 1780 the Oddington estate, at one time the seat of the Chamberlayne family, was left to Elizabeth Ann Wilson by Crayle Crayle. Elizabeth, who was married to

Charles Loraine Smith Charles Loraine Smith or Charles Loraine (1 April 1751 – 24 August 1835) was a sportsman, artist and politician. He inherited his family seat in Enderby, Leicestershire while still a boy. He was a keen horseman and his paintings of animals are ...

in 1784, sold this inheritance to Sir John Reade who extended the land by purchasing other lots. The 17th-century Oddington House was remodelled by Lady Reade c.1810 to form a large three storey L-shaped house but the East wing was demolished in a later restoration. It is a grade II* listed building, having been added to the register on 25 August 1960.

St. Nicholas Church

The Church of England parish church of Saint Nicholas is a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, having been added to the register on 25 August 1960. The church was originally a cell of St Peter’s

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

abbey in

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

. It was ceded in 1157 to the

Diocese of York The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire. The diocese is headed by the ...

and exchanged with

the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...

in 1547. The church is built of dressed limestone and has a stone slate roof. Part of the nave is twelfth-century and part thirteenth-century. The chancel is fifteenth-century and the tower at the east end is thirteenth-century. The

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

south aisle probably represents the original nave. The church was all but abandoned among its fields in 1852, and has been little altered since. The north wall of the nave has a medieval wall paintings of the

Doom Doom is another name for damnation. Doom may also refer to: People * Doom (professional wrestling), the tag team of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed * Daniel Doom (born 1934), Belgian cyclist * Debbie Doom (born 1963), American softball pitcher * ...

, dating to the early fifteenth century. These were whitewashed over in the English Reformation and conserved by Eve Baker from 1969. Scenes depicted include the Seven Acts of Mercy and the

Seven Deadly Sins The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a grouping and classification of vices within Christian teachings. Although they are not directly mentioned in the Bible, there are parallels with the seven things ...

Notable residents

Carol Mather Sir David Carol MacDonnell Mather (3 January 19193 July 2006) was a British soldier and politician. After serving 22 years in the British Army, he was the Member of Parliament for Esher from 1970 until 1987. During his political career he he ...

(1919-2006), 20th Century soldier and politician.

References

External links

GENUKI(tm) pageParish council contacts'Parishes: Oddington', A History of the County of Gloucester: volume 6 (1965), pp. 87-98
* for Lower Oddington * for Upper Oddington {{authority control Villages in Gloucestershire Cotswold District Civil parishes in Gloucestershire