St Giles' Fair (also St Giles Fair) is an annual fair held in St Giles', a wide thoroughfare in central

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, England. The origins of the fair can be traced back to medieval times where it became one of England's dynamic trading centers. The fair has survived medieval times and is organised for a two-day duration in September each year by the

Oxford City Council Oxford City Council is the local authority for the city of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England. Oxford has had a council since medieval times, which has been reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1974, Oxford has been a non-metropolitan district, wi ...

with the London and Home Counties section of the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain.Oxford St. Giles

National Fairground Archive
The University of Sheffield

History

The earliest reference for the fair is from The Session Rolls of James I, and the origins of the fair related to St Giles' Church at the north end of St Giles (Oxford, Oxfordshire)'.Leslie Wood
St Giles' Oxford: Yesterday and Today — The Story of the Parish of St Giles'
, June 1974. This was originally completed in 1120, but the church was not actually consecrated until 1200, by St Hugh of Lincoln, a

Carthusian The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians (), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order has its own rule, called th ...

monk and bishop. As part of the commemoration of the consecration, St Giles' Fair was established. The fair was parted between the `college' and the `city' side, with the college side tracing its rights to the fair from the Manor of Walton. The medieval fair was held in Walton Manor, where it took place in the St Giles' churchyard on St Giles Day and during the following week. There were also various pleasant traditions, such as anyone with a beershop was allowed to bring barrels of beer to St Giles' Fair for sale.The Story of St. Giles and the ShowNational Fairground Archive
The University of Sheffield, UK. Another custom was that any householder in St Giles itself could sell beer and spirits during the fair by hanging the bough of a tree over their front door. The fair had

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

staying in Oxford between 3–10 September 1567 and watched the fair from the windows of St John's College on the east side of St Giles'. It evolved from the St Giles' parish wake, first recorded in 1624, and which became known as St Giles' Feast. In the 1780s, it was a toy fair, with cheap items for sale. By 1800, it had become a more general fair with stalls and rides. From the 1830s, the fair included adult amusements and it became more rowdy, so much so that there were calls for it to be closed. By the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

, with train travel excursions becoming available, the fair was attracting people from places as far away as

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

and

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

. In 1930 Oxford's city corporation, now the

, took over the running of the fair. In the 1930s the poet

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...

described the fair as follows:

''It is about the biggest fair in England. The whole of St Giles' and even
Magdalen Street Magdalen Street is a short shopping street in central Oxford, England, just north of the original north gate in the city walls. Traditionally, the name of the street is pronounced and not as the name of the Magdalen College, Oxford, Magdale ...
by Elliston and Cavell's right up to and beyond the War Memorial, at the meeting of the
Woodstock The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...
and
Banbury Banbury is an historic market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. The parish had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding ...
roads, is thick with
freak show A freak show is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "Freak, freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual Human#Anatomy and physiology, humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, t ...
s,
roundabouts A roundabout, a rotary and a traffic circle are types of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junct ...
, cake-walks, the whip, and the witching waves.''

The fair continues to this day, nowadays as a

funfair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Fairs showcase a wide range of go ...

, held on the Monday and Tuesday after the Sunday following 1 September, which is St Giles' Day. It is unusual for an English fair, being held in a major street of a city and blocking traffic for its two-day duration in September each year. It is organised by the

with the London and Home Counties section of the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain. The street is closed to traffic for two days each September for this traditional fair. Formerly, the

University Parks The Oxford University Parks, commonly referred to locally as the University Parks, or just The Parks, is a large parkland area slightly northeast of the city centre in Oxford, England. The park is bounded to the east by the River Cherwell, tho ...

were also closed at the same time to show that they are owned by the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

rather than formally being public. The fair also extends into

Magdalen Street Magdalen Street is a short shopping street in central Oxford, England, just north of the original north gate in the city walls. Traditionally, the name of the street is pronounced and not as the name of the Magdalen College, Oxford, Magdale ...

to the south and Banbury Road and Woodstock Road to the north. This fair went on hiatus in 2020 but returned in 2021. In 2021, Hebborns & Son's Waltzer ride sign read ''All topless girls ride free''.

References

External links

Historical photographs

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

Virtual Tour of St Giles Fair
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Giles' Fair Annual fairs Articles containing video clips Autumn in England Culture in Oxford Events in Oxford Fairs in England Festivals established in the 13th century History of Oxford September Street fairs 1200 establishments in England