- Uffington, Oxfordshire
Uffington is a
village andcivil parish inOxfordshire (formerlyBerkshire ), best known as the location of theUffington White Horse hill figure .Location and character
The village is one of chalk-block houses and thatch, nestling under the
White Horse Hills . Theparish church of St Mary is known as "The Cathedral of the Vale" and has the rare feature of a hexagonal tower. The village is located at gbmapping|SU305892, in the middle of the Vale of the White Horse, otherwise known as the Ock Valley. Like most parish in the Vale, Uffington parish is long and thin, orientated north-south, so that it encompasses both low-lying arable land as well grazing land on theBerkshire Downs . The River Ock forms most of its northern boundary. The western boundary runs up across Dragon Hill, Whitehorse Hill, Uffington Down and the gallops on Woolstone Down before turning north again as the eastern border across Kingston Warren Down and Ram's Hill, almost to Fawler and partially along theStutfield Brook . The parish once included Woolstone.Local government
Uffington lies within the district of the
Vale of White Horse , but also has its ownparish council . The village has been twinned withLe Chevain inFrance since1991 .White Horse and other prehistoric features
:"See main articles:
Uffington White Horse , Dragon Hill,Uffington Castle andThe Ridgeway "One of theUnited Kingdom 's best-known archaeological sites, the 'White Horse' is a 374 feet (110 m) longBronze Age hill figure, cut out of the turf on White Horse Hill on theBerkshire Downs , just above the village of Woolstone. It is generally thought to have been a religioustotem of some kind, associated with the people who later became known as theAtrebates . In this capacity, it was probably associated with the adjoining 'Dragon Hill', a small natural hillock with an artificially flattened top. Above these standsUffington Castle , anIron Age hill fort (overlying a Bronze Age predecessor) where some of this tribe may have lived. There are also a number of associatedburial mound s and there are others further south. Just to the south of the hill fort, the ancient trackway thought to be 'Britain's oldest road', and known asthe Ridgeway , runs through the parish. Ram's Hill appears to have been a Bronze Age cattle ranching and trading centre.History
Despite popular Victorian theories, Uffington was not the location of the
Battle of Ashdown in871 and the White Horse was not created as a memorial by King Alfred's men. The place does, however, appear in mid-10th century boundary charters.Abingdon Abbey owned the manor throughout theMiddle Ages and King Edward I visited their grange there. By the17th century , the area was dominated by the Earls of Craven from Ashdown House and the church suffered during the Civil War because of their Royalist sympathies.Famous residents
*Sir
John Betjeman lived in the village during the1930s .
*Thomas Hughes (1822 -1896 ), author of "Tom Brown's Schooldays", was born in the village. The tiny village school mentioned in the book, still exists, now as a museum dedicated to Thomas Hughes. The large village hall is named the "Thomas Hughes Memorial Hall".ports
Uffington has a wide range of sporting activities, most of which happen at uffington sport and social club, fawler road. (01367820565). In the football season UUFC (uffington united football club) run two teams and are always looking for more players. for more info visit
www.nbfl.co.uk or turn up on saturday afternoon 2pm onwards or wednesday night 7.30pm onwards. there is also a cricket club and tennis club. all support welcome.External links
* [http://www.berkshirehistory.com/villages/uffington.html Royal Berkshire History: Uffington]
* [http://www.berkshirehistory.com/churches/uffington.html Royal Berkshire History: Uffington Church]
* [http://www.berkshirehistory.com/archaeology/white_horse.html Royal Berkshire History: The Uffington White Horse]
* [http://whitehorsedc.moderngov.co.uk/mgParishCouncilDetails.asp?ID=308&J=1 Vale of White Horse District Council: Uffington Parish Council]
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