Category Archives: Talks

Christ’s Hospital in Abingdon

At our October meeting Jackie Smith, the archivist for Christ’s Hospital in Abingdon, gave an interesting and detailed account of the foundation and development of the charity.
Christ’s Hospital was established in 1553 by Royal Charter of Edward V1. Sir John Mason, a Tudor diplomat born in Abingdon played a major role in gaining the charter for the new charitable foundation. Roger Amyce plus local men, including Richard Mayotte, Thomas Tesdale and Oliver Hyde contributed to the expense of obtaining the charter.
The main obligation of the charity was to care for the Long Alley almspeople who were to receive 8 pence per week, 1 shilling at Easter and 5 shillings a year for clothing: gown and hoods for the women and gown and hats for the men.

Sir John Mason

In addition, the charity shouldered the maintenance of the town’s bridges including those constructed by the Fraternity of the Holy Cross – a medieval religious guild. They also maintained the bridge over the River Ock to the west and the medieval arched stone bridge at the confluence of the Thames and Ock known as St. Helen’s Bridge.

Christ’s Hospital were also involved in the education of Abingdon boys from 1608 onwards. They administered and appointed Bennett scholars and Tesdale ushers at Abingdon School. An usher taught 6 poor boys at the school.

The History Society would like to thank Jackie Smith for her informative talk.

A History of the Ridgeway

At our September 2015 meeting Russell Cherry, keen historian, walker and photographer took us on a photographic journey along a portion of the Ridgeway Path – an ancient trackway described as Britain’s oldest road used for over 5000 years. The journey, taken by Mr Cherry in 2004, covered many of the historical sites and points of interest along the way (with small diversions to local pubs!). The route follows the high chalk uplands which made travel easy and provided a measure of protection offering a commanding view over the countryside.

The journey started at Avebury in Wiltshire, a well known Neolithic stone circle and continued to other Neolithic sites including Silbury Hill, West Kennet Long Barrow and along the West Kennett Avenue, a stone-marked processional way to The Sanctuary – originally a circle of timber posts from approximately 3000BC.

We then proceeded past Overton Hill with bronze age round barrows and on to the unusual dolmen (burial chamber) called The Devil’s Den and then onto another white horse chalk figure at Hackpen Hill. This was created in 1838 to commemorate the coronation of Queen Victoria in 1838. Not far from Hackpen Hill is Barbury Castle, an Iron Age hill fort with its deep defensive ditches – the route crossed directly through the castle.

Less than 5 miles from Barbury Castle is Liddington Castle, a late Bronze/early Iron Age hillfort. At this point we crossed over the M4 and made a short diversion to Alfred’s Castle, a small Iron Age hillfort near to Ashdown Park – associated with the Battle of Ashdown (AD 871) where King Alfred won a great victory against the Danes.

We then reached an area perhaps more well-known to most of us – Wayland’s Smithy, an impressive Neolithic Long Barrow once believed to have been the habitation of the Saxon smith-god Wayland – and White Horse Hill, Uffington Castle and Dragon Hill. Nearby, and perhaps a little less known is the monument commemorating Lord Wantage, Robert Loyd Lindsay. Lindsay was awarded the Victoria Cross during the Crimean War and was one of the founders of the Red Cross. He donated the Victoria Gallery building in Wantage (now a set of shops) and the statue of King Alfred in the market square.

Moving Eastwards, within a small woodland adjacent to the Ridgeway path, stands Scutchamer Knob. It is a raised earth mound and legend has it, that it is the burial mound of the Saxon king Cwichelm.

Finally, we completed our photographic tour of this section of the Ridgeway reaching Streatley, next to the River Thames. Our visit would not be complete without a final visit to a pub, The Bull where, in 1440, a monk and a nun were executed for “misconduct” – they are buried in the garden.

The History Society would like to thank Mr Cherry for his entertaining and informative talk.

Artists in Wonderland: Oxford, “Alice” and the Pre-Raphaelites

Illustrating his talk with artists’ works, Mark Davies described the interaction between Thomas Combe and his wife, Martha, and the Pre-Raphaelites in Oxford. Having joined the Oxford University Press, Combe became its Superintendent. William Holman Hunt related that when Combe and his wife met artists John Millais and his friend Charles Allston Collins and heard of the poor food in their lodgings, Martha sent them a pie the next day.

The Pre-Raphaelite artists’ attention to detail was emphasised using the View of Port Meadow from Godstow Lock, which included the industrial buildings of Wolvercote Paper Mill and the Oxford University Press. For the painting, The Woodman’s Daughter, Millais requested Combe to ask the mother of the girl, Esther, for an old pair of her boots to be able to paint them with total accuracy. A Scene of the Oxford Canal included the Observatory and the OUP building, while Convent Thoughts may have been painted in the private garden of the Press where the Combes’ had their house. They had no children and bought many paintings.

William Holman Hunt chronicled the Pre-Raphaelite history and told how William Morris and his friend at Exeter College, Edward Burne Jones, recruited Dante Gabriel Rosetti to paint the Oxford Union with large murals. A rare sketch by Morris of his plan for a mural was shown. It was said, however, that “Topsy” (Morris ) “can’t draw the head or where the hips come of ‘stunner’ Lipscombe”, the daughter of the keeper of the Trout. John Ruskin was the most influential art critic and he helped the Pre-Raphaelites to become important.

In1854, the year Charles Dodgson finished his studies, he was ordained and he gave his first sermon at St. Barnabas Church which Combe had had built for the people of Jericho, and where he was Church Warden. Holman Hunt described Martha as “foster mother of the whole house”. Dodgson rowed Alice and her sisters to Godstow in 1862, and was asked by Alice to write the stories he told them. An attractive edition of “Alice’s Adventures Underground” was produced in 1864 with “A Christmas Gift” on the back cover. However Dodgson’s sketch of Alice was not deemed good enough by sculptor Thomas Woolner, and Tenniel, who rowed at Oxford came to be the illustrator. This year is the 150th anniversary of first publication of Alice in Wonderland.

(Summary prepared by Elizabeth Simons)