Dorton
Encyclopedia
Dorton is a village and civil parish in the Aylesbury Vale
district of Buckinghamshire
. It is in the western part of the county, about 5 miles (8 km) north of the Oxfordshire
market town
of Thame
.
is derived from the Old English for "farm at a narrow pass". The Domesday Book
of 1086 records it as Dortone, and in the 13th century it was Durtone.
Before the Norman conquest of England
Alric, son of Goding, a thegn
of Edward the Confessor
, held the manor
of Dorton. However, the Domesday Book records that by 1086 the Norman baron Walter Giffard
held it.
Dorton House
is a Grade I listed Jacobean
mansion to the south of the village. It is now a preparatory school, Ashfold School
.
of Saint John the Evangelist
was originally a chapel of ease
to nearby Chilton
. St. John's has been a parish in its own right since at least 1590.
The nave
and chancel
of the church building may be 12th century, as is the bowl of the font
. There is a 13th century lancet window
in the nave. The south porch was added in the 13th century, es evidenced by a blocked window of that date in its east wall. In the 14th century the Decorated Gothic south aisle was added, the chancel arch was at least partly rebuilt and the present east window and piscina
were added. The present stained glass
in the east window is 15th century. The present entrance arch to the porch was added in the 15th century, the base of the font is from the same century and the Perpendicular Gothic window in the south wall of the south aisle was added in about 1480.
St. John's has three bells hung in a timber-framed bell-cot
, plus a small Sanctus bell. Bartholomew Atton of Buckingham
cast the tenor bell in 1604 and Robert Atton cast the second bell in 1626. John Taylor and Sons cast the treble bell in 1828, presumably at the bell-foundry they then had at Oxford.
, a chalybeate
spring, is north of the village in Spa Wood. A large pump room and health spa were opened in about 1840 but due to lack of Royal patronage (unlike Royal Leamington Spa and Royal Tunbridge Wells
) Dorton Spa declined. Little exists of it now.
The Great Western Railway
had the "Bicester cut-off" railway built through the parish in 1910. The line passes within a few yards of the village, and in 1937 the GWR opened to serve it. British Rail
ways closed the halt in 1963. The railway is now part of the Chiltern Main Line
.
Dorton was noted in the 1960s and 1970s for the tug-of-war team the Dorton Dons
.
Aylesbury Vale
The Aylesbury Vale is a large area of flat land mostly in Buckinghamshire, England. Its boundary is marked by Milton Keynes to the north, Leighton Buzzard and the Chiltern Hills to the east and south, Thame to the south and Bicester and Brackley to the west.The vale is named after Aylesbury, the...
district of Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
. It is in the western part of the county, about 5 miles (8 km) north of the Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
market town
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
of Thame
Thame
Thame is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about southwest of the Buckinghamshire town of Aylesbury. It derives its toponym from the River Thame which flows past the north side of the town....
.
Manor
The village toponymToponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
is derived from the Old English for "farm at a narrow pass". The Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 records it as Dortone, and in the 13th century it was Durtone.
Before the Norman conquest of England
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
Alric, son of Goding, a thegn
Thegn
The term thegn , from OE þegn, ðegn "servant, attendant, retainer", is commonly used to describe either an aristocratic retainer of a king or nobleman in Anglo-Saxon England, or as a class term, the majority of the aristocracy below the ranks of ealdormen and high-reeves...
of Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
, held the manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Dorton. However, the Domesday Book records that by 1086 the Norman baron Walter Giffard
Walter Giffard, 1st Earl of Buckingham
Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville, 1st Earl of Buckingham was a Norman magnate and one of the few proven Companions of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The caput of his feudal honour was at Crendon, Buckinghamshire....
held it.
Dorton House
Dorton House (Buckinghamshire)
Dorton House is a Grade I Listed Jacobean country house near the village of Dorton in Buckinghamshire, England.The house was built between 1596 and 1626 by Sir John Dormer on the site of a previous house. The house is in a Gothic Style and is in a horseshoe shape...
is a Grade I listed Jacobean
Jacobean architecture
The Jacobean style is the second phase of Renaissance architecture in England, following the Elizabethan style. It is named after King James I of England, with whose reign it is associated.-Characteristics:...
mansion to the south of the village. It is now a preparatory school, Ashfold School
Ashfold School
Ashfold School is a private day and boarding preparatory school for about 270 boys and girls aged 3 to 13. It is situated in a Grade 1 Listed Jacobean Mansion named Dorton House in the village of Dorton near the cities of Oxford, Bicester and Aylesbury in the English county of...
.
Parish church
The Church of England parish churchChurch 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 the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
of Saint John the Evangelist
John the Evangelist
Saint John the Evangelist is the conventional name for the author of the Gospel of John...
was originally a chapel of ease
Chapel of ease
A chapel of ease is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently....
to nearby Chilton
Chilton, Buckinghamshire
Chilton is a village and civil parish in Aylesbury Vale district in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the west of the county, about north of Thame in Oxfordshire. Chilton parish includes the hamlet of Easington .-Manor:The toponym "Chilton" is derived from the Old English for "young man's farm"...
. St. John's has been a parish in its own right since at least 1590.
The nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
and chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
of the church building may be 12th century, as is the bowl of the font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
. There is a 13th century lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
in the nave. The south porch was added in the 13th century, es evidenced by a blocked window of that date in its east wall. In the 14th century the Decorated Gothic south aisle was added, the chancel arch was at least partly rebuilt and the present east window and piscina
Piscina
A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. Roman Catholics usually refer to the drain, and by extension, the basin, as the sacrarium...
were added. The present stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
in the east window is 15th century. The present entrance arch to the porch was added in the 15th century, the base of the font is from the same century and the Perpendicular Gothic window in the south wall of the south aisle was added in about 1480.
St. John's has three bells hung in a timber-framed bell-cot
Bell-Cot
A bell-cot, bell-cote or bellcote, is a small framework and shelter for one or more bells, supported on brackets projecting from a wall or built on the roof of chapels or churches which have no towers. It often holds the Sanctus bell rung at the Consecration....
, plus a small Sanctus bell. Bartholomew Atton of Buckingham
Buckingham
Buckingham is a town situated in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire. The town has a population of 11,572 ,...
cast the tenor bell in 1604 and Robert Atton cast the second bell in 1626. John Taylor and Sons cast the treble bell in 1828, presumably at the bell-foundry they then had at Oxford.
Economic and social history
Dorton SpaDorton Spa
Dorton Spa is a Chalybeate spring located between the villages of Dorton and Brill in Buckinghamshire, England in a wood called Spa Wood. Chalybeate is defined as "a water or other liquor containing iron", the word's origin is Greek chalyps; chalybos, meaning steel; Chalyps being an ancient nation...
, a chalybeate
Chalybeate
Chalybeate waters, also known as ferruginous waters, are mineral spring waters containing salts of iron.-Name:The word "chalybeate" is derived from the Latin word for steel, "chalybs", which follows from the Greek word "khalups"...
spring, is north of the village in Spa Wood. A large pump room and health spa were opened in about 1840 but due to lack of Royal patronage (unlike Royal Leamington Spa and Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
) Dorton Spa declined. Little exists of it now.
The Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
had the "Bicester cut-off" railway built through the parish in 1910. The line passes within a few yards of the village, and in 1937 the GWR opened to serve it. British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
ways closed the halt in 1963. The railway is now part of the Chiltern Main Line
Chiltern Main Line
The Chiltern Main Line is an inter-urban, regional and commuter railway, part of the British railway system. It links London and Birmingham on a 112-mile route via the towns of High Wycombe, Banbury, and Leamington Spa...
.
Dorton was noted in the 1960s and 1970s for the tug-of-war team the Dorton Dons
Dorton Dons
Dorton Dons was a tug-of-war team in the 1960s and 1970s. Managed and coached by Don Claridge of Dorton in Buckinghamshire, they won regional and national championships. Whilst the team was based and trained in Dorton, it drew many of the team from local villages such as Brill, Ludgershall and Oakley...
.