Edgcote
Encyclopedia
Edgcote is a village and civil parish on the River Cherwell
in south-west Northamptonshire
. The parish is bounded by the river to the north and by one of its tributaries to the east. The village is about 5.5 miles (9 km) north-east of Banbury
in neighbouring Oxfordshire
, and the south-western boundary of the parish forms part of the county boundary.
Edgcote should not be confused with the former Northamptonshire settlement of Edgecote.
and two storeys plus a basement. It is built of local ironstone
with dressings of fine grey stone. Features include a carved mahogany staircase, and a drawing room decorated in a Chinese style.
The 1700 acres (688 ha) park was laid out in the 18th century and features a lake fed by the River Cherwell and the remains of a Roman villa
.
BBC Television
used the house in its 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen
's Pride and Prejudice
.
of St. James are the 13th century south doorway and three-bay
south arcade
. Inside the church is a series of monuments to the Chauncey
family. The oldest are to Toby Chauncey (died 1579) and William Chauncey (died 1585). They are followed by four monuments to 17th and 18th century members of the family carved by the Flemish sculptor John Michael Rysbrack
.
St. James' has a ring
of four bells plus a sanctus bell. The sanctus bell was cast in about 1500 by an unidentified bell-founder
. Bartholomew Atton of Buckingham
cast the oldest bell in the ring in 1592. His successor Robert Atton cast the tenor bell in 1623. Henry I Bagley of Chacombe cast the third bell in 1660 and the treble bell in 1668. The ring is currently unringable.
St. James' parish is a member of the Benefice of Culworth
with Sulgrave
and Thorpe Mandeville
and Chipping Warden
with Edgcote and Moreton Pinkney
.
The Vicarage south of the church is a Georgian
house of five bays.
River Cherwell
The River Cherwell is a river which flows through the Midlands of England. It is a major tributary of the River Thames.The general course of the River Cherwell is north to south and the 'straight-line' distance from its source to the Thames is about...
in south-west Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
. The parish is bounded by the river to the north and by one of its tributaries to the east. The village is about 5.5 miles (9 km) north-east of Banbury
Banbury
Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
in neighbouring Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, and the south-western boundary of the parish forms part of the county boundary.
Edgcote should not be confused with the former Northamptonshire settlement of Edgecote.
Edgcote House
Edgcote House was built 1747–52 for London merchant Richard Chauncey by the architect William Jones. The building is of nine baysBay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
and two storeys plus a basement. It is built of local ironstone
Ironstone
Ironstone is a sedimentary rock, either deposited directly as a ferruginous sediment or created by chemical repacement, that contains a substantial proportion of an iron compound from which iron either can be or once was smelted commercially. This term is customarily restricted to hard coarsely...
with dressings of fine grey stone. Features include a carved mahogany staircase, and a drawing room decorated in a Chinese style.
The 1700 acres (688 ha) park was laid out in the 18th century and features a lake fed by the River Cherwell and the remains of a Roman villa
Roman villa
A Roman villa is a villa that was built or lived in during the Roman republic and the Roman Empire. A villa was originally a Roman country house built for the upper class...
.
BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
used the house in its 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
's Pride and Prejudice
Pride and Prejudice
Pride and Prejudice is a novel by Jane Austen, first published in 1813. The story follows the main character Elizabeth Bennet as she deals with issues of manners, upbringing, morality, education and marriage in the society of the landed gentry of early 19th-century England...
.
Parish church
The oldest parts of 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 St. James are the 13th century south doorway and three-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
south arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
. Inside the church is a series of monuments to the Chauncey
Chauncey
-Places:In the United States:* Chauncey, Georgia* Chauncey, Indiana, 19th-century town absorbed into West Lafayette, Indiana* Chauncey, Michigan* Chauncey, Ohio-People:Given name* Chauncey Billups, American basketball player* Chauncey Hosford, Oregon pioneer...
family. The oldest are to Toby Chauncey (died 1579) and William Chauncey (died 1585). They are followed by four monuments to 17th and 18th century members of the family carved by the Flemish sculptor John Michael Rysbrack
John Michael Rysbrack
Johannes Michel or John Michael Rysbrack, original name Jan Michiel Rijsbrack , was an 18th-century Flemish sculptor. His birth-year is sometimes given as 1693 or 1684....
.
St. James' has a ring
Change ringing
Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuned bells in a series of mathematical patterns called "changes". It differs from many other forms of campanology in that no attempt is made to produce a conventional melody....
of four bells plus a sanctus bell. The sanctus bell was cast in about 1500 by an unidentified bell-founder
Bellfounding
Bellfounding is the casting of bells in a foundry for use in churches, clocks, and public buildings. A practitioner of the craft is called a bellmaker or bellfounder. The process in Europe dates to the 4th or 5th century. In early times, when a town produced a bell it was a momentous occasion in...
. 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 oldest bell in the ring in 1592. His successor Robert Atton cast the tenor bell in 1623. Henry I Bagley of Chacombe cast the third bell in 1660 and the treble bell in 1668. The ring is currently unringable.
St. James' parish is a member of the Benefice of Culworth
Culworth
Culworth is a village and civil parish about north of Brackley in South Northamptonshire, England. Culworth is also about northeast of the north Oxfordshire town of Banbury....
with Sulgrave
Sulgrave
Sulgrave is a village and civil parish in South Northamptonshire, England, about north of Brackley.-Parish church:The Church of England parish Church of St James the Less is part of the benefice of Culworth with Sulgrave and Thorpe Mandeville and Chipping Warden with Edgcote and Moreton Pinkney.By...
and Thorpe Mandeville
Thorpe Mandeville
Thorpe Mandeville is a village and civil parish in South Northamptonshire, England about northeast of Banbury in neighbouring Oxfordshire. The hamlet of Lower Thorpe lies just north of the village....
and Chipping Warden
Chipping Warden
Chipping Warden is a village in Northamptonshire, England about northeast of the Oxfordshire town of Banbury. The parish is bounded to the east and south by the River Cherwell, to the west by the boundary with Oxfordshire and to the north by field boundaries....
with Edgcote and Moreton Pinkney
Moreton Pinkney
Moreton Pinkney is a village and civil parish in South Northamptonshire, about north of Brackley.-Parish church:The earliest evidence of Christianity in the parish is a fragment of an Anglo-Saxon stone cross in the churchyard of the Church of England parish church of St Mary the Virgin...
.
The Vicarage south of the church is a Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
house of five bays.