Prescote
Encyclopedia
Prescote is a hamlet
and civil parish about 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Banbury
in Oxfordshire
Its boundaries are the River Cherwell
in the southeast, a tributary
of the Cherwell called Highfurlong Brook in the west, and Oxfordshire's boundary with Northamptonshire
in the northeast.
probably means "priest's cottage", referring to a cottage either owned by a priest or more likely inhabited by one. Legend associates Prescote with Saint Fremund
, a Mercia
n prince held to have been martyred in the 9th century AD.
The Domesday Book
of 1086 did not mention Prescote. The manor did exist by 1208-09, when the Bishop of Lincoln
was the feudal
overlord. Prescote comprised two manors
that were held separately until 1417-1419, when John Danvers of Calthorpe
acquired both of them. In 1796 Sir John Danvers, Baronet
, died without a male heir and left Prescote to his son-in-law Augustus Richard Butler. In 1798 Butler sold the estate to the Pares family, who in 1867 sold it to Samuel Jones-Loyd, 1st Baron Overstone
. In 1883 Baron Overstone died without a male heir and left his estates to his daughter, Harriet, Lady Wantage. On her death in 1920 Prescote was sold to A.P. McDougall, whose Midland Marts company opened a cattle stockyard in 1921 beside Banbury Merton Street railway station. By 1964 Prescote belonged to Anne Crossman, the wife of Richard Crossman
M.P. Crossman was a descendant of the Danvers family.
Prescote manor house
has traces of a mediaeval moat
, but a date-stone over the door of the present house indicates that it was built for Sir John Danvers in 1691. The house was extended early in the 19th century. The house at Prescote Manor Farm, about 0.5 miles (804.7 m) northeast of the Manor House, is dated 1693.
Prescote had a mill on the River Cherwell, called Boltysmylle in 1482 and Boltes Mill in 1613. By 1654 there was a "Prescote Mill", which may be the same as the earlier Boltes Mill. By 1703 the mill was in disrepair but its remains were still recorded as extant in 1797-98 and 1823. Today only its mill stream
survives. The mill's decline may be linked with the manor's transition from arable to sheep farming. In 1547 a Danvers leased land at Prescote to a shepherd, and in 1797 it was reported that most of the 385 acres (155.8 ha) of the farm attached to Prescote Manor was "old inclosed" pasture.
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
and civil parish about 4 miles (6.4 km) north 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 Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
Its boundaries are the River Cherwell
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 the southeast, a tributary
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Cherwell called Highfurlong Brook in the west, and Oxfordshire's boundary with 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,...
in the northeast.
History
Prescote's 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...
probably means "priest's cottage", referring to a cottage either owned by a priest or more likely inhabited by one. Legend associates Prescote with Saint Fremund
Saint Fremund
-History:Legend has it that Fremund was a son of King Offa of Mercia. However he gave up his royal life to become a hermit and sailing with twelve companions from Caerleon-on-Usk, eventually landed on an island called "llefaye" where they established a hermitage...
, a Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
n prince held to have been martyred in the 9th century AD.
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 did not mention Prescote. The manor did exist by 1208-09, when the Bishop of Lincoln
Bishop of Lincoln
The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
was the feudal
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
overlord. Prescote comprised two manors
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...
that were held separately until 1417-1419, when John Danvers of Calthorpe
Calthorpe, Oxfordshire
Calthorpe is a ward in the town of Banbury, Oxfordshire. It contains the Cherwell Heights Estate and the Calthorpe estate.-History:Calthorpe was once a small village outside Banbury...
acquired both of them. In 1796 Sir John Danvers, Baronet
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
, died without a male heir and left Prescote to his son-in-law Augustus Richard Butler. In 1798 Butler sold the estate to the Pares family, who in 1867 sold it to Samuel Jones-Loyd, 1st Baron Overstone
Samuel Jones-Loyd, 1st Baron Overstone
Samuel Jones-Loyd, 1st Baron Overstone was a British banker and politician.-Background and education:Loyd was the only son of Reverend Lewis Loyd and Sarah, daughter of John Jones, a Manchester banker...
. In 1883 Baron Overstone died without a male heir and left his estates to his daughter, Harriet, Lady Wantage. On her death in 1920 Prescote was sold to A.P. McDougall, whose Midland Marts company opened a cattle stockyard in 1921 beside Banbury Merton Street railway station. By 1964 Prescote belonged to Anne Crossman, the wife of Richard Crossman
Richard Crossman
Richard Howard Stafford Crossman OBE was a British author and Labour Party politician who was a Cabinet Minister under Harold Wilson, and was the editor of the New Statesman. A prominent socialist intellectual, he became one of the Labour Party's leading Zionists and anti-communists...
M.P. Crossman was a descendant of the Danvers family.
Prescote manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
has traces of a mediaeval moat
Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
, but a date-stone over the door of the present house indicates that it was built for Sir John Danvers in 1691. The house was extended early in the 19th century. The house at Prescote Manor Farm, about 0.5 miles (804.7 m) northeast of the Manor House, is dated 1693.
Prescote had a mill on the River Cherwell, called Boltysmylle in 1482 and Boltes Mill in 1613. By 1654 there was a "Prescote Mill", which may be the same as the earlier Boltes Mill. By 1703 the mill was in disrepair but its remains were still recorded as extant in 1797-98 and 1823. Today only its mill stream
Leat
A leat is the name, common in the south and west of England and in Wales, for an artificial watercourse or aqueduct dug into the ground, especially one supplying water to a watermill or its mill pond...
survives. The mill's decline may be linked with the manor's transition from arable to sheep farming. In 1547 a Danvers leased land at Prescote to a shepherd, and in 1797 it was reported that most of the 385 acres (155.8 ha) of the farm attached to Prescote Manor was "old inclosed" pasture.