England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Wroxton All Saints

The Parish

The parish of Wroxton lies in northern Oxfordshire close to its boundary with neighbouring Warwickshire. Wroxton lies about 3 miles west of the market town of Banbury. Wroxton is a substantial village which is sited on the A422 road which connects Banbury with the Warwickshire town of Stratford upon Avon. Wroxton is sited on a low ridge of land which extends southeastwards from Warwickshire, it is separated from Banbury by the valley of the Sor Brook, a tributary of the River Cherwell. Wroxton is a compact village which grew up around its Abbey, an Augustinian Priory originally founded in the 13th century, the site now contains the Jacobean House and gardens which is the English campus of an American University. The wider parish of Wroxton encompasses the chapelry of Balscote which is separately listed as it has its own records. Wroxton sits at about 150 metres above sea level but land falls away to the east into the Sor Brook valley which is 40 metres lower. The landscape is very much reminiscent of the Cotswolds with dry stone walls and small fields, what was once largely pastoral has increasingly moved to arable farming in recent times. The parish is compact and supported somewhere around 600 parishioners. In Domesday times the land was held by Guy de Raimbeaucourt and supported 14 ploughs and a mill.

The Church

All Saints' church is sited at the heart of Wroxton on a bend on the former route of the A422. The church is almost entirely from the early 14th century with the exceptions of a few later additions. The southern porch and the tower had to be rebuilt in the mid-18th century but the remainder of the church is styled to its period. All Saints' church is large as befits a substantial village and was undoubtedly added to or rebuilt in the 14th century due to the wealth accruing to the wool trade. The church sits in an elevated site in appropriately enough Church Street, an attractive set of stone cottages lead up to it. The site has been raised from the road level and is retained by a stone wall. Access is up a ramped pathway which gives access to the graveyard, the site is fairly open and there are clear views of the church from most angles.