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West Oxfordshire, known also as the Oxfordshire Cotswolds, has many typical Cotswold villages where the walls and roofs of the buildings are built using
the attractive Cotswold limestone. North of Burford
is the Cotswolds
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty which, although mostly in Worcestershire and Gloucestershire Cotswolds, includes part of West Oxfordshire too. |
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West Oxfordshire ranges from the flat Thames valley in the south to the higher land of the Cotwold Hills in the north and west, and so its countryside
is very varied. It is rather similar to
the northern part of the Vale of White Horse where it is flat near the River Thames.
But from Carterton northwards the ground gradually
rises towards the Cotswolds. From Burford
and Witney north the land is attractively undulating. The A40 along this stretch follows a ridge of high ground and there are fine views from the road across the Windrush valley towards the
Cotswold Hills beyond.
Apart from the Thames, the three main rivers
of West Oxfordshire are the much smaller rivers Cherwell, Windrush
and Evenlode. The River Cherwell is the biggest of these
and forms part of West Oxfordshire's eastern boundary
as it flows south to meet the Thames
at Oxford. The River Windrush has its source high in the Cotswolds
near the Gloucestershire hamlet of Taddington, and crosses Oxfordshire from west to east in a picturesque valley as it makes its way towards Witney. After Witney the River Windrush divides, passing several gravel pits and large fishing lakes before merging again and entering the Thames at Newbridge, south of Standlake.
Crossing the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is the third of West Oxfordshire's three rivers, the lovely River Evenlode. The Evenlode has its source in
the Cotswolds near Moreton in the Marsh and it flows to meet the Thames near
Cassington. At first the Evenlode valley is wide and open but later it narrows with thick woodlands as the river twists and turns and meets the River Glyme near Bladon. On its way it passes the historic Wychwood Forest and the three villages known locally as the Wychwoods. At one time Wychwood Forest covered an area that stretched from Woodstock to Burford but by the Middle Ages much of it had been cleared for farming and now not much of it is left as woodland.
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Apart from Burford and
Chipping Norton the other main towns
of West Oxfordshire are Carterton, Charlbury, Witney
and Woodstock, home of Bleinham Palace. Carterton developed
from a small settlement mainly during the second world
war due to its proximity to RAF Brize Norton and is
now the second largest town in the region.
Alphabetical Listing of villages:
A
Alvescot, Asthall, Aston,
B
Bampton, Black Bourton, Bladon, Brighthampton, Brize Norton, Broadwell, Broughton Poggs,
C
Cassington, Chastleton, Church Hanborough, Churchill, Clanfield, Cote, Crawley, Curbridge,
D
Ducklington,
E
Eynsham,
F
Fifield, Filkins, Fulbrook, Finstock, Freeland,
G
H
Holwell,
I
Idbury,
J
K
Kelmscott, Kencot, Kingham,
L
Langford, Leafield, Long Hanborough,
M
Milton under Wychwood, Minster Lovell,
N
North Leigh, Northmoor,
O
P
Q
R
Ramsden,
S
Salford, Shilton, South Leigh, Standlake, Stanton Harcourt,
Swinbrook,
T
Taynton,
U
V
W
Westwell,
X
Y
Z
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