Oxfordshire 53518 224693570 2008-07-10T00:19:17Z 87.242.155.30 edited into order of size of population {| class="toccolours" style="border-collapse: collapse; float: right; margin: 0 0 1em 1em" border="1" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" width="300" |- | colspan=2 style="text-align: center;"| <big>'''Oxfordshire'''</big> |- | colspan=2 style="text-align: center; background: white;" | [[Image:EnglandOxfordshire.png]] |- | colspan=2 style="background: #f0f0f0; font-weight: bolder;" | Geography |- ! width="45%" | Status |[[Ceremonial counties of England|Ceremonial]] & [[Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England|Non-metropolitan]] county |- !Region: |[[South East England]] |- ! style="font-weight: normal;" | '''[[Surface area|Area]]'''<br />- Total<br />- Admin. council |[[List of Ceremonial counties of England by Area|Ranked 22nd]]<br />[[1 E9 m²|2,605]] [[square kilometre|km²]]<br />[[List of Administrative shire counties of England by Area|Ranked 19th]] |- !Admin HQ: |[[Oxford]] |- ![[ISO 3166-2:GB|ISO 3166-2]]: |GB-OXF |- ![[ONS coding system|ONS code]]: |38 |- ![[Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics|NUTS]] 3: |UKJ14 |- | colspan=2 style="background: #f0f0f0; font-weight: bolder;" " | Demographics |- ! style="font-weight: normal;" | '''[[Population]]'''<br />- Total ({{English statistics year}})<br />- [[Density]]<br />- Admin. Council |[[List of ceremonial counties of England by population|Ranked {{English cerem counties|RNK=Oxfordshire}}]]<br />{{English cerem counties|POP=Oxfordshire}}<br />{{English cerem counties|DEN=Oxfordshire}} / km²<br />[[List of non-metropolitan counties of England by population|Ranked {{English admin counties|RNK=Oxfordshire}}]] |- !Ethnicity: |95.1% White<br />1.7% S. Asian |- | colspan=2 style="background: #f0f0f0; font-weight: bolder;" " | Politics |- |colspan=2 align=center|[[Image:Oxfordshire coat of arms.jpg|200px|Arms of Oxfordshire County Council]]<br />Oxfordshire County Council<br />http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ |- !Executive |{{English county control|CTY=Oxfordshire}} |- ! [[MPs elected in the UK general election, 2005|Members of Parliament]] | *[[Tony Baldry]] [[Conservative Party (UK)|(C)]] *[[David Cameron]] [[Conservative Party (UK)|(C)]] *[[Evan Harris]] [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|(LD)]] *[[John Howell (politician)|John Howell]] [[Conservative Party (UK)|(C)]] *[[Andrew Smith (politician)|Andrew Smith]] [[Labour Party (UK)|(L)]] *[[Ed Vaizey]] [[Conservative Party (UK)|(C)]] |- | colspan=2 style="background: #f0f0f0; font-weight: bolder;" " | Districts |- |colspan=2|<center>[[Image:OxfordshireNumbered.png]]</center> #[[Oxford]] #[[Cherwell (district)|Cherwell]] #[[South Oxfordshire]] #[[Vale of White Horse]] #[[West Oxfordshire]] [[Image:Oxen-poll05.PNG|thumb|center|The parties ruling the borough councils by 2005.]] |} '''Oxfordshire''' (abbreviated '''Oxon''', from the [[Latin]]ised form ''Oxonia'') is a county in the [[South East England|South East]] of [[England]], bordering on [[Northamptonshire]], [[Buckinghamshire]], [[Berkshire]], [[Wiltshire]], [[Gloucestershire]], and [[Warwickshire]]. It is divided into five [[Non-metropolitan district|local government districts]]: [[Oxford]], [[Cherwell (district)|Cherwell]], [[Vale of White Horse]] (after the [[Uffington White Horse]]), [[West Oxfordshire]] and [[South Oxfordshire]]. The county has a major tourism industry. The area is noted for the concentration of performance motorsport companies and facilities. [[Oxford University Press]] has headed a concentration of print and publishing firms; the university is also linked to the concentration of local [[biotechnology]] companies. The main centre of population is the city of [[Oxford]]. Other significant settlements are [[Banbury]], [[Bicester]], [[Kidlington]], and [[Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire|Chipping Norton]] to the north of Oxford; [[Witney]] to the west; [[Thame]] and [[Chinnor]] to the east; and [[Abingdon, England|Abingdon]], [[Wantage]], [[Didcot]], [[Wallingford]] and [[Henley-on-Thames]] to the south. Future population growth in the county is hoped to be concentrated around Banbury, Bicester, Didcot and Witney, near the [[South Midlands]] growth area. The highest point of the county is [[Whitehorse Hill]], in the Vale of White Horse, reaching 856 feet (261m). Oxfordshire's [[county flower]] is the [[Snake's-head Fritillary]]. ==History== {{main|History of Oxfordshire}} The county of Oxfordshire, at that time entirely situated to the north of the [[River Thames]], was formed in the early years of the [[10th century]].{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Historically the area has always had some importance, it has been valuable agricultural land resting between the main southern cities and containing the prestigious settlement at [[Oxford]] (whose name came from [[Anglo-Saxon language|Anglo-Saxon]] ''Oxenaford'' = "ford for [[oxen]]"). Ignored by the Romans, it was not until the formation of a settlement at Oxford that the area grew in importance. [[Alfred the Great]] was born in Wantage. The [[University of Oxford]] was founded in 1096. The area was part of the [[Cotswolds]] wool trade from the 13th century. The [[Great Western Railway]] reached [[Didcot]] in 1839. [[Morris Motor Company|Morris Motors]] was founded in Oxford in 1912 and [[MG (car)|MG]] in Abingdon in 1929. The importance of agriculture as an employer has declined rapidly in the 20th century; currently under one percent of the county's population are involved. In [[1808]] the county had fourteen [[hundred (division)|hundred]]s, namely [[Bampton, Oxfordshire|Bampton]], [[Banbury (hundred)|Banbury]], [[Binfield]], [[Bloxham]], [[Bullingdon]], [[Chadlington (hundred)|Chadlington]], [[Dorchester (hundred)|Dorchester]], [[Ewelme]], [[Langtree (hundred)|Langtree]], [[Lewknor]], [[Pyrton]], [[Ploughley]], [[Thame (hundred)|Thame]] and [[Wootton (hundred)|Wootton]]. The [[Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry]] was based at the Barracks on Bullingdon Green, [[Cowley, Oxford|Cowley]]. The Vale of the White Horse and parts of South Oxfordshire south of the [[River Thames]] were historically part of [[Berkshire]], but were added to the county in [[1974]]. Conversely, the [[Caversham, Berkshire|Caversham]] area of [[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]] was historically part of Oxfordshire. (See History of Oxfordshire for the traditional county boundaries). ==Towns and cities== *[[Abingdon, Oxfordshire|Abingdon]] (In Berkshire until 1974) *[[Banbury]] *[[Bicester]] *[[Burford]] *[[Carterton, Oxfordshire|Carterton]] *[[Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire|Chipping Norton]] *[[Didcot]] (In Berkshire until 1974) *[[Faringdon]] (In Berkshire until 1974) *[[Henley-on-Thames]] *[[Oxford]] *[[Thame]] *[[Wallingford]] (In Berkshire until 1974) *[[Wantage]] (In Berkshire until 1974) *[[Witney]] *[[Woodstock, Oxfordshire|Woodstock]] For a more complete list of settlements in the county see ''[[List of places in Oxfordshire]]''. ==Economy== This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Oxfordshire at current basic prices [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_economy/RegionalGVA.pdf published] (pp.240-253) by ''Office for National Statistics'' with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling. {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year || Regional Gross Value Added<ref>Components may not sum to totals due to rounding</ref> || Agriculture<ref>includes hunting and forestry</ref> || Industry<ref>includes energy and construction</ref> || Services<ref>includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured</ref> |- | 1995 || '''7,607''' || 120 || 2,084 || 5,404 |- | 2000 || '''10,594''' || 80 || 2,661 || 7,853 |- | 2003 || '''12,942''' || 93 || 2,665 || 10,184 |} {{reflist}} ==Education== Oxfordshire has a completely comprehensive education system with 23 independent schools and 35 state schools. The state schools are from the ages of 11 to either 16 or 18. Only eight schools do not have a [[sixth form]]; these are mostly in South Oxfordshire and Cherwell districts. ==Buildings== The most famous building in Oxfordshire is Blenheim Palace at Woodstock. It was built by the great architect John Vanbrugh for John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough, after he had won the battle of Blenheim.The gardens, which can be visited, were designed by the landscape gardener "Capability Brown", who planted the trees in the battle formation of the victorious troups. In the palace, which can also be visited, was born Sir Winston Churchill. Chastleton House, on the Gloucestershire and Warwickshire borders, is a great country mansion that was built on property bought from Robert Catesby, who was one of the men involved in the Gunpowder Plot with Guy Fawkes. Stonor Park, another country mansion, has belonged to the Stonor family for centuries. ==Places of interest== <div style="float:right;"> {{EngPlacesKey}} </div> *[[Image:HH icon.png|Historic house]] [[Blenheim Palace]] - [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]] *[[Image:UKAL icon.png|Accessible open space]] [[Chiltern Hills]] - [[Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty]] *[[Image:HR icon.png|Heritage railway]] [[Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway]] - A [[heritage railway]] operated with steam and diesel locomotives *[[Image:HR icon.png|Heritage railway]] [[Cholsey and Wallingford Railway]] *[[Cotswold Wildlife Park]] and Gardens *[[Image:UKAL icon.png|Accessible open space]] [[Cotswolds]] - [[Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty]] *[[Image:HR icon.png|Heritage railway]] [[Didcot Railway Centre]] - Museum of the [[Great Western Railway]] *[[Image:Museum icon.png|Museum (free)]] [[East Hendred Museum at Champs Chapel]] - a village museum of ancient village of [[East Hendred]] *[[Image:NTE icon.png|National Trust]] [[Greys Court]] *[[Image:HH icon.png|Historic house]] [[Heythrop Hall]] -by [[Thomas Archer]]. Hotel Golf & Country Club *[[Image:HH icon.png|Historic house]] [[Kelmscott Manor]] - Home of [[William Morris]] *[[Image:HH icon.png|Historic house]] [[Image:Museum icon.png|Museum (free)]][[Image:Museum icon (red).png|Museum (not free)]] [[Oxford]] *[[Image:UKAL icon.png|Accessible open space]] [[The Ridgeway]] *[[Image:Museum icon (red).png|Museum (not free)]] [[River and Rowing Museum]] *[[Image:UKAL icon.png|Accessible open space]] [[River Thames]] *[[Image:HH icon.png|Historic house]] [[Rousham House]] and Gardens *[[Image:HH icon.png|Historic house]] [[Sulgrave Manor]] *[[Image:Museum icon.png|Museum (free)]] [[Thame]] Museum *[[Image:UKAL icon.png|Accessible open space]] [[Uffington White Horse]], [[Uffington Castle]] and [[Wayland's Smithy]] in the White Horse Hills *[[Image:Museum icon (red).png|Museum (not free)]] [[Wallingford Museum]] ==See also== *[[Oxford University]] (including links to the individual colleges). *[[Oxford Canal]] ==Further reading== * Philip Powell - ''The Geology of Oxfordshire'' (Dovecote Press, 2005) ISBN 1-904349-19-6 ==External links== {{wiktionary|Oxfordshire}} {{commonscat|Oxfordshire}} * [http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ Oxfordshire County Council] * [http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/index/aboutyourcouncil/howthecouncilworks/elections/electionresults2005.htm Results of the 2005 county council election] * [http://www.oxfordshireforum.net/ Oxfordshire Forum] - The place to discuss Oxfordshire issues * [http://www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/ Thisisoxfordshire] Oxfordshire news, sport & information * [http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/gb-e-oxf.html Flags of Oxfordshire] * [http://www.visitsouthoxfordshire.co.uk Visit South Oxfordshire] <br /> {{Oxfordshire}} {{England counties}} [[Category:Oxfordshire| ]] [[ar:أوكسفوردشير]] [[br:Oxfordshire]] [[bg:Оксфордшър]] [[ca:Oxfordshire]] [[cy:Swydd Rydychen]] [[da:Oxfordshire]] [[de:Oxfordshire]] [[es:Oxfordshire]] [[eo:Oxfordshire]] [[eu:Oxfordshire]] [[fr:Oxfordshire]] [[ko:옥스퍼드셔 주]] [[hi:ऑक्सफ़र्डशायर]] [[id:Oxfordshire]] [[is:Oxfordshire]] [[it:Oxfordshire]] [[kw:Konteth Rysoghen]] [[la:Comitatus Oxoniensis]] [[lv:Oksfordšīra]] [[lb:Oxfordshire]] [[nl:Oxfordshire]] [[ja:オックスフォードシャー]] [[no:Oxfordshire]] [[pl:Oxfordshire]] [[pt:Oxfordshire]] [[ro:Oxfordshire]] [[ru:Оксфордшир]] [[simple:Oxfordshire]] [[sk:Oxfordshire]] [[fi:Oxfordshire]] [[sv:Oxfordshire]] [[uk:Оксфордшир]] [[vo:Oxfordshire]] [[zh:牛津郡]]