In the footsteps of
Edward the Confessor[a] (
Old English:
Ēadƿeard Andettere [ˈæːɑdwæɑrˠd ˈɑndettere];
Latin:
Eduardus Confessor [ɛduˈardus kõːˈfɛssɔr],
Ecclesiastical Latin:
[eduˈardus konˈfessor]; c. 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last
Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the
House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066.
Also paying my respects to the fallen in the church.
Many times I have passed through Islip and never stopped, this time I did and found it was the home of one of the old Kings of England.
I also found out the bridge I have crossed a thousand times was the scene of civil war battles.
I am surrounded by history where I live,I love the way one description called the church only from 1200s as if it was relatively new.
The medieval road linking London and
Worcester crossed the Ray at Islip. The original crossing was a
ford but was later supplemented by a bridge.
[3] In the 1640s the bridge and Islip's nearness to Oxford made the village a strategic objective for both sides in the English Civil War. Early in the war, Islip was a strategic outpost for the
Royalist capital at Oxford. In May 1644 a force under the
Parliamentarian Earl of Essex occupied Islip but early in 1645 a Royalist force under the
Earl of Northampton retook it. In April 1645 a force under
Oliver Cromwell retook the village and routed the Earl of Northampton's men in an engagement on Islip Bridge.
[3] On 4 July 1645
[16] the Parliamentarian
Lord Fairfax had his men demolish the bridge,
[17] which was described as having been "new-built".
[16] Then in 1646 during the
Third Siege of Oxford a force under the Parliamentarian Colonel
George Fleetwood occupied the village.
[3] After the war the bridge was rebuilt or replaced, and
John Ogilby's
Britannia Atlas of 1675 describes it as having six arches.
[17] Until the 18th century the ford remained the main crossing except in winter. In that century the road between London and Worcester became a
coaching route and Islip developed as a staging post.
[3] Islip was on the winter route between Oxford and
Buckingham when Gosford Bridge was impassable.
[18]
sorry its still not posting photos correct I think you can click on them.
