Besselsleigh

Besselsleigh
St Lawrence's parish church
Population	87 (2001 Census)
OS grid reference	SP4501
Civil parish	Besselsleigh
District	Vale of White Horse
Shire county	Oxfordshire
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Abingdon
Postcode district	OX13
Dialling code	01865
Police	Thames Valley
Fire	Oxfordshire
Ambulance	South Central
UK Parliament	Oxford West and Abingdon

Besselsleigh or Bessels Leigh is a village and civil parish about 4+1⁄2 miles (7 km) south-west of Oxford. Besselsleigh was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.

The village is just off the A420 road between Oxford and Swindon. The 2001 Census recorded the parish's population as 87.

Manor

Besselsleigh is almost certainly the Lea or Leigh owned by a Saxon named Earmund in the 7th century. The manor of Leigh passed to the family of a Thomas Bessels in the mid-14th century, and by the next century the village had acquired its present toponym.

Parish church

The Church of England parish church of Saint Lawrence existed by the 12th century, and the west wall, Norman south door and possibly some other parts survive from this time. The church was rebuilt in the latter part of the 13th century, which is the date of the Decorated Gothic west window of the nave and east window of the chancel. Most of the other windows are Perpendicular Gothic: that in the north wall of the chancel from the 14th century and others in the church from the 15th century.

In 1632 William Lenthall paid for St Lawrence's to be "beautified and repaired" and in 1788 William John Lenthall paid for further works on the church. The font is 17th century and the pulpit is 18th century. St Lawrence's is a Grade II* listed building.

Air crash

Armstrong Whitworth Whitley V aircraft similar to T4337 which crashed at Great Park Farm

On March 14 1944 an Armstrong Whitworth Whitley V bomber aircraft, T4337 from No. 10 Operational Training Unit RAF at Abingdon, was on circuits and landings practice when its Royal Canadian Air Force pilot lost control while changing from flare path to instruments. The aircraft crashed onto what was then a military firing range at Great Park Farm, Besselsleigh and almost immediately burst into flames. All three members of its crew were killed.

At the time United States Army soldiers were billeted at Besselsleigh Park. They and a local man, Ron Amey, tried without success to rescue the crew. The pilot, Sgt DC Adamson, is buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Commission section of Botley Cemetery, on the outskirts of Oxford. Ron Amey went on to succeed his father William Amey as head of the Amey quarrying and construction company.

Economy and amenities

The Greyhound public house

Besselsleigh has a public house, the Greyhound. The Greyhound is in the coat of arms of the Lenthall family who used to own Besselsleigh Hall.

Parklands Campus (formerly Bessels Leigh School and Spires School) at the edge of the village is an independent special school for boys and girls aged 11 to 16, run by the charity Action for Children.

See also

• Marcham, where an RAF Armstrong Whitworth Whitley aircraft crashed on a training flight in 1942

References

St Lawrence's parish church: 13th century east window of chancel

Sources

• Page, WH; Ditchfield, PH, eds. (1924). A History of the County of Berkshire. Victoria County History. Vol. 4. assisted by John Hautenville Cope. London: The St Katherine Press. pp. 393–398. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Pevsner, Nikolaus (1966). Berkshire. The Buildings of England. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. p. 86. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

External links

• 360° Panorama of Christmas Lights in the Village

Media related to Besselsleigh at Wikimedia Commons