DRAYTON
This small and narrow parish lies in the Oxfordshire wolds some 2½ miles north-west of Banbury. (fn. 1)
In 1881 it covered 926 a. and in 1932, after a part
had been annexed to Banbury, 871 a. (fn. 2) A tributary of
the River Cherwell forms most of its long western
boundary and divides it from Wroxton. Its southern
boundary with Broughton is artificial. The parish
lies within the 400 and 500 ft. contours, and is
characterized by woodless undulating fields and
valleys. There is no natural woodland, but its
upland aspect was diversified after inclosure, some
of it of 17th-century date, with timbered hedges.
Trees have been planted, by the Norths, on the hill
slopes between Park Farm and the boundary with
Wroxton so that this part of the parish has the
appearance of park land. There is a small covert in
the south near Withycombe Farm. Withycombe,
probably meaning willow valley, (fn. 3) gives a clue to the
early character both of this part of the parish and of
the western valley where Drayton village itself lies.
The road from Banbury divides ½ mile to the
east of the village, one branch continuing northwards
to Hanwell, the other going west to Wroxton and
Alkerton. Banbury way, Bloxham path, and the
highway called Drayton lane, are mentioned in a
terrier of 1601. (fn. 4) A Drayton lane turnpike committee
met in 1753 under the chairmanship of Francis,
Earl of Guilford, and in March 1754 Drayton lane
was being levelled for the turnpike road through
Wroxton and Upton. (fn. 5) That economy was observed
is suggested by one man's request to have charge of
the turnpike gate if it was fixed at Drayton Town's
End: as his house stood near the road, it could be
used and would save the expense of building one. (fn. 6)
Conditions before the turnpike was made are
described in the Act of 1747: the road for several
months of the year was dangerous for horsemen and
almost impassable for carriages.
In the 19th century a mineral railway was built
in the north of the parish in connexion with the
ironstone works. (fn. 7)
The good water supply and the sheltered slopes
of the valley probably attracted early settlers.
Roman remains—the tessellated pavement of a
villa and coins (fn. 8) — have been found near the church,
lying on the 400 ft. contour on the hillside above
the stream; hereabouts was the nucleus of the
original village. The first element of the name Drayton derives from the Old English drag which is
sometimes used of a portage, (fn. 9) and the village may
have got its name because of the necessity of pulling
corn from the mill and other goods up and down the
steep valley sides.
The modern village is mostly scattered along the
curving road to Wroxton on a rocky hill about 450
ft. up, (fn. 10) but there are still (1964) 3 cottages in the
valley to the south-west of the church where the
mill lay. (fn. 11) As the agricultural land was comparatively
restricted the village was never large. In 1377 only
47 persons were assessed for poll tax; (fn. 12) the total male
population of 18 years and over in 1642 probably
numbered 51, a figure which agrees fairly well with
the 104 adults recorded for the Compton Census of
1676; (fn. 13) according to 18th-century incumbents there
were c. 20 families. (fn. 14) It was believed, however, that
the village had once been larger. Rawlinson, writing
in 1718, said that Drayton formerly called 'Little
London', had suffered from fire and that burnt
stones were frequently dug up. There were about
34 houses in his time. (fn. 15) In the 19th century there
was a marked increase in population, numbers
rising from 183 in 1801 to 224 in 1831. (fn. 16) In 1841
there were 42 houses and by 1868 these were mostly
in a bad state. (fn. 17) Thereafter there was a decline until
the expansion of industry at Banbury after the First
World War attracted workers to the village. In 1931
the population numbered 210 compared with 172
in 1901, (fn. 18) and numbers have since continued to rise.
In the later 17th century there were 3 fair-sized
houses in the village: the parsonage which was
assessed on 5 hearths for the Hearth Tax of 1665
and 2 farm-houses assessed at 7 and 5 hearths; there
were also 6 small farm-houses, assessed at 1 or 2
hearths each and an unknown number of cottages. (fn. 19)
The largest farm-house, then occupied by John
Cleaver, was probably the old manor-house of the
Ardens and Grevilles, which has now totally
disappeared. In the Middle Ages it must have been
a considerable building: in 1329 Sir Robert Arden
was licensed to crenellate it (fn. 20) and in the late 14th
and 15th centuries it was the principal seat of the
Greville family. (fn. 21) Sir Lewis Greville was outlawed
in 1406 for receiving in his house an Alkerton man,
who had committed murder, and for 'consorting in
the crime'. (fn. 22) When Leland visited the village about
1540 a Greville was still living there, though in
impoverished circumstances. (fn. 23) In the late 16th
century the Greville's house was occupied by the
wealthy yeoman Thomas Webb; after the murder of
his brother Richard by Lewis Greville, (fn. 24) the manorial
estate was split up and the village never again had a
resident lord of the manor. In 1819 Brewer stated
that the mansion, once of 'some importance', lay
on the south-east side of the church and that the
remains of the building were used as a poor-house. (fn. 25)
By 1841 the house had entirely gone. (fn. 26)
The 16th-century parsonage-house stood on the
site of the present large 19th-century rectory-house,
the cellars of which are of 17th-century date. (fn. 27) This
house was occupied by a number of rectors in the
16th and 17th centuries who were leaders of the
Puritan movement in the English church; their
memorials remain not only in stone in the church
but in the their theological writings. (fn. 28) A bill of 1674
for repairs to the parsonage, the barn, and the stable,
survives and it includes a sum for wainscoting the
parlour. (fn. 29) In 1862 this house was pulled down and
rebuilt to the designs of A. W. Blomfield. (fn. 30) A
photograph of the earlier house shows a 2-storied
house with attics, a thatched roof, and sash windows. (fn. 31)
The second large farm-house of 1665, then occupied by Elias Jackman, father of a Rector of
Wigginton, (fn. 32) can perhaps be identified with the
present Park Farm, which belonged to the Norths'
estate and was bought in 1935 by Trinity College,
Oxford. (fn. 33) This connexion with the North family
perhaps explains the 18th-century castellated archway, standing on high ground in the fields of Park
Farm, which was evidently a part of the design for
landscaping the park at Wroxton on the opposite
hillside. The detail of this 'folly' strongly suggests
that Sanderson Miller was the architect, as he was
of other ornamental buildings in Wroxton Park.
Park Farm itself stands just above the church and is
a house of 2 stories. It seems to have been built
originally on the 2-unit plan, common in this area,
with kitchen and parlour on either side of a through
passage, but it has been added on to at both ends. (fn. 34)
On a panel over the front door is the date 1683 and
the initials C.J.G.
The Roebuck Inn probably dates from the same
period. It is a 2-storied building of coursed rubble,
which retains some stone-mullioned windows of 2
and 3 lights, with square moulded labels, and a doorway with a classical architrave and cornice. (fn. 35) The
earliest record of licences being issued to Drayton
victuallers, however, is between 1753 and 1772. In
1782 the innkeepers of both the 'Roebuck' and the
'Hare and Hounds' were licensed. (fn. 36) The second
house is not recorded after 1806, perhaps because
the traffic on the road was not sufficient to supply 2
inns at such a short distance from Banbury, but
the 'Roebuck' flourished.
Although there was no resident squire in the 18th
century, his place was taken in the second half of the
century by the Metcalfe family, which presumably
lived at Drayton Lodge, (fn. 37) a late 18th-century house
in the north of the parish. It appears to be on the
site of an older one and, though now a farm-house,
there are indications that this was once a gentleman's residence; the grounds have fine trees planted
in them and there are fishponds nearby. The Metcalfes supported the school and endowed a charity.
The 'benevolent, munificent, and charitable' Elizabeth Metcalfe (d. 1791) is commemorated in the
church.
Another outlying house is Drayton Fields Farm,
built after the inclosure of the open fields in 1802.
Withycombe farm-house dates from the 17th
century; it is a 2-storied ashlar house with attic
dormers and has a few brick cottages nearby,
built in 1881.
There was some 18th- and 19th-century rebuilding and expansion, when the traditional
materials, ironstone rubble and thatch, were mostly
used, although the elementary school of 1868 is of
brick. Today the village has few ancient cottages
left. The modern houses have not followed the
traditional pattern but are built of red brick, roughcast, Welsh slate, and various types of tile.
Manor and Other Estates. (fn. 38)
The English
thegn, Turchil of Arden, was one of the few
Englishmen to retain land after the Conquest and
in 1086 he was still holding 5 hides at DRAYTON. (fn. 39)
But when William II created the Earldom of Warwick, probably in 1089, he gave Turchil's estates to
Henry, the first earl. (fn. 40) Henceforth until the 1380s
the Arden family held by knight service of the earls
of Warwick. Although the Ardens were holding
land in Warwickshire and elsewhere in the 12th
century, (fn. 41) no reference to their tenancy of Drayton
has been found before 1204, when a Thomas Arden
is recorded as holding a ½ fee there. (fn. 42) There is
considerable doubt about the identity of this Thomas.
The 17th-century pedigrees disagree but according
to Dugdale he was the son of William Arden of
Radbourn, a younger son of Henry Arden, who was
directly descended from Turchil; Henry's eldest
son was Thomas (I) Arden whose son and heir was
Thomas (II), who married Eustacia. (fn. 43) Thomas, son
of William, again according to Dugdale, married
Lucy and was lord of Drayton, which must have
reverted to the senior branch in about 1224. Sir
Thomas Arden, presumably Lucy's husband, presented to the church in 1223, but in 1224, when a
plea was heard about land in Drayton, Thomas was
said to be dead. (fn. 44) In 1229 Thomas (III) Arden, son
and heir of Thomas (II), of the senior line, seems to
have been in possession of Drayton. In the same
year his mother Eustacia, the relict of Thomas (II),
who no doubt already held part of the manor in
dower, was also at law about Drayton land. (fn. 45)
In 1243 Eustacia was returned as holding the whole
vill in dower and in 1248 she was evidently holding
the advowson also. (fn. 46) She was a sister of Savari de
Mauléon, a Poitevin favourite of Henry III. (fn. 47)
She clearly lived to a great age: in 1272 she may have
been dead when Thomas alone was returned as lord. (fn. 48)
There is no reference to her at Drayton after 1243,
but it may be supposed that she was still in possession at the time of her death.
Eustacia's sucessor at Drayton as in her other
manors was evidently her son Thomas, but in the
1280s he seems to have been in financial difficulties
and was alienating his lands. (fn. 49) He had been one of the
barons to rebel against Henry III, he was taken
prisoner at Evesham, (fn. 50) and that, as Dugdale guessed,
was probably 'the ruin of him'. (fn. 51) In 1281 he granted
lands in Warwickshire to Sir Thomas Arden of
Hanwell. (fn. 52) It was alleged in 1375 that he had also
granted him Drayton juxta Hanwell (fn. 53) and there
seems no reason to doubt this. The relationship of
these two Thomases has not been fully established.
Some 17th-century pedigrees make Sir Thomas of
Hanwell the son of Eustacia, but this is demonstrably
false. Dugdale makes him an Arden of Radbourn. (fn. 54)
It may be that he was a younger son of William
Arden (fl. 1267) but if so he certainly never held
Radbourn. (fn. 55) He married Rose, the daughter of
Ralph Vernon, and thereby obtained an estate in
Hanwell; (fn. 56) he is known to have gone on an expedition to Wales in 1277; (fn. 57) and he was in debt in 1281. (fn. 58)
It is difficult to distinguish him with certainty
from his more important relative Sir Thomas of
Ratley (Warws.), (fn. 59) but Dugdale stated that he had
found 'little memorable about him'. (fn. 60) He died some
time before 1306 when his relict Rose was assessed
for tax on Drayton. (fn. 61) In the following year she
obtained the grant of a chantry in Godstow nunnery
for the soul of her late husband. (fn. 62) It is possible that
he was the Thomas of Arden who was killed at
Hamstall Ridware (Staffs.) in 1299, (fn. 63) but this was
more probably Sir Thomas of Ratley.
Rose presumably held Drayton in dower for she
was still in possession in January 1316, (fn. 64) apparently
the year of her death, for Sir Robert Arden was
returned as lord the same year and was assessed for
tax levied in 1316 on Drayton. (fn. 65) Rose's lands mainly
descended to her son Ralph, (fn. 66) but she had already
granted Drayton in 1309–10 to Sir Robert Arden
and his heirs, arranging to hold it of him during her
life. (fn. 67) The relationship of this Sir Robert is by no
means certain. He may possibly have been an
elder brother of Sir Thomas of Hanwell. (fn. 68) He was in
any case an important knight possessed of many
manors in Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, and
Sussex; he was on the king's side in the baronial
wars and in 1322 Banbury Castle was in his keeping. (fn. 69)
In 1329 he was licensed to crenellate his Drayton
house. (fn. 70) He died in 1331 and his relict Nicole
subsequently married Sir Thomas Wale who is
found holding the family's Sussex property in 1332
and 1349. (fn. 71) Nicole probably held Drayton in dower,
for Sir Thomas presented to Drayton church in
1342, 1344, and 1349, and was returned as holding 1
fee in Drayton in 1346. (fn. 72) She seems to have been
still alive in 1356 when Sir Giles Arden was pardoned
for outlawry incurred because he had disseised her
of her rents in Duns Tew. (fn. 73)
On Nicole's death Drayton reverted to this Giles,
the son and heir of her first husband. (fn. 74) In 1366 his
tenure was disputed by Elizabeth of Swinford, who
claimed possession as the descendant of Sir Thomas
Arden of Hanwell and Rose Vernon. She claimed to
be the great-grand-daughter of Thomas, grandson
of Sir Thomas Arden of Hanwell, but the defence
asserted that this Thomas was a bastard and she
evidently lost her case. (fn. 75) Sir Giles died in 1376 and,
as his only son Sir Giles (II), predeceased him, his
lands descended to his grandchildren, Margaret and
Joan, both minors. (fn. 76) Their inheritance, according to
Leland, had been greatly enlarged by their father's
marriage with Philippa, 'a woman borne to faire
landes'. (fn. 77) Sir Henry Arden, the children's cousin,
was made guardian, and in 1380 he leased twothirds of Drayton manor to the Rector of Drayton, (fn. 78)
the other third being held as dower by Sir Giles's
widow Margaret. (fn. 79) In 1384 or 1385 she and her
second husband Walter Power leased her life
interest in Drayton to Sir Richard Abberbury. (fn. 80)
Meanwhile the remaining two-thirds had reverted
to the Crown on the ground that Sir Giles had held
in chief, and in 1381 this portion was committed to
the custody of Sir Reynold de Malyns during the
minority of the co-heirs. (fn. 81)
The eldest girl, Margaret, married Lewis
Greville, son and heir of William Greville of Chipping Campden (Glos.). (fn. 82) Lewis was evidently lord
in 1398 when he presented to the church; he was
recorded as such in 1417 and 1428. (fn. 83) Margaret's
sister Joan married Sir Richard Archer, (fn. 84) and the
Archers appear to have surrendered their claim to
half the manor to the Grevilles, (fn. 85) for no evidence of
two manors in Drayton during the 15th century has
been found. Lewis Greville died in 1438 (fn. 86) and was
followed by his son William, and then by his grandson and great-grandson Ralph and John. (fn. 87) Both William and Ralph married heiresses. (fn. 88) Sir Edward
Greville (d. 1528/9), John's son, and his wife Ann
were at law over the manor in 1507, and Sir Edward's son John may have been in possession by
1523, when he presented to the church. (fn. 89) It was of
this Greville, presumably, that Leland wrote. He
said that he was a man of 400 marks a year, though
the family possessed court rolls showing that the
property was once worth 3,300 marks a year; the
land had been enfeoffed to the use of a certain 'mean
gentleman' of Drayton and he had sold much of it
and diverted some to his own heirs. (fn. 90) Sir John died in
1548 and was followed by his son Sir Edward (d.
1559 or 1560), and his grandson Lewis (II) Greville (fn. 91)
who, owing to his extravagant mode of life, was
forced to sell in 1565 to Thomas Webb. (fn. 92)
Webb, a wealthy yeoman whose family may possibly have been tenants of the manor for over 100
years, (fn. 93) was still holding the whole manor in 1575
when the sheriff reported that he was a man of
great wealth and had purchased Drayton manor. (fn. 94)
He had died before 1588 when his relict Katherine
and his brother Richard were claiming his lands in
Drayton from Lewis Greville. (fn. 95) This dispute ended
tragically. It seems that Greville invited Richard
Webb to stay at his Sezincote house in Gloucestershire with the object of obtaining all his property by
trickery. The man was persuaded, while drunk, to
make a will in Greville's favour and was then murdered. The crime was discovered and in 1589
Greville, who refused to plead, was found guilty
and pressed to death at Warwick. (fn. 96)
Meanwhile Drayton manor had been divided into
four; in 1587 and Easter 1588 Richard Webb had
sold or leased two separate quarters to John Fox
and William Buckbye. (fn. 97) Fox died in 1593 and left
the whole site of the manor-house and his share of
the manor to his wife and son for their lives. (fn. 98)
William Buckbye sold or leased his share to William
Saunders of Welford (Northants.) in 1590. (fn. 99)
It is not clear how the dominant share of the
manor and advowson came into the hands of Sir
Anthony Cope of Hanwell, but he presented in
1598 and again in 1607, (fn. 100) and in 1602 he settled the
manor on William his son and Elizabeth Chaworth
on the occasion of their marriage. (fn. 101) There is no doubt
that the manor was divided at this time, for in 1602
Sir Anthony Cope received fractions of one eighth
and one fortieth from two different sources, (fn. 102) and
c. 1630 the manor was still made up of four separate
parts. (fn. 103) William Cope succeeded his father in 1614 (fn. 104)
and the manor descended directly with the Cope
family of Hanwell until in 1676 Mary Gerard, relict
of Anthony Cope (d. 1675), (fn. 105) was declared insane. Sir
Anthony's younger brother Sir John succeeded, (fn. 106)
and on his death in 1721 (fn. 107) Drayton passed to the
Bruern Copes and so to Arabella Diana, daughter of
Charles, 2nd. Bt., of Bruern. She married first
John Frederick Sackville, Duke of Dorset (d. 1799),
then Charles, Earl Whitworth (d. 1825), and died
herself a few months after her second husband. (fn. 108) Her
daughter and heir Elizabeth married George John
West (afterwards Sackville-West), Earl de la Warr
(d. 1869). Elizabeth, created Baroness Buckhurst,
died in 1870. (fn. 109) The Norths of Wroxton already
owned more than a third of the parish and the
manorial rights passed to them, but have since
lapsed. (fn. 110)
In about 1629 William Fiennes, Lord Saye and
Sele, bought 388 a. of the land of the manor, later
Drayton farm and Withycombe, from Sir William
Cope. (fn. 111) This property was settled in 1653 on Lord
Saye and Sele's third son John Fiennes and his wife
Susanna. (fn. 112) There is no record of its descent in the
17th century, but the property may have passed
to their son Laurence Fiennes, who became Viscount Saye and Sele in 1710 and died in 1742, being
succeeded by his cousin Richard, Viscount Saye
and Sele (d. 1781). (fn. 113) By 1763, however, Drayton
farm and Withycombe were in the possession of
Francis North, Earl of Guilford (d. 1790). (fn. 114) The
Norths thus came to hold more property than the
lord of the manor, i.e. 326 a. of old inclosure in
1802. (fn. 115) The Drayton property followed the descent
of the family's Wroxton manor, and was held by them
until Trinity College, Oxford, purchased it in
1935 and 1942. (fn. 116)
Local Government.
In the Middle Ages
local government was presumably conducted through
the manorial courts. In 1329 Robert Arden was
granted view of frankpledge, infangenetheof and
outfangenetheof, and waif. (fn. 117)
No records of the vestry have survived. In the
year 1775 to 1776 £42 was spent on relief out of £44
raised. This sum fell to £37 out of £50 between
1783 and 1785, but by 1803 had nearly trebled. Out of
£212 raised, at a rate of 2s. 6d., £94 was spent on
out-relief, another £94 on other objects, including
the county rates and militia, and £23 on removals
and other expenses. Twenty-six adults and children
received permanent out-relief, and 4 adults were
relieved occasionally. Seven of the 17 adults relieved
were either over 60 or unable to work through illness. (fn. 118) Expenditure was still at a high level in
1834–5, for of £171 raised £129 10s. was spent on
relief. (fn. 119) The parish became part of the Banbury
Union, and in 1851 the cost of relief was still high:
£129 raised by a rate of 2s. 5½d. on a rateable
value of £1,059. (fn. 120)
Economic History.
In 1066 the manor was
worth £5, but its value rose after the Conquest to
£8 in 1086. (fn. 121) In the latter year there was land for 5
ploughs, although in fact 6 were kept, 3 on Turchil
of Arden's demesne farm and 3 in the hands of
the peasants. There was a mill rendering 4s. The
recorded population consisted of 12 villani and 4
bordars, and of 2 serfs on the demesne. (fn. 122)
No record of Drayton's economic condition has
been found again before the early 14th century
when between 15 and 20 tenants were listed on the
tax rolls of 1306, 1316, and 1327. The village was
clearly neither populous nor rich: nearly half the
assessment of 1306 was paid by the lady of the
manor; the highest assessments of 4s. and 3s. were
again paid by the lord in 1316 and 1327, while all
save 2 of the other contributors paid less than 2s.
each. (fn. 123) Robert Arden's attempt to foster the prosperity of the village by obtaining the grant of a
yearly fair there in 1329 had little apparent success. (fn. 124)
For the tax of 1334 Drayton's assessment was the
lowest in the hundred. (fn. 125) In 1523 there were 10
contributors paying small sums; only the lord of
the manor was taxed on land and he paid the
comparatively modest sum of £1. (fn. 126) The village
remained small and poor in the 17th century; there
were 12 contributors to the hearth tax in 1662 and 9
in 1665, of which 2 were discharged on account of
poverty. (fn. 127)
Drayton remained partly an open-field parish
until the early 19th century. The earliest description of the lay-out of the fields occurs in 17th-century
terriers. In 1607 2 yardlands of glebe lay mostly
consolidated in blocks of 12, 19, and 20 'lands' in
Withycombe, the Close, and the water-furrows.
The glebe also included a meadow called 'Parsons
Ham' near the mill brook, and there were common
rights for 10 cows and a bull in Withycombe
between 14 September and 11 November, and
for 80 sheep and 4 horses after Lammas (1 August). (fn. 128)
Open-field agriculture is illustrated more clearly
in a terrier of 1699 of a ¼ yardland, which lay in
butts, balks, ridged acres and 'lands' in the field,
and included leys, meadow ground, and 1 cowcommon. (fn. 129) By this date the field was divided into
quarters, implying a 4-course rotation, a practice
followed in the 17th century in many north Oxfordshire parishes. (fn. 130) In the early Middle Ages there had
been 2 fields, South and East Field, (fn. 131) and there is no
evidence of an intervening stage of 3 fields. The
open fields lay to the north-east of the parish near
the Banbury road. Nickling Lane Quarter, for
example, included a hedge 158 yards long between
Drayton and Hanwell Fields. (fn. 132) By 1802, the date
of the inclosure award, only 198 a. were uninclosed.
Holdings still included rights in the cow-pasture
and Town Green. (fn. 133) Early inclosure for sheep and
cattle farming had probably been encouraged by the
thriving Banbury cloth industry and made easier
by the fewness and poverty of the inhabitants.
In Elizabeth I's reign most tenants of the manor
were customary tenants. They usually took their
tenements for life although a widow could continue
to hold her tenement during her widowhood. A
customary tenant was admitted in the court by the
steward on payment of 1d. and the heriot due was
his best beast or piece of property; one heriot, for
example, was a black horse. (fn. 134) When Thomas Webb
purchased the manor in 1565, he inclosed Withycombe Field which lay compactly in adjoining
furlongs. (fn. 135) He was said to have converted in all 17
yardlands from tillage to pasture, 'the most part of
Drayton manor', and to have reduced the number
of ploughs from 14 to one. The value of the manor
had increased from £40 to £340 a year, but the
tenants accused Webb of unjust dealing. (fn. 136) They
accused him of depriving the customary tenants
of 5 houses, 16 yards of arable, and the appurtenant
meadow, whereby they would be 'utterly undone',
for it was their beasts' common and they could not
live without it. (fn. 137) It was said that previously the
lord of the manor had kept only 200 sheep in Withycombe, in the due season, but Webb retorted that
the demesne lands lay together and that he could
improve them, while he was willing to offer the
tenants commons elsewhere. The tenants were only
customary tenants, admitted for life in the manor
court at the will of the lord, and Webb reminded
them that they paid only 1d. for an entry fine although as lord he could exact £10 from them. The
former lord of the manor, Lewis Greville, and two
gentlemen of the neighbourhood, Richard Fiennes
and George Danvers, had been chosen by the tenants
to mediate, but no settlement had been reached. (fn. 138)
The Court of Requests decided in favour of the
plaintiffs, but probably Webb was induced to offer
more favourable terms and the land was inclosed,
for there is no later record of tenants' common rights
in Withycombe. Moreover, in 1637 a number of the
older inhabitants, some of over 80 years of age,
when questioned on the 'decay of tillage' in Drayton,
said that part of the parish had been inclosed before
they were born, and that the Fiennes property in
particular was ancient inclosure. It had once mostly
been 'a park wood and warren ground', and was
demesne land, belonging to the manor-house. (fn. 139)
The Fiennes property adjoined their North Newington land in Broughton and lay mainly in the south
around Withycombe, where they had bought some
388 a. in about 1629 from Sir William Cope of
Hanwell. (fn. 140) In the 1630s this comprised Withycombe
pasture and meadow (150 a.), High Field or Great
Ground (100 a.) near Drayton village, again pasture,
and 4 other closes (30 a., 20 a., 48 a., and 40 a.)
lying on the east side of the brook between Drayton
and North Newington. (fn. 141) Withycombe had formerly
been open pasture ground but in 1635 it was
described as inclosed. This land had all been pasture
and meadow at one time, but in about 1627–9 Sir
William Cope ploughed some of it, and in 1635
Elms close (48 a.) and Baynford's meadows (40 a.)
were described as 'lately ploughed'. (fn. 142) When Lord
Guilford bought Withycombe farm in 1764 he paid
£2,150 for it. (fn. 143) At the time of the inclosure in 1802
there were about 666 a. of ancient inclosure and of
the 17 people holding or occupying farm land in the
parish only 3 seem to have had land in the open field.
In particular Drayton farm (198 a.), Withycombe
farm (125 a.), and 4 other holdings of between 40
and 140 a. were inclosed. (fn. 144)
The type of farming practised before inclosure
can be deduced from the inventories of local farmers.
In the late 17th century, for example, wheat, barley,
oats, and peas were the chief crops mentioned;
sheep, cattle, and in particular horses, a feature of
these northern parishes, were kept. In 1668 the
rector had corn in the field (worth £22) as well as
hay, and a crop of oats (worth £52), and a rick of
wheat in the barn; he also had horses and colts
worth £20 and kept a bull. (fn. 145) A yeoman farmer, who
died in the same year, had 2 wheat ricks (worth £23),
barley, peas, and hay, and 97 sheep; and although
he was only taxed on a single hearth in 1665 the
total valuation of his goods came to the comparatively large sum of £270. (fn. 146) There is little doubt that
the progressive farmers were those with inclosed
land, where there was more scope for good husbandry. On Withycombe farm in 1764 both rye
grass and clover were grown and in 1765 it was all
grazing ground. (fn. 147) It is noteworthy that in 1809
Thomas Payne, who owned 140 a., and his brother
James Payne, who occupied 43 a., both farms of
'old inclosures', were praised for their 'willingness
to experiment'. Thomas Payne considered that the
Drayton soil was 'too loose and hollow' for wheat,
but that it could produce fine turnips, barley, peas,
beans, and oats. According to Arthur Young, Payne
carted off 20 loads of turnips an acre and still left
'a good sprinkling' for sheep. The brothers experimented with the cultivation of carrots, parsnips,
lucerne, and rhubarb, and particularly with cabbages, which they advocated as 'superior to all
other plants' for stock. (fn. 148)
By the inclosure award of 1802 Charles, Lord
Whitworth, received 36 p. for manorial rights in the
waste, and 121 a. for his 9½ yardlands in the open
fields; two others received 13 a. and 3 a. respectively. (fn. 149) At this date all save some 188 a. was tenantoccupied land, mainly belonging to the Earl of
Guilford, Charles, Lord Whitworth, and the
rector. (fn. 150) In 1831 the picture was much the same: there
were 3 proprietors of land valued at over £150, 3 of
land valued at between £28 and £87, one of them
an owner-occupier, and 2 proprietors of land valued
at £3 and £4. (fn. 151) In 1851 there were 3 farms of 180 a.,
225 a. and 266 a. respectively, and one small one of
20 a. (fn. 152) Throughout the late 19th and early 20th
centuries there continued to be 3 or 4 farmers in the
parish. (fn. 153) An agricultural expert writing in 1854
described Drayton as being on some of the best red
land in the country with soil well adapted for growing
barley and turnips; he particularly mentioned good
pasture and grazing land on which some of the best
Cotswold sheep were reared. (fn. 154) In 1961 the farming
was described as mixed. (fn. 155)
In the 19th century the inhabitants were mostly
farmers and labourers, of whom some were shepherds. (fn. 156) There were also 4 families of weavers
recorded throughout the century, probably plushweavers as in 1851, though one recorded in the
17th century was a silk-weaver. (fn. 157) There were also
paper-makers, who were doubtless employed at
North Newington paper-mill. (fn. 158)
After 1086 no reference occurs to a mill until
1589. (fn. 159) There were millers in the parish in 1851 (fn. 160)
but none is recorded later.
Church.
Drayton church is not mentioned until
1223, (fn. 161) the date of the first recorded presentation.
This was made by Sir Thomas Arden, lord of the
manor, (fn. 162) and thereafter the advowson seems to have
descended with the manor, (fn. 163) passing in the 14th
century from the Ardens to Sir Thomas Wale,
second husband of Nicole Arden, (fn. 164) then to the
Grevilles by marriage, and in the 16th century to
the Webbs. (fn. 165) In the 1580s the advowson, like the
manor, was divided into quarters but by 1598
had been reunited in the hands of Sir Anthony Cope
and thereafter continued to follow the descent of
the manor. (fn. 166) In 1677, however, since Mary, Sir
Anthony's relict, had been declared a lunatic,
trustees presented, and again in 1683 and 1685,
William Spencer, her guardian, acted on her behalf. (fn. 167)
In 1688 John Dover of Barton-on-the-Heath
(Warws.), who had presumably purchased a turn
since Mary was still alive, presented his son. (fn. 168)
In 1770 John Cleaver, possibly the previous
incumbent, presented; (fn. 169) in 1813 Arabella Cope's
husband, Lord Whitworth, did so, (fn. 170) and in 1858
the next turn was sold for £1,800 to Richard
McDonald Caunter. Caunter intended to present
his son, but in 1861 he accepted the rectory himself and was presented by the Earl and Countess de
la Warr to whom the advowson had descended with
the manor. It was afterwards held that Caunter
had thereby lost his right to present his son in spite
of having purchased a turn. (fn. 171) Charles, Earl de la Warr
presented on Caunter's resignation in 1871, and the
subsequent presentation was made in 1878 by the
last incumbent's relict, Mrs. Hannah Roberts.
Since 1905 the Oxford Trust has been the patron. (fn. 172)
The rectory was valued at £5 in 1254, at £7 6s. 8d.
in 1291 and 1428, and at £13 6s. 6d. in 1526 and
1535. (fn. 173) At the end of the 18th century its annual
value was £130, in 1831 the average net income was
estimated at £316. (fn. 174)
This came from both tithes and glebe. At
inclosure in 1802 c. 37 a. were allotted to the rector
for tithes with an annual corn rent of £137, adjusted to £110 in 1920. (fn. 175) Judging from the land tax
assessments the parson was better off after inclosure. (fn. 176)
The glebe was worth £4 in 1342 and in 1601
comprised 2 yardlands and commons for 10 cows
and a bull, 80 sheep, and 4 horses. (fn. 177) A terrier of the
rectory made in 1805 recorded about 40 a. of glebe, a
house and out-buildings standing in nearly an acre
of land, 2 cottages, and various appurtenances. (fn. 178)
In 1918 the rector sold part of the glebe to the
Oxford Ironstone Co., who sold it to Trinity College,
Oxford. (fn. 179) In 1960 there were only 4½ a. of glebe
left. (fn. 180)
A temporary vicarage was created by the Bishop
of Lincoln in 1223 or 1224 to allow the rector to
attend the schools at Oxford. The rector was to
receive £2 a year and the vicar all the rest of the
living. It was arranged that when the vicarage became vacant it was to be consolidated with the
rectory provided that the rector had attended the
schools and had studied properly. (fn. 181)
The church was not poor and as the parish was so
small and Drayton not far from Oxford the living
was sometimes used to subsidize scholars at Oxford;
it frequently had graduates as rectors and often provided a comfortable living for the relations of patrons.
For example William Wale, acolyte, was licensed to
study in Oxford in 1335 and 1336, (fn. 182) and his patron,
Sir Thomas Wale, was no doubt a kinsman. (fn. 183) The
only known pluralist was Edmund Moore (rector
1523–47), who held a Warwickshire cure in 1535
and had a curate at Drayton to whom he paid
£5 6s. 8d. (fn. 184) His predecessor, however, was also nonresident and had a curate, a canon of Wroxton, who
resided in the abbey; his rectory was in lay ownership at the time of the bishop's visitation in 1518. (fn. 185)
At the Reformation the parish had land for the
maintenance of a light in the church. (fn. 186)
The rector subscribed to the Elizabethan settlement of 1559. Instituted in 1549 he had lived through
all the religious changes of the period and had
conformed. (fn. 187) However, with the presentation in
1598 of Robert Cleaver of St. Edmund Hall,
Oxford, a favourer of the Presbyterian discipline, (fn. 188)
the parish became strongly Puritan. Cleaver was a
friend of the leaders of the movement in north
Oxfordshire, Harris of Hanwell and Whateley of
Banbury, and was noted as 'a solid text man'. (fn. 189) He
collaborated with John Dod of Hanwell in his work
entitled An Exposition of the Ten Commandments
and delivered many notable sermons. (fn. 190) He was later
suspended from his ministry by Bishop Bridges of
Oxford, for failing to comply with the ceremonial
laid down in the Prayer Book. (fn. 191) His friends Dod and
Lancaster (fn. 192) were also suspended and this 'darkening' of 'three shining stars' was described by a
contemporary as a 'fearful eclipse upon the church'. (fn. 193)
When Archbishop Bancroft, finding no compliance
in the silenced pastor, tried to collate to Drayton by
lapse, Sir Anthony Cope intervened. When sitting
in Parliament he took one or two of his fellow
members with him and presented his choice to the
archbishop, who after a long struggle admitted
him. (fn. 194) In 1607, therefore, Drayton was 'furnished
with a godly prudent man' Henry Scudder (1607–
19). He was a Presbyterian of note: he and his
brother-in-law William Whateley, Vicar of Banbury,
whose life he wrote, and Robert Harris of Hanwell
were accustomed to meet together weekly to translate and analyse chapters of the Bible. Scudder's
devotional work The Christian's Daily Walk in Holy
Securitie and Peace was widely read in the 17th
century. (fn. 195) Drayton had other incumbents of
puritanical views: Thomas Lodge, presented in
1619, 'a burning and a shining light' for 32 years,
witnessed the will of Robert Cleaver who died in
the parish in 1640; (fn. 196) and Robert Clarke, who resigned
in 1677, was 'a pious and painful minister'. (fn. 197)
Richard Coghlane (1652–68) was one of the comparatively rare Irishmen to hold a benefice in the
county; his theological views are not known but he
was clearly a man of learning and wealth, for on his
death in 1668 his goods were valued at £401, of
which nearly £77 was for books. (fn. 198) Adam Morton
(1677–83), 'fidei antiquissime patronus strenuus',
regarded the 'conventiclers' as 'seminaries of sedition and rebellion'. (fn. 199) His opinions are reflected in
two books he left to his nephew along with his
Bible—Cradock's Harmony of the Evangelists and
Apostolical Historie. (fn. 200) With the institution of John
Dover (1688–1725), who had started life as a barrister, there was a return to low church principles:
an inscription to him in the chancel reads 'Lo, here
your late unworthy rector lies, Who, though he's
dead, loud as he can still cries, Repent'. Anthony
Wood confirms that he was something of a sectary
by saying that he was resorted to by many fanatical
people. (fn. 201)
From the beginning of the 18th century the parish
was served by curates. Dover or his successor
employed a curate, (fn. 202) and Edmund Stone (rector
1742–69) lived at Chipping Norton, while his curate
lived in Drayton parsonage and received £30 a year.
At this time there were two services every Sunday
and communion 4 times a year for which there were
usually c. 40 communicants. Another pluralist
followed Stone and lived at Bodicote and a third,
William Lloyd (1813–61), was also Rector of Hanwell and twice obtained licence to be absent for a
year from his cure in 1820 and 1832. (fn. 203) The unsatisfactory state of affairs at this period, despite the
regular reports from churchwardens that all was
well, is revealed in Lloyd's correspondence with
the bishop over the charge of 3 guineas each Sunday
made by his curate for serving the church during a
vacancy of 22 weeks. Lloyd said that there were
two or three clergymen in Drayton who would have
done it for a guinea and that the curate's high charge
was because he served the cure from Oxford, a
distance of some 24 miles. (fn. 204) Of Lloyd himself, who
had not been ordained when he was presented, the
Archdeacon of Oxford wrote sternly that he was
'one of these galloping candidates who think nothing
of their profession till their expected preferment is
vacant'. (fn. 205) He did not appear to improve with age:
he allowed the rectory-house to get in a very dilapidated state and so involved his successor in much
trouble; as late as 1854 he was only administering
communion four times a year and at great festivals. (fn. 206)
With his successor, however, Drayton at last obtained a resident rector and monthly celebrations of
communion. (fn. 207) The Tractarian movement passed
Drayton by; so far as is known there has never been
a cross on the Lord's Table and the north celebration has always been used. Since 1778 all the
rectors have been Evangelicals and seven out of
eight have served as missionaries overseas in the
Arctic, Africa, India, and China.
The church of ST. PETER (fn. 208) consists of a chancel,
nave, north and south aisles, and a western tower.
It is mainly of 14th-century date, but the plain
font is earlier. (fn. 209) The nave is separated from the
aisles by arcades of 3 arches and is surmounted by a
contemporary clerestory. One of the nave pillars
has a capital carved with sculptured busts of
knights with interlaced arms which are similar to
those found at Bloxham and elsewhere in north
Oxfordshire. (fn. 210) The south aisle has a piscina and
sedilia.
No major alteration to the main structure was
recorded before the early 19th century. A gallery,
paid for by subscription, was erected in 1738, (fn. 211)
the church was ordered to be whitewashed in 1755, (fn. 212)
and in 1773 communion rails were set up at the
rector's expense. (fn. 213) The tower, being in a ruinous
condition and beyond repair, was pulled down and
rebuilt in 1808 on a smaller scale. (fn. 214) Its low roof can
be seen in Buckler's drawing of 1820. (fn. 215)
By the early 19th century the fabric generally was
much in need of attention: in 1813 the chancel was
reported out of repair and in 1818 the roof. (fn. 216) The
latter was repaired in 1822 and in 1826 further
unspecified repairs were in progress. (fn. 217) In 1877 a
vestry decided to petition for a faculty for the
restoration and enlargement of the building. It was
planned to alter the tower and to add a spire, a
south and a north porch, and an organ chamber and
vestry on the south side of the church. The roof of
the nave was renewed, the roofs of the aisles were
releaded, and general repairs were carried out. The
chancel floor was re-laid and new seats were provided both in the chancel and the church. The
architect was Edwin Dolby of Abingdon. (fn. 218) The
elevation of the new tower shows that it was to have
a belfry and stone spire in the Early English style, (fn. 219)
but this part of the plan was not carried out.
Besides an unidentified medieval tomb (? 13thcentury) in the north aisle, (fn. 220) there are two medieval
memorials to the Grevilles. The tomb of Lewis
Greville (d. 1438) was once in the chancel. (fn. 221) The
alabaster slab which covered it is now on the
belfry floor. It bears the incised figures of Lewis
Greville (almost obliterated) and of his wife
Margaret and their arms. The tomb of his son and
heir William (d. 1440) is in the vestry. (fn. 222) There are
also memorials to several rectors: Robert Cleaver
(d. 1640); Thomas Lodge (d. 1651); Richard Coghlane (d. 1668); Adam Morton (d. 1683); John
Dover (d. 1725). (fn. 223) Elizabeth Metcalfe (d. 1791), the
donor of a charity, is also commemorated. Her
ledger stone bears a coat of arms.
The earliest silver is a chalice inscribed 1808. (fn. 224)
The new tower of 1808 was built so that it might
contain the present 3 bells: one is dated 1634 and
the other two 1670. (fn. 225)
Two sums of £50 each for the upkeep of the
churchyard were left by David Robert Smythe in
1920 and Emmanuel and Elizabeth Jones in 1924. (fn. 226)
The amalgamated stock in 1958 was £126 and the
annual income of £5 was less than the average labour
cost for the previous five years. (fn. 227)
The registers date from 1577; there is a gap between 1686 and 1721. (fn. 228)
Nonconformity.
The absence of any dissent
at Drayton at the time of the Compton Census in
1676, despite the strong nonconformist influence in
north Oxfordshire, may perhaps be accounted for
by the Puritan views of several of the 17th-century
incumbents. (fn. 229) By 1682, when the cleavage between
the Established Church and nonconformity had
become distinct, one Quaker and one Anabaptist
family were reported and four or five more, all,
with one exception, yeomen, were said to attend a
'conventicle' at Banbury in the afternoon, although
they went to their parish church in the morning. (fn. 230)
By 1738, however, only one Presbyterian was left, (fn. 231)
and no dissenters were recorded in later 18th-century
visitation returns.
At the turn of the century Methodism took root,
and in 1802 there was a meeting-house at Drayton
attended by 30 Methodists, probably mainly from
outside the parish. (fn. 232) Three years later the rector
said there were many Methodists with a teacher and
a licensed meeting-house. (fn. 233) In 1814 it was reported
that they had visiting teachers occasionally, that
there were only two 'professed' families of Methodists, but that many parishioners attended their
meetings. (fn. 234) Houses were licensed in 1810 and 1817,
when the community was said to number 8 to 10,
and also in 1836 and in 1843. (fn. 235) In 1854 the incumbent estimated that a third of the parish were
Methodists, though many of them attended the
parish church, as they had no chapel of their own. (fn. 236)
By 1866 the sect was said to have died out. (fn. 237)
Schools.
No record of any school has been
found before 1800; a day school was established
then, supported first entirely by the rector and
afterwards partly by a sum bequeathed by a parishioner, Elizabeth Metcalfe. (fn. 238) It had 12 or 15 pupils
in 1808. There was no Sunday school, nor, in 1815,
any wish to introduce the National Society's new
plan of study. (fn. 239) By 1818 the day school itself had
been discontinued, owing to the difficulty of finding
a teacher and because the parents did not show sufficient interest. (fn. 240) Another day school was, however,
begun in 1821 in which children were taught at the
expense of their parents and by 1833 3 boys and 7
girls attended it, while another day school with 41
boys and 2 girls was supported by subscription
and by payments from the parents. (fn. 241) There was also
a free Sunday school where in 1833 15 children were
taught and in 1854 thirty-two. (fn. 242) Only one of the day
schools existed in 1855; the average attendance was
35, and the schoolroom, which consisted of 2
converted cottages, was given rent-free by Lord and
Lady de la Warr. (fn. 243) Accommodation for the mistress
was provided free by the rector, who in 1866 and
1868 claimed to be maintaining the school at his
own expense with the help of a few half-yearly
subscriptions. (fn. 244) This may not have been quite
accurate since in the year ending December 1867
Drayton school received an annual Parliamentary
grant of £15 6s. (fn. 245) The rector gave the number of
children attending in these years as 16 boys and
15 girls daily, and 12 boys and 16 girls on Sundays.
He was unable to retain any children in the Sunday
school once they had entered 'service'. His many
attempts to establish an evening school had not been
successful. (fn. 246)
In 1871 accommodation in the school was given as
32. (fn. 247) The cottages which had formed the original
school building were said to have been practically
rebuilt by 1891, (fn. 248) but the following year the school
was in poor condition. Accommodation was estimated
at 43 in 1894 but the condition of the school was
still not satisfactory and in 1899 a threat was made
to withdraw the Government grant unless a separate
room was found for the younger children. This was
provided the following year giving places for 24
infants and raising the total school accommodation
to 67. (fn. 249)
Lord North, who had become the owner of the
school by 1891, died in 1932. After his death the
existence of the school was threatened, as his successor wished to sell the site. (fn. 250) When he failed to find
a buyer, the school managers kept the school open
with local support, despite falling attendances and
the Education Authority's wish to close the school.
In 1941 Trinity College, Oxford, bought the site
and let it to the managers. In 1948 the school
finally closed and the children were transferred to
North Newington Primary and Banbury Secondary
Schools. (fn. 251)
Charities.
During the 18th century various
sums of money, known as the Town stock, were
vested in Sir Jonathan Cope, lord of the manor, for
the benefit of the poor of the parish. The benefactions of unknown donors amounted to £60; £10
was left by the will of Dr. James Jenkinson (d. 1731),
Rector of Drayton, and £10 by Mrs. Mary Metcalfe
(d. 1760). The income of £4 was received regularly
from the successors to the Cope property. By 1823
it had been amalgamated with the following charity.
By will dated 1774 Elizabeth Metcalfe (d. 1791)
left in trust £527, the income to be given in clothes
to poor children of the parish at Whitsun; and £700,
the interest to be spent on clothes and coal in equal
parts for the aged poor at Christmas. Her personal
estate was insufficient to pay all the legacies and in
1799 the money available was re-apportioned in
Chancery. Some of the income in 1814 was used to
support a school. In 1823 the stock standing to the
children's account was £328, and the dividend of
£10 was spent on linen for poor children at Midsummer. The stock for the aged stood at £421 and
to the interest of £13 was added the £4 from the
town stock. From this each family received annually
7s. worth of coal or clothing at their choice; (fn. 252)
£123, supposed to be the accumulation of unapplied
income, was treated as capital. (fn. 253) By 1871 the total
value of the stock was £872 and the dividend £26.
Half the income was given to the parents of poor
children for clothes, at Midsummer, and half was
spent on coal for poor people over the age of 50. (fn. 254)
During the early years of the 20th century some
attempt was made by the trustees, with the approval
of the Charity Commissioners, to distribute the
charity in accordance with the needs of modern life.
Ratepayers were not eligible, nor newcomers to the
parish until they had resided there for 2 years. (fn. 255)
In 1925 £8 was spent on children's clothes and £10
on the aged. From 1953 to 1956 the major part of the
charity was given annually in coal, £20 worth to
50 households, while about 25 children received 3s.
each. (fn. 256)