Sarsden is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

about south of

Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire Chipping Norton is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswolds in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Banbury and north-west of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the civil parish population as 5,719 ...

. The 2001 Census recorded the parish population as 83. Since 2012 Sarsden has been part of the Churchill and Sarsden joint parish council area, sharing a parish council with the adjacent civil parish of Churchill.

Notable buildings

Sarsden House is a

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

, rebuilt in 1689 after it was damaged by fire. In 1795

Humphry Repton Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great designer of the classic phase of the English landscape garden, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown. His style is thought of as the precursor of the more intric ...

landscaped the park, adding a serpentine lake and a Doric temple. In about 1825 Repton's son, the architect G.S. Repton, remodelled the house for

James Langston James Haughton Langston (25 May 1796 – 19 October 1863) was a British landowner and Member of Parliament. Life He was the son of John Langston of Sarsden House, Oxfordshire, and his wife, Sarah. He was educated at Eton College (1811). He m ...

. The house is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. The

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ...

of Saint James was rebuilt in 1760. GS Repton added a

cruciform A cruciform is a physical manifestation resembling a common cross or Christian cross. These include architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly described as having a cruciform ...

extension to the east in 1823. In 1896 the architect Walter Mills of

Banbury Banbury is an historic market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. The parish had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding ...

remodelled the north

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...

and added the

bellcote A bellcote, bell-cote or bell-cot is a small framework and shelter for one or more bells. Bellcotes are most common in church architecture but are also seen on institutions such as schools. The bellcote may be carried on brackets projecting from ...

. Sarsgrove House, or the

Dower House A dower house is usually a moderately large house available for use by the widow of the previous owner of an English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish estate (house), estate. The widow, often known as the "dowager", usually moves into the dower house fr ...

, is northeast of Sarsden. G.S. Repton remodelled it as a large

cottage orné dates back to a movement of "rustic" stylised cottages of the late 18th and early 19th centuries during the Romantic movement, when some sought to discover a more natural way of living as opposed to the formality of the preceding Baroque and Neo ...

in 1825.

References

Sources and further reading

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External links

The Parish Council of Churchill and Sarsden
Civil parishes in Oxfordshire Villages in Oxfordshire West Oxfordshire District {{Oxfordshire-geo-stub