Burford
Burford is a tiny medieval community on the River Windrush, in the Cotswold hills, in the West Oxfordshire area of Oxfordshire, England. It is often described as the 'portal' to the Cotswolds. Burford is located 18 miles (29 kilometres) west of Oxford and also 22 miles (35 km) southeast of Cheltenham, regarding 2 miles (3 kilometres) from the Gloucestershire border. The toponym originates from the Old English words burh indicating fortified town or hilltown as well as ford, the crossing of a river. The 2011 Census recorded the population of Burford parish as 1,410 and Burford Ward as 1,847. The town centre's most significant structure is the Church of St John the Baptist, a Church of England parish church, which is a Grade I listed building. Defined by David Verey as "a complicated building which has established in a curious method from the Norman", it is known for its merchants' guild chapel, memorial to Henry VIII's barber-surgeon, Edmund Harman, featuring South American Indians and also Kempe stained glass. In 1649 the church was made use of as a jail throughout the Civil War, when the New Model Army Banbury mutineers were held there. Several of the 340 prisoners left makings and also graffiti, which still survive in the church. The town centre likewise has some 15th-century houses and also the baroque design townhouse that is now Burford Methodist Church. Between the 14th as well as 17th centuries Burford was necessary for its woollen profession. The Tolsey, midway along Burford's High Street, which was as soon as the centerpiece for profession, is now a gallery.
