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BAMPTON
The parish church, the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, dates from the 12th century. It has a 13th-century spire. St. Mary's is one of the largest churches in West Oxfordshire and stands on the site of a former Saxon Minster. For the history and full information about St. Mary's Church click here. Just to the west of the village there was at one time a castle. The origin of Bampton Castle is unclear. One account states that in about 1142 AD a motte castle was built. Another states that in 1314–15 Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, obtained a license from the king to "make a castle of his house at Bampton". It is known that the castle was demolished before 1789 but parts of its structure have been incorporated into a house, Ham Court, which is a Grade II* listed building. Ordnance Survey maps show an array of radio masts to the south of the village. This was the former RAF Bampton Castle, a non-flying Royal Air Force station, home of numbers 2 and 81 signals units, which dealt with high frequency radio communications. It's now a business centre and all of the radio masts have been removed. Bampton is south-west of Witney on the A4095 Witney to Faringdon road. |
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