Widford St Oswald Part One Cotswold churches

Widford lies lost among the open fields a few miles along the Windrush from Burford. This isolated church can only be reached by following the footpath along the banks of the river from Swinbrook, as we did or if you have a little more time, from Burford in the opposite direction. St Oswalds stands on the site of a Roman villa with a mosaic now hidden beneath it's chancel floor and is surrounded by the bumps and hollows of the village it once served. Convention ascribes these deserted villages to the Black Death, in reality a more complex combination of factors such as climate and enclosure lead to a proportion of these desertions. However the Windrush valley suffered in both the 1348 and 1360 outbreaks and the chancel painting of the 'Tree Living Kings and The Three Dead Kings' painted at this time may be a poignant reminder of this tragedy. So if you would like to walk with us through the beautiful evening of a Spring day I am sure you will enjoy both the countryside and the fathomless history of this Cotswold valley.

[sublunaire]

I visited the church on September 2023... Mon Dieu quel endroit plein de poésie. J'ai beaucoup aimé savoir cette région. J'emporte les Costwolds et la Windrush dans mon cœur. C'était des vacances merveilleuses.

[GilesConradWatson]

Wonderful images - the wall-paintings are illuminated beautifully.

[oscailandoras]

Thanks for sharing...I've visited there. The church wasn't open, but the fields, etc are lovely !