North Leigh Roman Villa

I was a beautiful Saturday so the kids and I decided to get in the car and visit a couple of new places close by in Oxfordshire.

Our first stop was the North Liegh Roman Villa northwest of Oxford. The villa dates from approximately the 4th century. Just as we reached the ruins the skies opened up for a couple of minutes. We didn't get too wet and everything cleared up just as fast. Unfortunately the building that contains the remains of the mosaic floor was closed so we couldn't get close to it. Walking amongst the ruins was a good time to try and picture what it was like to live 1600 years ago in the manor that we were now walking around.

Our second stop of the day was in the village of Minster Lovell. We visited the old manor house that was built in the 1400s. It is completely in ruins now but the setting is simply amazing. Running adjacent to the house is a fast moving tributary of the Thames. On the other side of he ruins is the parish church, St Kelenm. The church is, most likely, like the vast majority of small parish churches. We went inside to take a look around. The insides are, for the most part, pretty sparse. 2 of the church windows had small sections of stained glass but that was about it. A crypt lies inside the church and is probably one of the Lovell family that moved to the town in the 1100s.