Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire - John Blair

This study describes the development of the society and landscape of Oxfordshire from the Anglo-Saxon settlement to the early 12th century. Before the formation of the shire in 1000 CE, the area was on the borderland between Wessex and Mercia and therefore played a major part in the conflict for supremacy between the two kingdoms between the 7th and 9th centuries.;By the 11th century, Oxford was one of the most important provincial towns and was of considerable political and economic significance. The text draws heavily on the broad range of archaeological material discovered recently, especially in the Thames Valley, and incorporates work on place names, charter boundaries, tribal groupings and ecclesiastical organization. A final chapter describes the Norman impact on the city and county.;The book is illustrated with a variety of photographs, drawings and plans, and should be of value to all interested in one of the most historically rich counties in Britain.