OUTING to the Rollright Stones and Chastleton House
Saturday, 07 August, 2010

An outing to the Rollright Stone Circle and the unspoilt Jacobean Chastleton House in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds. Led by David Dawson, Director of the Society.

The Rollright Stones is an ancient site located on the Oxfordshire/Warwickshire border. It consists of three main elements: the King’s Men stone circle, the outlying King Stone (for long thought to mark an astronomical alignment from the circle, but now known to have been erected far earlier than the circle with which it has no astronomical significance) and the Whispering Knights dolmen (believed to be part of a Neolithic Long Barrow). Legends of witchcraft are associated with this attractive ring which has similarities with the Swinside circle in Cumbria and Aubrey Burl has suggested it may well have been one of several staging posts for the sending of axes from Cumbria to southern England.

In the afternoon we shall visit Chastleton House (a National Trust property) - a rare gem of a Jacobean country house built between 1607 and 1612 by a wealthy wool merchant as an impressive statement of wealth and power. Owned by the same family until 1991, the house remained essentially unchanged for nearly 400 years. With virtually no intrusion from the 21st century, this fascinating place exudes an informal and timeless atmosphere in a gloriously unspoilt setting at the foot of the Cotswold hills.

There are no catering facilities at either site. After visiting the Rollright stones we will drive on to Chipping Norton where lunch can be bought at one of the several pubs, or you can bring a picnic. After the visit to Chastleton House we will stop at a local garden centre with a good café for afternoon tea.

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