{"id":2668,"date":"2023-05-27T01:54:02","date_gmt":"2023-05-27T00:54:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/?p=2668"},"modified":"2023-05-24T20:56:52","modified_gmt":"2023-05-24T19:56:52","slug":"canons-ashby-and-oxford-lane-northants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/?p=2668","title":{"rendered":"Canons Ashby and Oxford Lane, Northants"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">function popwalk(walk) {var url = \"\/Walks\/amap.php?f=\"+walk; varwalkwindow=window.open(url,\"walkwin\",\"height=740,width=1220,resizable=yes,scrollbars=yes\"); if (window.focus) {walkwindow.focus()}}<\/script><br \/> First published in: The Times <a href=\"javascript:popwalk('CanonsAshby.jpg');\" rel=\"nozoom\" title=\"Click here to view a map for this walk in a new window\">Click here to view a map for this walk in a new window<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516613_2ebdc73e1f_z.jpg\" title= \"Canons Ashby house\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516613_2ebdc73e1f_s.jpg\" alt=\"Canons Ashby house\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851245259_628a272ab3_z.jpg\" title= \"guinea hen at South West Farm\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851245259_628a272ab3_s.jpg\" alt=\"guinea hen at South West Farm\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851454305_656f23fff9_z.jpg\" title= \"neat and clean - ewes and lambs at South West Farm\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851454305_656f23fff9_s.jpg\" alt=\"neat and clean - ewes and lambs at South West Farm\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516333_f78011e9d0_z.jpg\" title= \"Canons Ashby Priory fish ponds 1\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516333_f78011e9d0_s.jpg\" alt=\"Canons Ashby Priory fish ponds 1\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851057506_e9994dd114_z.jpg\" title= \"Canons Ashby Priory fish ponds 2\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851057506_e9994dd114_s.jpg\" alt=\"Canons Ashby Priory fish ponds 2\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851454110_e582fcfc9e_z.jpg\" title= \"blackthorn hedge on the field path towards the ridge road\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851454110_e582fcfc9e_s.jpg\" alt=\"blackthorn hedge on the field path towards the ridge road\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52850485692_63621f8bfc_z.jpg\" title= \"looking south along Oxford Lane\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52850485692_63621f8bfc_s.jpg\" alt=\"looking south along Oxford Lane\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516113_971c45813a_z.jpg\" title= \"fossil shell from the wheatfield alongside Oxford Lane\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516113_971c45813a_s.jpg\" alt=\"fossil shell from the wheatfield alongside Oxford Lane\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516553_184e9a458c_z.jpg\" title= \"Canons Ashby - St Mary's Church and houses 1\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516553_184e9a458c_s.jpg\" alt=\"Canons Ashby - St Mary's Church and houses 1\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516523_6a3cb2b5b7_z.jpg\" title= \"Canons Ashby - St Mary's Church and houses 2\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851516523_6a3cb2b5b7_s.jpg\" alt=\"Canons Ashby - St Mary's Church and houses 2\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851057691_63b5247b7a_z.jpg\" title= \"Canons Ashby - St Mary's Church\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/farm66.static.flickr.com\/65535\/52851057691_63b5247b7a_s.jpg\" alt=\"Canons Ashby - St Mary's Church\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"javascript:pwindow=window.open('\/Walks\/prn.php?f=2668','pwin','height=700,width=1000,resizable=yes,scrollbars=yes');\" title=\"Click for printable version\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/Walks\/print.gif\" align=\"right\"><\/a><br \/>\nWhen the National Trust took over Canons Ashby in 1981, the Tudor country house in gently rolling Northamptonshire countryside was a wreck, its gardens run wild. It was hard to imagine that, on this brisk spring day with volunteers tending the tulip beds and topiary in the immaculate gardens, and others ready to fill in the story of the ironstone house and its dark panelled rooms gathered tightly round a tall courtyard.<\/p>\n<p>The Augustinian canons of the medieval priory here were rather a naughty lot. In 1432 the visiting Bishop had to rebuke them for lecherous, rowdy and drunken behaviour. When the priory was finally dissolved in 1536, the outgoing Prior had earned a sorry reputation for hosting wild student parties, worshipping in a lavish silver robe, and flouting his vows of celibacy.<\/p>\n<p>Out in the parkland beyond the house, ewes bleated for lambs who scampered up with grubby knees. Bullocks jostled to stare at us over the hedge. At South West Farm a couple of guineafowl went scuttling across the road with their characteristically furtive air, hunched down in spotted cloaks of feathers as though guilty of some misdoing. <\/p>\n<p>The trees around the priory fishponds were loud with birdsong \u2013 chaffinches, blackbirds, great tits, blackcaps and song thrushes giving it their best springtime chorus. The path led round the margins of enormous fields of wheat. In their hedges white blossom of blackthorn and pink of crab apple gave promise of a fruitful autumn six months hence.<\/p>\n<p>Up on the crest of the land we turned along a ridge road with long views over the plough-striped undulations of the countryside. The verges of the road were lined with trees, wide grassy strips that told of past animal droving.<\/p>\n<p>Oxford Lane, our return route to Canons Ashby, was another broad green highway. Cattle, sheep and pigs would be driven down here towards the slaughterhouses and college kitchens of the University Town. The old green road has lost its easterly hedge to modern farming. The soil of the wheatfields that bordered it was thick with flint, chert, fossil shells and pebbles rolled smooth and round by some great prehistoric river.<\/p>\n<p>Bluebells hazed the ground under the larches of Ashby Gorge, pink bonnets of milkmaids spattered the damp ditches, and a few early bees went buzzing among the white sloe blossom.<\/p>\n<p>\fHow hard is it? 5 miles; easy; field paths<\/p>\n<p>Start: Canons Ashby house, near Daventry, Northants NN11 3SD (OS ref SP 577505) \u2013 NT pay car park. Limited parking at church<\/p>\n<p>Getting there: Canons Ashby is signposted from A361 (Daventry-Banbury)<\/p>\n<p>Walk (OS Explorer 206): From car park, right down road. Just past South West Farm, right (573503, fingerpost) on field path, following arrows. In \u00be mile, at \u2018Private\u2019 notice (568512), left along farm track, then hedgeside track. In \u00bd mile at oak tree with arrows (564519), right with hedge on right. In 400m left up hedge (568520) to road (568521). Right; in \u2154 mile, opposite road on left, right down Oxford Lane hedged track (578525, \u2018Byway, Macmillan Way\u2019\/MW). In \u00bd mile MW bears right (580516), but keep ahead. In \u00bd mile cross road (584508) and on. In 400m right (584504, gate, arrow); half left across pastures till right-hand hedge meets fence (579501). Through 3 kissing gates, across footbridge; on across field to cross road (577499, fingerpost). Field path to road at South West Farm (574503); right to car park.<\/p>\n<p>Lunch: Crown Inn, Weston NN12 8PX (01295-760310, <a href=\"http:\/\/thecrowninnweston.co.uk\">thecrowninnweston.co.uk<\/a>); NT teashop at Canons Ashby.<\/p>\n<p>Accommodation: Weston Hill Farm, Moreton Pinkney NN11 3SN (01295-760217)<\/p>\n<p>Info: <a href=\"http:\/\/nationaltrust.org.uk\">nationaltrust.org.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When the National Trust took over Canons Ashby in 1981, the Tudor country house in gently rolling Northamptonshire countryside was a wreck, its gardens run wild. It was hard to imagine that, on this brisk spring day with volunteers tending the tulip beds and topiary in the immaculate gardens, and others ready to fill in the story of the ironstone house and its dark panelled rooms gathered tightly round a tall courtyard.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-walks","category-3-id","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-corners","fix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2668"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2668\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}