Burford
Burford is a tiny middle ages community on the River Windrush, in the Cotswold hillsides, in the West Oxfordshire area of Oxfordshire, England. It is frequently described as the 'entrance' to the Cotswolds. Burford is located 18 miles (29 km) west of Oxford and 22 miles (35 kilometres) southeast of Cheltenham, regarding 2 miles (3 kilometres) from the Gloucestershire boundary. The toponym originates from the Old English words burh implying prepared town or hilltown and also ford, the crossing of a river. The 2011 Census recorded the population of Burford parish as 1,410 and Burford Ward as 1,847. The town centre's most notable building is the Church of St John the Baptist, a Church of England parish church, which is a Grade I provided structure. Explained by David Verey as "a complex structure which has actually created in a curious way from the Norman", it is known for its vendors' guild church, memorial to Henry VIII's barber-surgeon, Edmund Harman, including South American Indians and also Kempe tarnished glass. In 1649 the church was made use of as a jail during the Civil War, when the New Model Army Banbury mutineers were held there. Some of the 340 prisoners left makings and also graffiti, which still survive in the church. The community centre also has some 15th-century residences and the baroque design condominium that is now Burford Methodist Church. In between the 14th and also 17th centuries Burford was necessary for its wool trade. The Tolsey, midway along Burford's High Street, which was as soon as the centerpiece for trade, is currently a museum.