Continue … What to do in Oxford – Part II

Find around the Merton Street, Oxford Street to spend in front of the historic Corpus Christi College founded in 1517 by Richard Foxe, Bishop of Winchester. Just next door we have the Merton College, Oxford third oldest. It was founded by Walter de Merton, Chancellor of England and later Bishop of Rochester, in the year 1264.

Photography by ahisgett

Back to Merton College High Street we find the Magdalen College, founded in 1458 by William Waynflete, Bishop of Winchester. Like almost all accounts with a chapel, cloister, library, etc. Whereupon one wonders how much money move these institutions to maintain such facilities.

Photography by stevecadman

Following High Street looking west towards the Radcliffe Square, a very unique square in the center is the Radcliffe Camera, a circular building topped by a cupola. It was built by James Gibbs in the mid eighteenth century with the legacy of John Radcliffe, hence its name. The original idea was that it was a library, but over time their catalog was transferred to other libraries and now contains two reading rooms.

Radcliffe Camera – In the north is the Bodleian Library, the largest research library of Oxford and one of the oldest in Europe (XVII century). To the south is the church of St. Mary the Virgin with its lookout tower 62 meters high. The tower is the thirteenth century while the rest of the church is a reconstruction of the sixteenth century.

Photography by wit

St. Mary the Virgin Church – On the east side of the square is another college, Old Souls College. Founded by Henry Chichele, Archbishop of Canterbury and King Henry VI. Its first stone was laid in 1437.

Old Souls College closed the circle looking west to the street Brasenose and two residences, which gives it its name and Lincoln College. Brasenose College was begun in 1509 and the origins of Lincoln are to be found in 1427 when it was founded by Richard Fleming, Bishop of Lincoln. How can see this city is very old and very historic. We look forward and we move into the complex of the Bodleian Library. We went right to Catte Street to see the Bridge of Sighs (Bridge of Sighs). Its name comes from the course similar to the real Bridge of Sighs in Venice. It was completed in 1914 to link two buildings of Hertford College.

Photography by soham_pablo

Bridge of Sighs continue forward to reach Broad Street. In this street we have, of course, most colleges, the Sheldonian Theatre (built between 1664 and 1668 if there is not enough cultural) and the Museum of History of Science. A very interesting museum displays a large collection of scientific objects. If I have to get wet I stay with the old calculators as you can see were very different from today.

Calculator of 1898…

Financial calculator for interest of 4% of the nineteenth century continues with the review halls with Exeter College. Founded in 1314 and famous for being the place where he studied JRR Tolkien, author of «The Hobbit» and «The Lord of the Rings» in 1911.

Exeter College Chapel finished our round by colleges, otherwise we could go to infinity, with Balliol College. This residence is one of the oldest in Oxford. Its official foundation took place in June 1266 but has existed since 1263. As an anecdote, Balliol College was the first male to accept a woman as a partner (1973) and since 1979 admitted women, the most famous of them Masako Owada, who married Crown Prince of Japan.

Photography by stevecadman

At the end of Broad Street we passed Cornmarket Street, a busy street crowded with shops and southbound leads to the Carfax Tower, our starting point. At the corner of Ship Street is the oldest building in Oxford, the Saxon Tower of St. Michael the eleventh century. This tower which belonged to the ancient wall surrounding Oxford in medieval times was later exploited to build the Church of St. Michael at the North Gate (Church of San Miguel in the North Gate), whose name clearly indicates its original location. Today his name only reminds us of his past because there is no wall or door north.

Saxon Tower Instead of returning to the Carfax Tower in the opposite direction we pass in front of more colleges and attractions that take some time to visit as the Ashmolean Museum and monuments street as the Martyrs Memorial dedicated to the three «Martyrs of Oxford» burned at the stake for opposing the Church of Rome in the sixteenth century.

Memorial of the Martyrs We walked north to finish with a new museum. It is the Natural History Museum and dinosaur footprints in the garden tell us what we will find inside.

The collection consists of skeletons of dinosaurs and mammals, insects, birds, and minerals. You can see the African Elephant vs. Asian elephant. No doubt this will be one of the places that you would like in England. Oxford is a city that we should not be back. His reputation is not empty. Walking through the streets collecting a special energy, youth and vitality of its people.

Bon voyage!

Continue … What to do in Oxford