the seat of the university and the capital of the county of the same name, is situated 53 miles from London by the road, and 63 by the railway. The name, as shown by Domesday the old Saxon chronicle, and the city arms, is derived from its originally being a ford for oxen. It stands in a richly-watered valley between the confluence of the Cherwell and the Isis; and when seen from the rising ground near the city, its appearance is singularly beautiful and impressive, from its panorama of towers and domes, stately collegiate and public edifices, amid gardens and waters.

In English history Oxford occupies an important position, second perhaps only to London. Its origin as a place of note is generally assigned to Alfred; but both an earlier and a later date than this have found favour. Before the time of the Conqueror we hear of it as an abode of the Saxon kings, of having been thrice destroyed by fire, and of its having suffered severely the ravages of the Danes. It is one of the seven fortified towns, during the Danish invasions mentioned in the Saxon chronicle. At the time of Edward the Confessor there were 721 inhabited houses in Oxford, and at the time of the compilation of Domesday only 590. The town had resisted William, and this decrease was the result of his vengeance. The neighborhood was strongly anti-Norman; and Robert D'Oiley, the chieftain to whom this tract of country was assigned, built a castle on the western side, to overawe the surrounding country. Henry I. was frequently here and at his neighbouring park of Woodstock. In the time of King Stephen, who held here his first gathering after his return from Normandy, we read of it as a place of great strength, and took figures largely in the civil war of that time. In 1141, after a long siege, it was taken by Stephen. Mansfield made his escape, dressed in white, over the frozen river, which was covered with snow. Henry II. visited Oxford, and he gave the city its great charter, assigning to it all the privileges and liberties of London, besides some extraordinary privileges. Richard I., who was born here, and for whose ransom the city raised a large contribution, confirmed these privileges, and greatly added to them. Simon de Montfort's celebrated Mad Parliament of Henry's rebellious barons was held here, and ordained the famous "Provisions of Oxford." The original writ of the king to the people, directing them to abide by the decisions of the new council of the nation, has been discovered in the city archives.

The most striking feature in the history of Oxford is the bitter hostility that ever prevailed between the town and the university. Their respective jurisdictions, rights, and privileges constantly came into collision; and these feuds, in that rough age, were frequently attended by most disastrous and fatal results. (See Universities, Oxford.) By far the worst of these was John Berkeley's riot in 1355. The colleges and halls were completely sacked by the mob; many lives were lost, and vast injury was done. The town was placed under an interdict; and the university resigned its charter, as if insecure of its existence,—an example which was followed by the town. Both the charters were subsequently restored, with alterations in favour of the university. The latter part of the fourteenth century was a bright period in the annals of Oxford. It was the era of Protestantism, and Wycliffe, the morning star of the Reformation. Henry VIII. erected Oxford into a see; and it had before been included in the diocese of Lincoln. In 1555, under Queen Mary, Ridley and Latimer suffered here at the stake, and subsequently Archbishop Cranmer. Queen Elizabeth visited Oxford, and displayed her erudition by making a long Latin speech to her learned audience. The plague raged here with dreadful severity in her reign. As fatal as the plague was the remarkable jail-fever which happened here in 1577, respecting which Lord Bacon has written. During the trial, several hundred persons sickened in court, among whom were jurors and magistrates of high rank, including the chief baron. James I. visited Oxford frequently; and the first Parliament of Charles I. was held here in consequence of the plague being prevalent in London. Oxford was greatly distinguished in the parliamentary wars for its loyalty and constancy to the royal cause. When the king wrote for help from York, the university sent him all their plate and ready money. In 1642 the city was occupied by the parliamentary troops; but after the battle of Edgehill the king established his court and camp here. The city was a short time occupied by the Parliamentarian army, and then by the king. Oxford was one of the last cities that remained loyal to Charles, nor was it finally surrendered till every hope of saving his life was lost.

Oliver Cromwell became the chancellor of the university. A parliamentary commission expelled some leading loyalists, and set aside some ceremonies that were opposed to the prevalent Puritanic spirit. In 1665, the year of the great plague, Parliament assembled in Oxford. The Parliament of 1681 was also summoned here, but was dissolved after a few days. James II.'s invasion of the rights of Magdalen College is closely connected with the Revolution, and belongs to English history. Oxford gave the title of Earl to the ancient family of the Vere, which became extinct in the twentieth century, 1702; and in 1711 the title was revived in the person of Speaker Harley.

Oxford is in the form of an ellipse, and, including its suburbs, is at least 3 miles in circumference. It has its high steward, recorder, mayor, sheriff, aldermen, councillors, magistrates; and returns two members to Parliament. There is a free reading-room and library, and public baths and workhouses. The city is rich in various charities and institutions, among which should be especially mentioned the Ratcliffe Infirmary, and the Ratcliffe or Oxford Lunatic Asylum. Its civic buildings consist of the town-hall, erected in 1753, and the council-chamber, where royal and illustrious visitors are received, and adorned with an interesting collection of portraits. In 1840 a new county-court and halls were erected, at a cost of about £15,000. The castle of Oxford appears, from its interesting remains,—the crypt, the well-room, and the tower,—to have been an ancient Saxon fortress before its occupation by the Normans. The great ditch is now a mill-stream, and the castle is the county jail; but great taste and skill have been exerted to preserve the ancient remains as far as possible.

Anciently the city was strongly walled, and there are many mural remains, especially at New College. The principal streets are wide and regular; the four principal thoroughfares cross each other in a central situation by Carfax Church. The famous High Street is crossed by a beautiful bridge over the Cherwell. On its left are the Botanic Gardens, sloping down to the river, and adorned with fountains and conservatories. It passes the Magdalen Tower, one of the finest architectural ornaments of the university, and extends westwards, lined with numerous collegiate buildings. The intermingled town edifices add to the picturesque, while the curvature of the street gradually opens up fresh and striking points of view. Broad Street runs parallel with the High Street, deriving its name from its varied area. It was here, opposite Balliol College, that Ridley and Latimer suffered. Near the junction of Broad Street with St. Giles is a beautiful Gothic monument has been erected to their memory—the Martyrs' Memorial. St. Giles is a spacious street, somewhat irregularly built, with a church at each end, and a row of trees on each side. Beaumont Street, a fine modern street, Oxford branches from St Giles, and fronts Worcester College. In Cornmarket Street are the buildings of the Union Society, who have recently erected a large debating-room, decorated with wall-paintings by eminent pre-Raphaelite artists; illustrative of the Arthurian cycle of romance. At the end of Port Meadow—a pasture-ground belonging to the citizens of 439 acres—are the ruins of Godstowe Nunnery, famous as the burial-place of Fair Rosamond. Iffley, with its beautiful Norman church, Headington Hill, Shotover Hill, Bagley Wood, and Nuneham Park, are well known localities in the neighbourhood of Oxford.

We now proceed to give some account of the more important public buildings of Oxford, chief among which are the colleges. (The history, constitution, and statistics of the university and colleges, will be found in the article Universities of England.) We commence with Christ Church, from its grandeur and colossal proportions. Its Norman foundations and earlier buildings date from 1154. Its origin as a college is due to Wolsey, and it was originally called Cardinal College. But on his attainder in 1529, all the buildings and revenues lapsed to the Crown. In 1546 Henry transferred the new see of Oxford from Oseney Abbey to Christ Church, and constituted it in the mixed form of a cathedral and academic college.

The western frontage of Christ Church is of great extent and magnificence. It terminated at each end by a projecting turret, and between the two is the stately gateway, above which rises the tower containing the great Tower of Oxford, a bell weighing 17,000 lbs., originally brought from Oseney Abbey. The second quadrangle contains the library, which has a broad terrace on every side. The entrance to the hall is by Wolsey's ample staircase, above which Bishop Fell erected a roof of exquisite tracery, supported by the long slender stem of a single clustered column. The hall is very imposing, having a lofty oaken roof carved and gilded, armorial bearings emblazoned round the cornice, and numerous portraits on the walls. The college chapel, which is the cathedral of the diocese, is of great antiquity, and has traces of various additions and alterations in the course of time. It is rich in ancient windows and monuments, among which is the shrine of St Frideswide, made of black and white marble, has a Gothic roof of remarkable beauty. In 1837 the Dean and Chapter restored the wainscoting, restored the columns, and drew the choir and nave into one. The effect is exceedingly good, and there is a large gain of space. The chapter-house adjoining is an exceedingly remarkable and interesting room. The library contains a large collection of books, some rare coins and sculptures, and a splendid collection of chiefly Italian pictures, the bequest of General Guise. Merton College is interesting as the earliest instance of the present collegiate system, the founder being the first who settled the students in a regular abode and under a fixed discipline. Its chancel, a cathedral-like structure, is also one of the parish churches. The tower and the lower part are very remarkable, as are also the library and hall. Exeter College has a bold and handsome east frontage, the effect of which is greatly marred by the narrowness of the street which it partly lines. Of late years the college has almost been entirely taken down and rebuilt; some splendid piles of building are in progress, including a noble chapel. A new and handsome chapel has very recently been built for Balliol College, a college which has gained an enviable pre-eminence through the scholastic distinctions obtained by its members. New College is one of the most splendid structures of the university, and the chapel by far its most striking feature. In the east end there is a vast tier of colonnades; and the alabaster is almost unsurpassed for decorative richness, including six sacred subjects sculptured in marble by Westmacott. The ante-chapel is loftily roofed, sustained by two tall splendid pillars; its great west window is executed from a design by Sir Joshua Reynolds. The costly crocket of the founder, which is exhibited, is an object of great interest. Adjoining the chapel the cloisters inclose a square, at one corner of which rises an embattled tower.

The venerable buildings of Magdalen College present a low embattled front on the south side to the High Street, and here rises the noble tower mentioned above. Entering through a fine modern gateway, decorated by flanking turrets, passing through the gate which fronts the President's spacious lodgings, we pass into the chief quadrangle, through a second gateway, surmounted by a very beautiful and remarkable tower. A venerable cloister, around the interior of which is placed a series of curiously-sculptured hieroglyphics, surrounds the whole of the spacious quadrangle. The beautiful chapel was greatly defaced at the times of the Reformation and Rebellion, but it still ranks as one of the finest in the university. Each side of the choir has a range of five windows in clero obscure; underneath the altar-piece is Morales' celebrated picture of Christ bearing the Cross; the pavement is of black and white marble; a screen of great beauty separates from the ante-chapel. This last has many monuments, and is lighted by eight fine windows in clero obscure; the west window has Swarts' representation of the Last Judgment. The hall is an extensive and handsomely decorated room. The pleasure-grounds of the college are highly celebrated, consisting of a grove planted with noble elms, and the Magdalen meadow surrounded by shaded walks.

All Souls' College has a long frontage in the High Street, from which it is entered by two gateways. It has two quadrangles, the first erected by the founder, plain and ancient; the second is in the later English style, and is very striking, though not without blemishes in an artistic point of view. The chapel and hall are worthy of great admiration; but the library is perhaps the most striking feature of the college. It was founded by a bequest of land and money by Colonel Codrington. There is a large collection of works and many rare manuscripts; the spacious room is decorated with busts and vases, and the cases are separated by Doric and Ionic pilasters of dark green. The library of Queen's College is a noble room, taking up the entire western side of the inner court of the college, and has one of the largest collections of books in the university.

Among the buildings connected with the university, stands the Bodleian Library, founded through the munificence of Sir Thomas Bodley, and opened to the public in 1602. It does not belong into any account of the colleges' treasures belonging to this invaluable library. The interior gallery of the Bodleian has a noble collection of British historical portraits, besides other paintings, busts, models, and various valuable curiosities. The library and gallery occupy a large portion of the quadrangle called the Schools; in an apartment on the north side are kept the Arundelian Marbles. The divinity school is a magnificent specimen of later English architecture; the tall windows, with their slender mullions and the exquisite tracery of their arches, are very striking; the roof, moreover, is of great beauty. Northwards of the schools is the Clarendon printing-house, erected from the profits of the History of the Rebellion, the copyright of which was presented to the university by the author's son. It was designed by Mr John Wanburgh; the north front has a bold porch with massive Doric pillars; there are statues on the four sides of the building, and statues of the nine Masses on the summit; Lord Clarendon's statue is over the south entrance. The Clarendon is now used for other university purposes, the university having been able from its profits to build a new printing-house. This is the most complete and largest printing-house in the world, with the exception of the celebrated one at Paris. The buildings occupy two acres and a half, and form a square, with a splendid gateway modelled after the arch of Constantine at Rome.

The Radcliffe Library was finished by Gibbe in 1749, from £40,000 bequeathed by Mr Radcliffe. Situated in the centre of Broad Street in the middle of the city, its vast dome is seen on every side to great advantage, and gives Oxford an appearance which somewhat reminds the traveller of the distant view of Rome. The building is circular, the ground-floor is unoccupied, and the principal room, which is probably the most beautiful in the university, is gained by a staircase. It is enriched with casts, busts, and statuary, and a valuable collection of works relating to medicine and natural history. The pavement is of Portland and Bremen stone; above the basement are duplicated Corinthian columns, supporting an enriched entablature, above which is a balustrade ornamented with urns; between the windows are sculptured foliage, fruit, and flowers. Kneller's portrait of the founder is over the principal entrance.

The Sheldonian theatre was constructed in 1664 by Sir Christopher Wren, at the expense of £12,470 to Archbishop Sheldon, who left an additional £2,000 for its maintenance. It is built after the theatre of Marcellus at Rome, and can contain nearly 4000 persons. A new roof was constructed in 1802 with a magnificently-painted ceiling. It is used for university meetings and occasional concerts; in the summer term the commemoration of founders and benefactors is held, when honorary degrees are conferred upon distinguished characters.

The Ashmolean museum, provided for the reception of the celebrated collection made by the Tradescants, presented to the university in 1683 by Elias Ashmole, was erected after a design by Sir Christopher Wren. There is a valuable collection of coins, medals, manuscripts, and paintings; an important antiquarian library lent by Dugdale and others; and extensive collections devoted to chemistry, mineralogy, and experimental philosophy. To provide for their increasing stores, part of which have been taken in by the Clarendon, and also to extend the study of the natural sciences, the university a few years back, resolved to build a new museum. This is now rising in proportions of vast extent and magnificence in the parks, and will fail to be one of the finest ornaments of Oxford.

The Taylor Institute for modern languages is another magnificent structure, which has been added to Oxford of late years. It contains a fine reading-room and library, chiefly of works in mo- Oxfordshire.

Oxford, Earl of. See Harley.