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My gripe with Oxford is that so much of it is ugly

Bill Bryson (b. 1951)

Visit the least ugly parts of our beautiful city! The tour takes about 60 minutes to complete, not counting any time you spend visiting colleges or lingering in parks and meadows. An excellent introduction to the city of Oxford.  Click here to download a printer friendly version of this tour (.pdf format).

 Click here for a detailed map (35K) of the tour

Carfax Tower

Our Classic Walking Tour of Oxford begins at Carfax, the centre of the old Saxon city. Carfax is situated at the crossroads between High Street, St Aldates, Queen Street and Cornmarket Street, 

The name Carfax is derived from the Latin word 'quadrifucus', meaning 'four forked'. This is where the four ancient routes into Oxford meet at a crossroads and the place King Edward the Elder of Wessex chose to build a lookout tower when the town was fortified in the 9th century.  The tower still affords outstanding aerial views of Oxford and the surrounding countryside and, in particular, affords the best view in Oxford of the gently curving High Street to the East.    Carfax Tower

From Carfax, head south along St Aldates towards the distinctive 'Tom Tower' of Christ Church. As you pass the Abbey National Bank on the corner of Carfax and St Aldates, look out for the small plaque on the wall. This was the site of the infamous Swindlestock Tavern (150 - 1709), scene of the bloody St Scholistica's Day Riot between students and townsfolk in 1355. 

Continue down the gentle hill for about 400m (1/4 mile), passing Tom Tower on your left until you come to the gates of Christ Church Memorial Gardens 100m beyond the tower. Enter through the large iron gates and climb the steps at the far end of the small gardens. Ahead of you and to the right are the expanses of Christ Church Meadow. If you wish to visit the college and cathedral, you will find a signed entrance to via the Chapter House on the left.

Christ Church

Christ Church is Oxford's largest college and is home to England's smallest cathedral. Built on the historic site of St Frideswide's Priory (destroyed by Viking raiders in 1002), Christ Church was founded in 1525 by Cardinal Wolsey and re-endowed in 1546 by King Henry VIII. The famous 'Tom Tower' was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and houses the 7 ton 'Great Tom' bell, taken from the 12th century Osney Abbey. The bell tolls 101 times every night at 9:05 (9pm Oxford local time), originally to sound curfew for college members. Tom Tower   The Memorial Gardens are surrounded by Christ Church Meadow, running down to the rivers Thames to the South and Cherwell to the East. It is hard to imagine how town planners in the 1960s could have proposed driving a relief road through these meadows to solve Oxford's traffic problems! Christ Church Cathedral  Entry to the gardens and meadows is free. The college and cathedral are open to visitors every day (opening times here).

Continue past the Chapter House and take the first turning on your left, following the path between a stone wall and some low iron railings. To your right, you will see the tower of Magdalen college in the distance. At the end of the path, you will have to squeeze yourself through a tortuous wrought iron gate, cunningly designed to prevent cycles being brought into the meadows! You will now be rewarded with a stunning view of Merton College tower, rising majestically above the trees on your right. Pass through yet another set of iron gates at the end of the path and you will emerge into Merton Street - 'an architectural treasure house, one of the densest assemblages of  historic buildings in the world' in the words of Bill Bryson, the travel writer. You may now want to visit Merton College before continuing with the tour. 

Founded by Walter de Merton in 1264, Merton is one of the three oldest colleges in Oxford. The central quad (Mob Quad) contains the oldest library in the country, which houses a selection of precious medieval manuscripts - so precious, in fact, that they are chained to the walls! Walter de Merton's conception of a self-governing community of scholars, with its own statutes and endowment, residing in buildings laid out in staircases and quadrangles, created a model and precedent for Oxford and Cambridge colleges founded in the succeeding centuries. Merton College   Picturesque Merton Street was home to many of the 11th Century Academic Houses that existed before the colleges came into existence. Today it boasts some of Oxford's most beautiful architecture, including the colleges Merton and Corpus Christi and the grand Canterbury Gate entrance to Christ Church. Merton Street

Emerging from the gate onto Merton Street, turn left towards Christ Church's Canterbury Gate, passing Corpus Christi College on your left. Corpus is Oxford's smallest college. Legend has it that the benefactor, who sadly went blind before the college was completed, was lead around the front quad three times to give the impression that the college was much larger than it is. You may not have time to visit, but it is worth peering in through the lodge to catch a glimpse of the unusual sundial. 

Follow the road round to the right into the colourful Oriel Square. The college on the right of the square is Oriel College, famous for rowing and rugby and for being the last Oxford college to admit women. Continue past Oriel and, keeping to the right hand side of the square, take Oriel Street eventually emerging onto the High Street opposite St Mary's Church. 

The University Church has been in existence since the late 13th century. In the early days of the University, the Church was a centre of administration and teaching, with the side chapels acting as lecture theatres where students studied mainly Theology. In 1556, it hosted the trial of the protestant Bishops Ridley, Cranmer and Latimer. The 'Oxford Martyrs' where subsequently burnt at the stake for heresy by the Catholic Queen of England, Bloody Mary. The Church is open every day and visitors can climb up the 127 stairs to the top of the spire to get another classic aerial view of Radcliffe Square and the spires of Oxford. Entrance to the church and spire is via Radcliffe Square. University Church St Mary the Virgin

Turn right, and cross the High Street at the pedestrian crossing. Walk down Catte Street and you will soon emerge into the magnificent Radcliffe Square. To your right, on the East side of the square, is the exclusive All Souls college. Peer through the imposing iron gates at the front quad with its elegant twin towers, designed by the architect Nicholas Hawksmoor in the 18th century. Facing the square from these gates you will see the University Church to your left, the Bodleian library to your right and Brasenose college on the opposite side. But the crowning glory of the square is undoubtedly the domed Radcliffe Camera at the centre.  

Radcliffe Square lies at the very heart of the old University. The Radcliffe Camera was funded from the estate of the Royal Surgeon Dr John Radcliffe. The building was designed by James Gibbs and was completed in 1749. Originally conceived as a library of science and medicine, it is now part of the Bodleian Library and houses a collection on History and English Literature. One of the best views of Oxford, All Souls and the Radcliffe Camera in particular, can be obtained from the top of St Mary's spire.  Radcliffe Camera All Souls front quad

The entrance to the Old Schools Quadrangle is on the north side of the square, directly opposite St Mary's Church. You can stroll through the two quadrangles when the library is open (most weekdays and Saturday morning). At other times, you will have to continue along Catte Street and rejoin the tour at the junction of Catte Street and New College Lane. 

You can pick up the tour commentary at the point marked  .

The Bodleian Library was founded by Thomas Bodley in 1598. Today the collection comprises 6.5 million documents occupying 169Km (105 miles) of shelving space in 10 buildings located throughout Oxford. Much of the collection is kept in a network of tunnels running under Broad Street. The Old Schools Quadrangle is the oldest part of the library and the names of the original faculties are written above the doors in gold lettering (and, of course, in Latin). The Tower of Five Orders is so names because it is ornamented with columns of each of the five orders of classical architecture - Doric, Tuscan, Ionic, Corinthian and Composite - in ascending order. Tower of the Five Orders   The Divinity School and Duke Humphry Reading Room are open to the public. The entrance is found next to the statue of the Earl of Pembroke in the second quad. The Duke Humphry Reading Room housed the University's first great collection, founded in 1310 but sadly dispersed by 1556.

Emerging from the Old Schools Quadrangle, you will find yourself in a graveled courtyard. In front of you is the original home of the Oxford University Press, the Clarendon Building, topped by figures of  the nine muses. To your left is the Sheldonian Theatre, the centre for University ceremonials and another creation of Sir Christopher Wren. This is well worth a visit, not just to see the Vice Chancellor's elaborately carved throne and painted ceiling, but also to take in the spectacular aerial views of Oxford's spires and domes from the rooftop cupola. 

Exit the courtyard to your right in order to get a view of one of Oxford's most famous constructions, the Bridge of Sighs.

The Bridge of Sighs joins the two sections of Hertford College located on either side of New College Lane. Modeled on the famous Ponte dei Sospiri in Venice, it has become one of Oxford's most photographed buildings. But its construction was vehemently opposed when it was built in 1913, not least by the Fellows of New College who thought it would spoil the views of their college from the Sheldonian Theatre.  Bridge of Sighs   The Broad Street entrance to the Sheldonian Theatre is notable because of the carved heads, or terms, that tower above the railings. Often referred to as the twelve Caesars or Apostles, they are actually anonymous but, nonetheless, curiously photogenic! Sheldonian Theatre & Broad Street

To return to the starting point at Carfax, walk along Broad Street away from the Sheldonian Theatre to the end, then take a left turn into Cornmarket. On the way, you may notice a modest plaque set into the road opposite Balliol College, where the street narrows. This is the spot where the Protestant Bishops Latimer, Ridley and Cranmer (the Oxford Martyrs) were burned at the stake in 1555 and 1556 by Catholic Queen Mary. 

And that sombre note brings to an end our Classic Walking Tour of Oxford. We hope you have enjoyed the tour and welcome any comments you have to make about it. Please E-mail your comments to sgto@oxfordwebwise.com