Shiplake
Encyclopedia
Shiplake is a village and civil parish about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Henley-on-Thames
in Oxfordshire
, England
on the River Thames
.
of St. Peter and St. Paul
dates from at least the 13th century, but in 1869 the Gothic Revival architect
G.E. Street
rebuilt the chancel
, north aisle, parts of the south aisle and replaced the tracery
of all the windows. The tower
has a peal
of eight bells.
In 1773 the Thames Navigation Commission
built Shiplake Lock
on the Thames about 0.5 miles (804.7 m) downriver from the village. In 1857 the Great Western Railway
opened a branch line between Twyford
and Henley-on-Thames
, crossing the Thames on Shiplake Railway Bridge
, about 300 yards (274.3 m) downstream from Shiplake Lock. The GWR built Shiplake railway station
at Lower Shiplake 1 miles (1.6 km) northwest of the village. Lower Shiplake has since grown into the largest settlement in the parish.
In 1889 the author Jerome K. Jerome
featured the village in his book Three Men in a Boat
.
Shiplake Court
was a country house
built in Shiplake in 1905 overlooking the Thames. In 1959 it became Shiplake College
, an independent boarding school
.
In 2003, the village of Binfield Heath
and hamlet
of Crowsley
, which had been within Shiplake civil parish became part of the newly-created civil parish of Binfield Heath.
, a Women's Institute and an amateur dramatic society
.
Shiplake has a bowls
club and a lawn tennis club.
was founded in 1867 and is held annually. It is the second largest regatta on the Thames after the Henley Royal Regatta
.
Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about 10 miles downstream and north-east from Reading, 10 miles upstream and west from Maidenhead...
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
.
History
The Church of England parish churchChurch of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
of St. Peter and St. Paul
Feast of Saints Peter and Paul
The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, or the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, is a liturgical feast in honour of the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is observed on 29 June...
dates from at least the 13th century, but in 1869 the Gothic Revival architect
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
G.E. Street
George Edmund Street
George Edmund Street was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex.- Life :Street was the third son of Thomas Street, solicitor, by his second wife, Mary Anne Millington. George went to school at Mitcham in about 1830, and later to the Camberwell collegiate school, which he left in 1839...
rebuilt the chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, north aisle, parts of the south aisle and replaced the tracery
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
of all the windows. The tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
has a peal
Change ringing
Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuned bells in a series of mathematical patterns called "changes". It differs from many other forms of campanology in that no attempt is made to produce a conventional melody....
of eight bells.
In 1773 the Thames Navigation Commission
Thames Navigation Commission
The Thames Navigation Commission used to manage the River Thames in southern England. In particular, they were responsible for installing or renovating many of the locks on the river in the 18th and early 19th centuries.- History :...
built Shiplake Lock
Shiplake Lock
Shiplake Lock is a lock and weir situated on the River Thames in England near the village of Shiplake, Oxfordshire. It is just above the points where the River Loddon joins the Thames and Shiplake Railway Bridge crosses the river...
on the Thames about 0.5 miles (804.7 m) downriver from the village. In 1857 the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
opened a branch line between Twyford
Twyford railway station
Twyford railway station is a railway station in the village of Twyford, Berkshire, England.It is served by local services operated by First Great Western from , east, to...
and Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames railway station
Henley-on-Thames railway station is a terminal railway station in the town of Henley-upon-Thames in Oxfordshire, England.The station is served by local services operated by First Great Western on the Henley Branch Line from on the Great Western Main Line about to the south.-Service:There is a...
, crossing the Thames on Shiplake Railway Bridge
Shiplake Railway Bridge
Shiplake Railway Bridge carries the Henley Branch Line to Henley-on-Thames, England across the River Thames, connecting Shiplake in Oxfordshire with Wargrave in Berkshire. It crosses the river just downstream of Shiplake Lock on the reach above Marsh Lock....
, about 300 yards (274.3 m) downstream from Shiplake Lock. The GWR built Shiplake railway station
Shiplake railway station
Shiplake railway station is a railway station in the village of Shiplake in the county of Oxfordshire in England.The station is served by local services operated by First Great Western on the Henley-on-Thames branch between Henley-on-Thames and Twyford....
at Lower Shiplake 1 miles (1.6 km) northwest of the village. Lower Shiplake has since grown into the largest settlement in the parish.
In 1889 the author Jerome K. Jerome
Jerome K. Jerome
Jerome Klapka Jerome was an English writer and humorist, best known for the humorous travelogue Three Men in a Boat.Jerome was born in Caldmore, Walsall, England, and was brought up in poverty in London...
featured the village in his book Three Men in a Boat
Three Men in a Boat
Three Men in a Boat ,The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog! published in 1889, is a humorous account by Jerome K...
.
Shiplake Court
Shiplake Court
Shiplake Court was a historic manor house near Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire, England. In the sixteenth century, it was the residence of Edmund Plowden. In 1897, it had its own electricity generating plant, managed by Stuart Turner. The independent school, Shiplake College, is now on the manor...
was a country house
English country house
The English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a London house. This allowed to them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country...
built in Shiplake in 1905 overlooking the Thames. In 1959 it became Shiplake College
Shiplake College
Shiplake College is an independent school in Shiplake, by the River Thames just outside Henley-on-Thames, England. The school, with just over 350 pupils, admits day boys from 11-18 and boarding boys from 13-18. Day and boarding girls join the College in the Sixth Form.The College offers small class...
, an independent boarding school
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
.
In 2003, the village of Binfield Heath
Binfield Heath
Binfield Heath is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England. It is about southwest of Henley-on-Thames and about northeast of Reading, Berkshire.Until 2003, Binfield Heath and the hamlet of Crowsley were part of the civil parish of Shiplake....
and hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
of Crowsley
Crowsley Park
Crowsley Park is a 160-acre country estate in South Oxfordshire, central-southern England, owned by the British Broadcasting Corporation .- Overview :...
, which had been within Shiplake civil parish became part of the newly-created civil parish of Binfield Heath.
Amenities
Shiplake has a village hallVillage hall
In the United States, a village hall is the seat of government for villages. It functions much as a city hall does within cities.In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building within a village which contains at least one large room, usually owned by and run for the benefit of the local...
, a Women's Institute and an amateur dramatic society
Amateur theatre
Amateur theatre is theatre performed by amateur actors. These actors are not typically members of Actors' Equity groups or Actors' Unions as these organizations exist to protect the professional industry and therefore discourage their members from appearing with companies which are not a signatory...
.
Shiplake has a bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
club and a lawn tennis club.
Wargrave & Shiplake Regatta
The Wargrave & Shiplake RegattaWargrave & Shiplake Regatta
The Wargrave & Shiplake Regatta is a regatta on the River Thames in England. It is the local regatta of the villages of Wargrave in Berkshire and Shiplake in Oxfordshire. Some of the boats used are of a traditional clinker-built style, others are fibre-glass....
was founded in 1867 and is held annually. It is the second largest regatta on the Thames after the Henley Royal Regatta
Henley Royal Regatta
Henley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held every year on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. The Royal Regatta is sometimes referred to as Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage...
.
Notable residents
- Barriemore BarlowBarriemore BarlowBarrie "Barriemore" Barlow is an English musician, best known as the drummer and percussionist for the rock band Jethro Tull, from May 1971 to June 1980....
, former drummer of Jethro TullJethro Tull (band)Jethro Tull are a British rock group formed in 1967. Their music is characterised by the vocals, acoustic guitar, and flute playing of Ian Anderson, who has led the band since its founding, and the guitar work of Martin Barre, who has been with the band since 1969.Initially playing blues rock with...
lives in Shiplake. - Vince HillVince HillVince Hill is an English traditional pop music singer, songwriter and record producer.-Biography:...
, singer, lives in Lower Shiplake. - Henry Constantine JenningsHenry Constantine JenningsHenry Constantine Jennings was an antiquarian, collector and gambler, best known for the Roman sculpture - known as The Jennings Dog - which he acquired and which is now in the British Museum. He was known as "Dog Jennings" after it...
, the antiquarian, was born in Shiplake and on 15 August 1731 he was baptised in the parish church. - Simon KernickSimon KernickSimon Kernick is a British thriller/crime writer now living in Oxfordshire with his wife and two daughters.Kernick attended Gillotts School, a comprehensive in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. Whilst he was a student his jobs included fruitpicker and Christmas-tree uprooter. He graduated from...
, best selling author of crime thrillers lives in Shiplake - Gary MooreGary MooreRobert William Gary Moore , better known simply as Gary Moore, was a Northern Irish musician from Belfast, best recognised as a blues rock guitarist and singer....
used to live in Shiplake. - George OrwellGeorge OrwellEric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
, author of Animal FarmAnimal FarmAnimal Farm is an allegorical novella by George Orwell published in England on 17 August 1945. According to Orwell, the book reflects events leading up to and during the Stalin era before World War II...
and Nineteen Eighty-FourNineteen Eighty-FourNineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is a dystopian novel about Oceania, a society ruled by the oligarchical dictatorship of the Party...
, lived in Shiplake. - Ian PaiceIan PaiceIan Anderson Paice is an English musician, best known as the drummer of the English rock band Deep Purple. As of Jon Lord's departure in 2002, he is the only founding member of the band who never stopped performing with the group, and the only member to appear on every album the band has...
, drummer of rock band Deep PurpleDeep PurpleDeep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
, lives in Shiplake. - Brian PatersonBrian PatersonBrian Paterson is an illustrator, best known for his work with Foxwood Tales and later Zigby.-Early life:Brian Paterson was born in Ayrshire in 1949. At the age of 12 his family moved to Somerset. He met a local girl, Cynthia, and they married in 1973...
, creator of Foxwood Tales and ZigbyZigbyZigby the zebra is an anthropomorphic children's fictional character created by Scottish-born English author Brian Paterson. Zigby appears in a series of picture books and board books as well as in a 3D animated television series....
, lives in Shiplake. - Urs SchwarzenbachUrs SchwarzenbachUrs Schwarzenbach is a Swiss-born financier based in the United Kingdom.Schwarzenbach set up Interexchange, the largest foreign exchange dealership in Switzerland. Through its success he has bought well over £300m of property in the UK, in Australia, a palace in Morocco, £17m of assets in the...
, the financier, has one of his houses in Lower Shiplake. - Alfred TennysonAlfred Tennyson, 1st Baron TennysonAlfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, FRS was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria's reign and remains one of the most popular poets in the English language....
and Emily Sellwood were married in the parish church.