We are now back on the southern section of the Oxford Canal, heading back to the boat's home base at Lower Heyford. We are here at Cropredy, another of those picturesque lock and cottage combinations. The cottage is now, of course, in private hands.
Cropredy is famous for two very different reasons. It was the site of a famous Civil War battle in June 1644, when King Charles I's forces were able to hold off the Roundhead parliamentarian army, allowing King Charles to head off west.
More recently, it has been home since 1976 to the annual Cropredy Festival. This from Wikipedia: "Fairport's Cropredy Convention (formerly Cropredy Festival) is an annual festival of folk and rock music, headed by British folk-rock band Fairport Convention and held on the edge of the village of Cropredy in Oxfordshire, England. The festival has taken place in August annually since 1976.
Fairport's Cropredy Convention attracts up to 20,000 people each year, making it the largest annual festival of its kind in Britain; and discounting Glastonbury, V Festival, Reading & Leeds Festivals and T in the Park, which all have had greater attendance but have all had non-continuous runs. The festival features a single stage at the lower end of the sloping arena field. There are also ancillary events, such as Morris dancing in the streets and live music at the village's two pubs."
haha......know this stretch of water well......we are attendees of the Cropredy Festival every year (except for last year and sadly this year too).....so going to miss it.......:(
@haskar Well observed! But no, not due to the house. There are various different models of gate design and function. All the canals were originally built by different private companies, so thoughts differed about the best design for efficiency and water control.
