Ardington - Country Estate

This delightful walk makes for a village that was once a centre for cloth.

Distance 5.5 miles (8.8km)

Minimum time 1hr 45min

Ascent/gradient 164ft (50m)

Level of difficulty Easy

Paths Bridleways, field paths and quiet roads, 3 stiles

Landscape Open landscape at foot of downs and Ridgeway

Suggested map aqua3 OS Explorer 170 Abingdon, Wantage

Start/finish SU 431884

Dog friendliness On lead in villages, under control between

Parking Free car park at Loyd-Lindsay Rooms in Ardington

Public toilets None on route

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Description

The village of Ardington, with neighbouring Lockinge, forms part of a large self-contained country estate established in the 19th century by landowner Robert Loyd-Lindsay. He fought in the Crimea, was one of the recipients of the Victoria Cross and later became Baron Wantage. Loyd-Lindsay resigned from the army to farm the Lockinge Estate, a wedding present from his father-in-law, a wealthy banker.

Directions

1 From the car park turn right and pass the shop and tea room. Turn right just beyond them into Church Street and, when the road curves right, turn left at the 'no horses and ponies' sign. Pass through a brick arch and follow the path to the road opposite a timber-framed cottage. Turn right, pass a turning on the left and keep left at the next intersection of tracks.

2 Note the 'farm vehicles only' sign. Pass the buildings of Red Barn and, when the farm track bends right, go straight on along a grassy path between fields and through trees to reach a stile, crossing Ginge Brook. Pass West Hendred church and cross the road to a stile and a sign for East Hendred. Cross the field, keeping the fence and trees on the right-hand side, to the next stile and cross a track, following the bridleway between fences towards East Hendred.

3 n reaching the outskirts of the village, pass between houses and bungalows and follow Horn Lane down to the junction. To visit the village centre and the church, turn left. To continue the walk, turn right. Pass St Mary's Road and a house called Monks Orchard on the left. Monks Farm House lies on the right. Go up the slope between trees, pass a turning to Hendred Farm on the left, and then turn right immediately beyond a belt of woodland. Follow the byway in a straight line alongside the trees and, once clear of them, keep ahead between fields.

4 Cross a road and continue on the next section of byway, following the edge of the field down to Ginge Brook. Cross the brook to a track and keep ahead between fields. On reaching the road on a bend, go forward and then round to the right, towards Ardington House. Cross the Ardington Brook, pass the church and turn immediately right. The entrance to Holy Trinity Church is on your right-hand side, just before you get to the Boar's Head. Pass the entrance to Ardington House on the right and make for the junction. Turn left and return to the car park.

Useful information

Where to eat and drink

Try Cobwebs Tearoom at Ardington for light refreshments. The 400-year-old Boar's Head has a reputation for good food. The Wheatsheaf at East Hendred is one of several pubs in the village.

While you're there

Take a walk through East Hendred. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the village was closely associated with cloth-making and a fair took place annually along the Golden Mile, stretching as far as the Ridgeway. Many of the timber-built houses and thatched cottages in East Hendred date from that period.

What to look for

Ginge Brook helped the villages of East and West Hendred achieve prosperity. It powered watermills, not only to grind corn, but also to work fulling mills for beating and fulling the cloth that was manufactured in this area. The brook was also used in the process of soaking flax to make the fibres soft enough to spin.

Background to the walk

During the next few years, Loyd-Lindsay rebuilt Ardington and Lockinge as model villages, formed a co-operative selling good-quality food, and became one of this area's great agricultural pioneers, creating an enterprising business. A Daily News reporter wrote of the estate: 'It is a little self-contained world in which nobody is idle, nobody is in absolute want, in which there is no hunger or squalor.'

In 1944 the 18,000-acre (7,290ha) estate passed to Christopher Loyd, son of Lady Wantage's cousin. To help clear death and estate duties amounting to £500,000, Loyd ordered the Wantage's old home, in whose gardens 50 men once worked, to be demolished. He also sold 8,000 acres (3,240ha), a number of cottages and many art treasures, and moved to a smaller house near by.

However, not all has been lost. The social, economic and political climate may have changed since Baron Wantage's day, but there have been determined efforts in recent years to try and ensure that the estate continues to survive. Many of the old farm outbuildings have been converted into craft shops, workshops, offices, a picture gallery and a pottery, helping to boost the local economy, raise the village's profile and provide much-needed employment for local people.

Next door to Ardington, Lockinge has been a venue for point-to-point meetings for 50 years. Nationally, Lockinge is one of the few courses where the original turf remains, giving perfect, fast-draining going. The undulating landscape is ideal too, providing spectators with a natural amphitheatre. Many famous names in the world of racing are associated with Lockinge. The late Princess Margaret and Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother attended the Easter Monday meeting in 1957, watching their horse Gipsy Love finish second in the Open race.

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