OXFORD & BLENHEIM

Oxford

Oxford, the City of Dreaming Spires, is famous the world over for its University and place in history.

For over 800 years, it has been home to royalty and scholars. Most of the colleges and university buildings are located in the city centre, within easy walking distance of each other.

The university also owns the Bodleian Library and the Ashmolean Museum of Art & Architecture, the oldest public museum in Britain, whose collection dates from the 1620s.

Blenheim Palace

Built as a gift from Queen Anne to John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, to celebrate his victory over the French at the Battle of Blenheim in 1704, the Palace is one of the largest houses in England and a masterpiece of 18th century Baroque architecture.

In the 1760s, Lancelot “Capability” Brown was commissioned to re-landscape more than 2000 acres of surrounding parkland. The birthplace, in November 1874, of Sir John’s descendant, Winston Churchill, the Palace is now home to the 11th Duke of Marlborough.

The 50th anniversary of Sir Winston’s death in 2015 was marked with a reinvigorated permanent exhibition, the opening of a memorial garden and an opportunity to “Walk in Churchill’s Footsteps”, with a new trail enabling visitors to experience more of his life at the Palace.