Great Oakley, Northamptonshire
| Great Oakley | |
|---|---|
 Great Oakley Hall and St Michael's Church |
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 Great Oakley
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| Great Oakley shown within Northamptonshire | |
| Population | 2,248 (Ward. 2011) |
| OS grid reference | SP871857 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Corby |
| Postcode district | NN18 |
| Dialling code | 01536 |
| Police | Northamptonshire |
| Fire | Northamptonshire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| EU Parliament | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Great Oakley is a small village situated approximately two miles from Corby and five miles from Kettering. It is represented on Corby Borough Council by one councillor. The population of the Great Oakley Ward of Corby Borough Council at the 2011 Census was 2,248.
Great (and Little) Oakley lie in the upper reaches of the Harpers Brook on a narrow strip of limestone, sandstone and clay where the valley has cut down through the extensive boulder clay capped plateau. This permeable geology presumably provided a narrow strip of open pasture, the oak ley, along the valley within a broad tract of woodland on the boulder clay either side. The townships extended across the boulder clay to tributaries of the Harpers Brook on the south and of the Willow Brook on the north west, where it abutted extensive woodland which lay in the forest.
In 1086 there was one manor of Great Oakley held by Launcelin and in the 12th century this was held of the Honour of Huntingdon by de Houton. During the medieval period the main manor can be traced via various families, including the de Lyons in the 14th century. The manor was later divided but brought back together after 1495 by the Brooke family and much of Great Oakley has been in the ownership of the Brooke family, including the De Capell Brooke baronets, since then. The present lord of the manor is Hugh de Capell Brooke, who lives with his family in Great Oakley Hall, which was extensively renovated in the 1960s.
The earliest enclosure recorded in Oakley is in 1505-6 when the Abbot of Pipewell enclosed 26 acres called Oldfald feld and expelled five people.
In 1647 a dispute occurred with William Brighunt, keeper of the forest, for trespass by Thomas Brooke by taking conies from the common at Snatchall and collecting tithe wool from lambs that Brighunt had there. Thomas also took wood for his own use during 1625-1695. At the enclosure of the Rockingham Bailiwick in 1833, Great Oakley was considered to be part of Rockingham Forest.
The South Fields were enclosed privately in 1786. A notebook contains great detail of the items to consider and ‘errors to avoid’; it lists the number of yardlands and beast commons, describes fencing and other costs, discussed what the tenants required, took advice from nearby parishes that had been recently enclosed (e. g. Brixworth), as well as giving retrospective information about cropping in the old enclosures and noting that conditions of tenancy had been to supply coal to the Hall.
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Wikipedia