In Stoke Row walk eastwards, past the village stores. Turn left into Coxs Lane and stay on it for about a mile (1.6km). It curves to the left, then dwindles to a track. Where the track swings right, keep straight on. The track narrows to a path, running between trees and hedgerows. Eventually you reach the outbuildings of (and unsightly debris surrounding) Hundridge Farm. Join a track running through the woodland and make for the road.
Turn right along the road for 40yds (36m), then swing right at the footpath sign into the wood. Follow the path between trees and cross a drive. Make for a stile ahead and then go diagonally right in the field, using the waymark posts to guide you. Look for a stile in the corner and cross a lane to a further stile on the opposite side. Head diagonally right in the field and look for a stile by a hard tennis court. Pass alongside a beech hedge on your left to a drive and turn left. As the drive sweeps left to a house, go forward over a cattle grid to a field. Continue with the boundary on your left and, on reaching the corner, go straight on along a track.
Turn right at English Farm and follow a sign towards Witheridge Hill, along the narrow track known as English Lane. Stay on this, later in trees, for 0.75 miles (1.2km). When you strike tarmac keep the same line. Pass a timber-framed cottage on the left-hand side and a house on the right called Forrigan. Keep ahead for about 100yds (91m) and swing right at a sign for Stoke Row.
Cross a stile and cut through the wood. Emerge from the woodland at a gate and cross a pasture to more woodland. Go through another gate and, now in thin woodland, turn left, gently uphill through a gate, and cross one field. Strike the narrow lane via the car park for The Crooked Billet. Turn right for 0.25 miles (400m) to reach the crossroads in the centre of Stoke Row. Turn right and return to the start.
It is unusual, to say the least, and not what you would expect to find in an English village. Enclosed by an exotic cupola, the Maharajah’s Well might be a familiar landmark in Stoke Row but first-time visitors gaze curiously at this spectacle, unsure at first if they can believe what they are... seeing. The well was given to the village by the Maharajah of Benares in 1863 as a gift. But where, you might ask, is the connection with Stoke Row? It was on a Benares hillside, around the middle of the 19th century, that the Indian ruler met Edward Anderdon Reade, who was soon to become Lieutenant-Governor of the North West Provinces of India. The Maharajah indicated his plans to overcome the acute water shortage in the area and Anderdon Reade responded by pointing out that it was a familiar problem at home in the Chilterns where his father ran an estate. In villages like Stoke Row, he told the Maharajah, local people relied on rainwater for their cooking, and so precious was it that it was often passed from one cooking pot to the next. Neighbours shared what water they could collect and children were often punished for drinking it to quench their thirst. Pond water was used for washing and when that ran out, wash day was postponed, sometimes indefinitely During the Indian Mutiny, Edward Anderdon Reade offered help and support to the Maharajah of Benares, who had not forgotten Stoke Row and the ongoing problem of its water supply. To express his gratitude for the Lieutenant-Governor’s solidarity at a difficult time, and as a token of friendship, the Maharajah presented the village with a charitable gift. The local Commissioners chose a suitable site in Stoke Row and the Maharajah duly approved it, recommending that construction work should commence on the wedding day of the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. The date was 10 March 1863. Building began with the sinking of a 4ft- (1.2m) wide well to a depth of 368ft (112m), more than twice the height of Nelson’s Column. All the work was done by hand. The well was officially opened 14 months later on 24 May 1864 – Queen Victoria’s birthday. A condition of the gift was ‘that the public should have the privilege of taking water free of charge in all time to come.’ The beneficent Maharajah did not forget the village and donated other gifts. For example, to mark the wedding of Princess Louise he created a new footpath leading to the well and also gave £200 so that the villagers could host thanksgiving celebrations. In 1906 mains water was piped to Stoke Row and in 1927 a second pipeline brought water from Nettlebed.
Located at the heart of England, Oxfordshire enjoys a rich heritage and varied scenery, with Oxford’s elegant streets a highlight for visitors. The landscape encompasses open chalk downland, picturesque rivers and attractive villages, while northwest of Oxfordshire is home to the sleepy backwaters of Abingdon, Wallingford, Wantage, Watlington and Witney that reveal how Oxfordshire’s old towns evolved over the centuries.
In Stoke Row walk eastwards, past the village stores. Turn left into Coxs Lane and stay on it for about a mile (1.6km). It curves to the left, then dwindles to a track. Where the track swings right, keep straight on. The track narrows to a path, running between trees and hedgerows. Eventually you reach the outbuildings of (and unsightly debris surrounding) Hundridge Farm. Join a track running through the woodland and make for the road.
1 of 4
Turn right along the road for 40yds (36m), then swing right at the footpath sign into the wood. Follow the path between trees and cross a drive. Make for a stile ahead and then go diagonally right in the field, using the waymark posts to guide you. Look for a stile in the corner and cross a lane to a further stile on the opposite side. Head diagonally right in the field and look for a stile by a hard tennis court. Pass alongside a beech hedge on your left to a drive and turn left. As the drive sweeps left to a house, go forward over a cattle grid to a field. Continue with the boundary on your left and, on reaching the corner, go straight on along a track.
2 of 4
Turn right at English Farm and follow a sign towards Witheridge Hill, along the narrow track known as English Lane. Stay on this, later in trees, for 0.75 miles (1.2km). When you strike tarmac keep the same line. Pass a timber-framed cottage on the left-hand side and a house on the right called Forrigan. Keep ahead for about 100yds (91m) and swing right at a sign for Stoke Row.
3 of 4
Cross a stile and cut through the wood. Emerge from the woodland at a gate and cross a pasture to more woodland. Go through another gate and, now in thin woodland, turn left, gently uphill through a gate, and cross one field. Strike the narrow lane via the car park for The Crooked Billet. Turn right for 0.25 miles (400m) to reach the crossroads in the centre of Stoke Row. Turn right and return to the start.
It is unusual, to say the least, and not what you would expect to find in an English village. Enclosed by an exotic cupola, the Maharajah’s Well might be a familiar landmark in Stoke Row but first-time visitors gaze curiously at this spectacle, unsure at first if they can believe what they are... seeing. The well was given to the village by the Maharajah of Benares in 1863 as a gift. But where, you might ask, is the connection with Stoke Row? It was on a Benares hillside, around the middle of the 19th century, that the Indian ruler met Edward Anderdon Reade, who was soon to become Lieutenant-Governor of the North West Provinces of India. The Maharajah indicated his plans to overcome the acute water shortage in the area and Anderdon Reade responded by pointing out that it was a familiar problem at home in the Chilterns where his father ran an estate. In villages like Stoke Row, he told the Maharajah, local people relied on rainwater for their cooking, and so precious was it that it was often passed from one cooking pot to the next. Neighbours shared what water they could collect and children were often punished for drinking it to quench their thirst. Pond water was used for washing and when that ran out, wash day was postponed, sometimes indefinitely During the Indian Mutiny, Edward Anderdon Reade offered help and support to the Maharajah of Benares, who had not forgotten Stoke Row and the ongoing problem of its water supply. To express his gratitude for the Lieutenant-Governor’s solidarity at a difficult time, and as a token of friendship, the Maharajah presented the village with a charitable gift. The local Commissioners chose a suitable site in Stoke Row and the Maharajah duly approved it, recommending that construction work should commence on the wedding day of the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. The date was 10 March 1863. Building began with the sinking of a 4ft- (1.2m) wide well to a depth of 368ft (112m), more than twice the height of Nelson’s Column. All the work was done by hand. The well was officially opened 14 months later on 24 May 1864 – Queen Victoria’s birthday. A condition of the gift was ‘that the public should have the privilege of taking water free of charge in all time to come.’ The beneficent Maharajah did not forget the village and donated other gifts. For example, to mark the wedding of Princess Louise he created a new footpath leading to the well and also gave £200 so that the villagers could host thanksgiving celebrations. In 1906 mains water was piped to Stoke Row and in 1927 a second pipeline brought water from Nettlebed.
Located at the heart of England, Oxfordshire enjoys a rich heritage and varied scenery, with Oxford’s elegant streets a highlight for visitors. The landscape encompasses open chalk downland, picturesque rivers and attractive villages, while northwest of Oxfordshire is home to the sleepy backwaters of Abingdon, Wallingford, Wantage, Watlington and Witney that reveal how Oxfordshire’s old towns evolved over the centuries.
