Things to see and do Oxford

As early as the 10th century, Salerno, Pavia, Bologna and Paris had schools of higher learning welcoming students from all over Europe. In England, on the other hand, illiteracy prevailed almost everywhere, including among the clergy. Hence the creation, in 1133, of a school of higher learning with the primary aim of training better-educated clerics. Oxford was a natural choice: the city was one of the most important in the kingdom, and great masters taught in churches or organized public readings before an audience of learned clerics. Oxford became a true university town when Henry II ordered English clerics to return from Paris. Christ Church is certainly the city's most famous and finest college. Its construction was ordered by King Henry VIII in 1546. Its ^17th-century dome jealously guards a bell called Great Tom, which strikes 101 times every evening to signal the closing of the college gates. In the main courtyard, nicknamed Tom Quad, you'll find the great hall and its famous staircase. Founded in 1525, the college chapel is also Oxford Cathedral, the smallest cathedral in England. It inspired Lewis Caroll, who taught there, to writeAlice in Wonderland, while the chapel's architecture influenced some of the fantastic settings in his famous novel. Several Harry Potter scenes were also filmed here.

A fascinating museum of anthropology and archaeology, this museum is right next to the Oxford Museum of Natural History and can be accessed through its entrance. It opened its doors in 1884, when General Pitt Rivers, an influential figure in the development of evolutionary archaeology and anthropology, decided to leave its collections to Oxford University. It is still possible to see objects from all regions of the world. It is also an educational and research institution. We love its typically Victorian atmosphere.

This great Norman fortress, partly in ruins, stands to the west of Oxford city center. The wooden fortifications on the motte castrale were replaced by stone in the ^11th century and, like many similar sites in England, the castle was largely destroyed during the English Civil War. In the ^18th century, what remained was converted into a prison. Today, guided tours take visitors into the bowels of the building to discover its varied and tormented history.

Magdalen College, on the banks of the river, is recognizable by its 15th century tower from which, every May ^1st at 6am, a choir begins a 17th century Eucharistic hymn, while the students meet down on the bridge after a night of festivities. It was founded in 1448. It is also the only college to have a deer park within it. A cruel legend has it that there are as many fallow deer in the park as there are teachers in the college. Every time a teacher leaves his post, a deer is killed. To be checked anyway....

As it flows through Oxford, the Thames River is known as the Isis River. Indeed, Thames comes from the Latin tamisis. Oxford's residents stroll along its banks, either by bike or on foot. Ideal for a picnic or simply to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city, watching the oars go by. Access via Park End, Magdalen Bridge or Abingdon Road off St Aldate's Street.

Founded in 1683, it was the first museum open to the public in England. Works of art and archaeology are displayed in a light and airy building. This unjustly overlooked museum presents a fantastic panorama of the history of human civilization, with its first-rate collections and contemporary museography. On the^3rd floor, there are several paintings by the masters of Impressionism and their followers. A collection of paintings by Walter Sickert and the Camden Town Group offers a contemporary vision of English painting.

Erected in the ^14th century, Carfax Tower is well worth a visit for the view it affords of the city from its 23-metre height. No building in Oxford is allowed to surpass it in height, making it an important landmark in the city. The tower is all that remains of St. Martin's Church, built in the ^12th century. The term "Carfax" means "crossroads" in English, as the tower is located near the site of Oxford's former main crossroads, which was a strategic focal point in the historic city.

The UK's largest university library contains more than 9 million books. Many personalities have studied within its walls: 5 kings, 40 Nobel Prize winners and 25 English Prime Ministers, and writers Oscar Wilde, C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. Sir Thomas Bodley built the first wing in 1602. To see, The Old Schools Quadrangle, square square at the entrance, The Divinity School, The Medieval Duke's Humfrey's Library, used for the films Harry Potter, The Radcliffe Camera, first rotunda library built in Britain.

Established in 1860, the museum was the center for scientific studies at Oxford University. The building itself is well worth a visit, with its Gothic style and superb entrance hall. The Earth Collections feature exhibits from the Palaeontological section, with 30,000 rocks and minerals and dinosaur skeletons. The Life Collections, meanwhile, are of great zoological interest, with no fewer than 250,000 specimens of stuffed animals of all kinds.

In 1765, General John Guise bequeathed his collection of early artists, more than 200 paintings and 2,000 drawings, to the University of Christ Church, his former college. Oxford can thus introduce art into its courses, thus avoiding students having to go as far as Italy. The collection was then enriched by other donations. Today it has 300 paintings and many paintings of Italian art from the 14th to the 18th century with artists such as Tintoretto and Veronese.

Founded in 1621, this botanical garden is the oldest "teaching garden" in the UK, located in the country's oldest university. Plants of medicinal and scientific value were studied here. The Rose Garden is dedicated to the researchers and discoverers of penicillin. Today, over 6,000 different plants are on display. A true oasis in the heart of Oxford. It also boasts 7 greenhouses housing plants from all over the world. The first was built over 300 years ago. Guided tours available.

At the intersection of 5 miles and Banbury Road is the small cemetery of Wolvercote, in the suburbs of Oxford, opened in 1894. This is where the tomb of the famous author of the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings is located. J.R.R. Tolkien (Beren) and his wife Edith (Luthien) lie under a modest grave. The author had returned to Oxford to live after his wife's death. A detour to make for Middle-earth fans wanting to pay tribute to him. It is also the only Oxford cemetery with a section dedicated to people of the Catholic faith.

Start by fortifying yourself at the legendary The Head of the River pub under Folly Bridge. On the terrace, you can watch the rowing competitions, the pub being the finish line. Then take the riverbank and follow the Isis River to the right. Iffley Lock, with its stone bridge and weeping willow, awaits you at the end of the road. The city now seems far away. Continue the walk to charming Iffley Village. En route, you'll come across the famous Isis Farmhouse, one of those "old-fashioned" pubs that are worth their weight in gold. When you reach the village, turn around and return to civilization along the left bank of the river, along Christ Church Meadows.

Located in a charming and quiet cobbled street, Merton College was founded in 1264 by Walter de Merton, former Chancellor of England and later Bishop of Rochester. It is one of Oxford's oldest and most important colleges with its medieval buildings and 13th century chapel overlooking nature and the Thames. J.R.R.R. Tolkien was a professor here. Sociologist Theodor Adorno and poet T.S. Eliot also went through Merton College. To discover, a chapel, superb gardens and the library, one of the oldest still in operation.

University College, Oxford, is steeped in history and renowned for its prestigious academic tradition. Founded in 1249, the college has witnessed many remarkable events and personalities over the centuries. The poet Shelley was expelled for atheism. Nevertheless, a statue is dedicated to him today, although a modest veil is drawn over the reason for his expulsion: a pamphlet entitled The Necessity of Atheism. Although the college dates back to 1249, the current buildings were mainly constructed in the ^17th century.