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Poplar Walk

1872 establishments in EnglandChrist Church Meadow, OxfordFootpaths in OxfordOxfordshire geography stubsPopulus
Use British English from June 2017
Christ Church College, Oxford geograph.org.uk 1615124
Christ Church College, Oxford geograph.org.uk 1615124

Poplar Walk is wide footpath running north–south in Christ Church Meadow, Oxford, England.The footpath runs between The Meadow Building of Christ Church at the junction with Broad Walk to the north and the River Thames near Folly Bridge to the south. At this point, the river is known as "The Isis" and is the location of the end of rowing races for Oxford University events such as Eights Week in the summer and Torpids in the spring. There used to be ornate wooden barges on the river here to house rowing facilities and for viewing races. Now the barges are gone and there are boathouses instead a little further down the river near the junction with the River Cherwell. Poplar Walk is still used as a route to and from the boathouses. There are good rural views to the east across Christ Church Meadow, even though Poplar Walk is quite centrally located in Oxford. Poplar Walk was laid out in 1872 and lined with poplar trees by Henry Liddell, Dean of Christ Church and the father of Alice Liddell of Alice in Wonderland fame.Postwar development planned for central Oxford included a relief road passing through the northern part of Christ Church Meadow and joining the district of St Ebbe's. It would have cut off the northern end of Poplar Walk. The proposal was defeated after strong opposition.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Poplar Walk (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Poplar Walk
St Aldate's, Oxford City Centre

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N 51.747694444444 ° E -1.2543055555556 °
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Christ Church Meadow

St Aldate's
OX1 1LY Oxford, City Centre
England, United Kingdom
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Christ Church College, Oxford geograph.org.uk 1615124
Christ Church College, Oxford geograph.org.uk 1615124
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Christ Church Meadow, Oxford
Christ Church Meadow, Oxford

Christ Church Meadow is a flood-meadow and popular walking and picnic spot in Oxford, England.Roughly triangular in shape, it is bounded by the River Thames (the stretch through Oxford being known as "The Isis"), the River Cherwell, and Christ Church. The meadow provides access to many of the college boathouses, which are on an island at the confluence of the two rivers. The lower sections of the meadow, close to the Thames, are grazed by cattle (including Longhorn cows) while the upper sections have sports fields. Broad Walk is at the northern edge with Merton Field to the north and Merton College, dominated by the tower of Merton College Chapel, beyond that. Christ Church Meadow is owned by Christ Church, and is thus the private property of the college; however, access is allowed during the day. Access starts very early to allow rowers to go to the boathouses. Eights Week and Torpids, Oxford University's two main rowing events, and Christ Church Regatta are held on the Thames here. In past times, ornamental wooden barges were moored on the river here to store boats and house spectators. However, these have all now been replaced by boathouses. The meadow can be accessed from St Aldate's to the northwest via Broad Walk through the Christ Church War Memorial Garden, from the north in Merton Street via Grove Walk and Merton Walk, and from the eastern end of the High Street via Rose Lane near the Oxford Botanic Garden to the northeast. There is also less-used access from near the Head of the River public house by Folly Bridge on the River Thames to the southwest, connecting to Poplar Walk (created by Henry Liddell in 1872) and the path by the river. All entrances are via railinged gates that are locked at night. James Sadler made the first ascent in a balloon by an Englishman from the Meadow on 4 October 1784. The balloon rose to a height of around 3,600 feet and landed six miles away near the village of Wood Eaton near Islip to the northeast of Oxford. A plaque notes the event. The Meadow was also the location where the medieval royal pretender John Deydras claimed to have been persuaded by the devil to impersonate Edward II in 1318.Postwar development planned for central Oxford included a relief road passing through the meadow and joining the district of St Ebbe's. The proposal was finally defeated in 1971 after vigorous opposition.

Broad Walk
Broad Walk

Broad Walk is a wide walkway running east–west on the north side of Christ Church Meadow and south of Merton Field in central Oxford, England.The walkway runs between St Aldate's though the Christ Church War Memorial Garden at the western end and the River Cherwell to the east at the southern end of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden. To the north at the western end is Christ Church, one of the Oxford colleges. The tower of Merton College Chapel dominates the view north from Broad Walk across Merton Field, beyond Dead Man's Walk and the old city wall which run parallel to Broad Walk, connected via Merton Walk. Broad Walk used to be lined with large elm trees, but has been denuded due to Dutch elm disease.The Meadow Building of Christ Church, in an imposing stone-faced Venetian Gothic style, is immediately to the north of Broad Walk. Opposite to the south, the tree-lined Poplar Walk, laid out in 1872 by Henry Liddell, Dean of Christ Church, leads down to the River Thames. Views of some of the spires and towers of Oxford include (west to east) Tom Tower, the spire of Christ Church Cathedral, Merton College Chapel Tower, and Magdalen Tower. The first hot air balloon ascent in Britain was made by James Sadler (1753–1828) from Merton Field on 4 October 1783, to the north of Broad Walk.Postwar development planned for central Oxford included a relief road passing through the Christ Church Meadow along the route of Broad Walk and joining the district of St Ebbe's. The proposal was defeated after strong opposition.

Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church (Latin: Ædes Christi, the temple or house, ædēs, of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniquely a joint foundation of the university and the cathedral of the Oxford diocese, Christ Church Cathedral, which also serves as the college chapel and whose dean is ex officio the college head. As of 2022, Christ Church had the largest financial endowment of any Oxford college at £770 million. As of 2022, the college had 661 students. Its grounds contain a number of architecturally significant buildings including Tom Tower (designed by Sir Christopher Wren), Tom Quad (the largest quadrangle in Oxford), and the Great Dining Hall, which was the seat of the parliament assembled by King Charles I during the English Civil War. The buildings have inspired replicas throughout the world in addition to being featured in films such as Harry Potter and The Golden Compass, helping Christ Church become the most popular Oxford college for tourists with almost half a million visitors annually. The college's alumni include 13 British prime ministers out of the 30 educated at Oxford (the highest number of any college at Oxford or Cambridge), as well as former prime ministers of Pakistan and Ceylon. Other notable alumni include King Edward VII, King William II of the Netherlands, the founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn, seventeen archbishops, writers Lewis Carroll (author of Alice in Wonderland) and W. H. Auden, philosopher John Locke, and scientist Robert Hooke. Albert Einstein was also associated with the college. The college has several cities and places named after it.