Local Democracy in the Eighteenth Century

Yesterday afternoon, I had the great pleasure of joining members of the Oxfordshire Record Society for their Annual General Meeting and lecture, held in the Officers’ Mess at RAF Benson. As one of the Society’s Vice Presidents, it was a real joy to be among people who share my fascination with local history — those everyday stories that help us understand how communities once worked, and how so much of what we take for granted today has deep roots in centuries past.

The focus of this year’s lecture was the Society’s 78th publication, Bampton Vestry Minutes 1730–1858 — a meticulous transcription and commentary on the records of local government in one of Oxfordshire’s most historically rich parishes.

For those unfamiliar with the term, vestry government was the system of local administration that existed before the creation of parish councils. The vestry — so called because it met in the church vestry room — was made up of local ratepayers who gathered to make decisions on everything from road maintenance and poor relief to the appointment of parish officers. It was local democracy in its earliest, most direct form: practical, personal, and often hotly debated.

The Bampton Vestry Minutes bring this world vividly to life. Page after page reveals the trials and tribulations of local decision-making in a rural community: who should repair a broken bridge, how to support widows or orphaned children, and how to keep roads passable in winter. They remind us that governance, even at its most local, has always required patience, compromise, and care for one’s neighbours.

It was a fascinating afternoon — and a reminder that our shared civic life, with all its complexities, is nothing new. Oxfordshire’s long history of community governance continues to inspire me in my year as High Sheriff, as we explore how we can still hear the young unheard in the conversations shaping our county’s future.

👉 Learn more about the Oxfordshire Record Society and their publications: https://oxfordshire-record-society.org.uk