Over the hills to glory: the story of the Ascott Martyrs - Carol Anderson

Why did an exchange at the gate into a bean field in May 1873, between two young farm labourers from Ramsden and a group of women from the village of Ascott-under-Wychwood, lead to the women’s imprisonment with hard labour in Oxford Gaol, provoke a riot in Chipping Norton and result in questions being asked in Parliament?

This talk will explore the story of the Martyrs and the impact the incident had on the lives of the agricultural labourer and his family in the later 19th century.

Carol Anderson, Ascott resident and Chair of the Ascott Martyrs Educational Trust has spent most of her working life in museums, much of it as Director of the Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock and the County's Museums Officer. She has always been interested in local history and archaeology and was delighted to be asked to join the Trust to help to bring the story of the Ascott women to a wider audience.