Oxford

Oxford, city in the south of England, on the River Thames. The city is the home of the University of Oxford, one of the oldest and best-known universities in the world. Oxford is also an industrial centre, manufacturing cars and steel products.

The heart of the city is Carfax, and from here the four main streets run to the north, south, east and west. This was also the center of the medieval city. Among the city?s many important buildings are the churches of St. Michael (11th century) and St. Mary the Virgin (13th century); the Bodleian Library; and the Sheldonian Theatre (1664-1669), designed by Sir Christopher Wren. Also here are the Museum of Modern Art (1965) and the Ashmolean Museum (1683), containing the university outstanding collections of art and archeology.

By the 13th century, with the establishment of the university, Oxford became one of the most important educational centers in Europe. Charles I had Oxford as his capital from 1642 to 1645, during the English Civil War. Population 109,000