The shire of Oxford and the upper Thames: the royal palace of Woodstock and the forest of Wychwood, Oxford with its castle and its schools, the bishop of Lincoln's castle-town of Banbury in the north, and the Cotswold edge in the west.
Gilbert Basset, a local baron, has probably just taken over the county from Hugh de Neville, the chief forester. The leading lay families are the d'Oillys of Hook Norton, patrons of Oseney Abbey; the Bassets of Bicester and Headington; and the honour of Saint-Valery around Beckley, held by Thomas de Saint-Valery, a lord of Ponthieu.
Who holds it
- Name
- Gilbert Basset
- Title
- Sheriff of Oxfordshire
- Since
- Michaelmas 1199 if the list's 1200 entry is the Exchequer year 1199-1200
- Born
- Not pinned
- Family
- Gilbert Basset (died 1205), lord of Bicester and founder of Bicester Priory, brother of Thomas Basset of Headington. Hugh de Neville, his predecessor (1197-99), is the king's chief forester.
- Confidence
- medium
The list of sheriffs gives Hugh de Neville for 1196-1199 (his own biography agrees) and Gilbert Basset for 1200 to the first half of 1201, which in the regnal-year reckoning is the Exchequer year from Michaelmas 1199. So Basset is most likely sheriff on 1 January 1200; the day of the handover is not pinned.
Overlord
King John
What it holds
- The shire farm and courts
- Custody of Oxford castle with the county gaol (normally the sheriff's)
How it was acquired
Shire of the old kingdom; sheriff appointed by the king.
Allies and rivals
The bishop of Lincoln (Banbury, Dorchester, Thame) and the abbeys of Oseney and Eynsham hold much of the shire.
How things stand that morning
Under the sheriff. Across the borders: Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and Buckinghamshire to the north and east (Midlands researcher), Gloucestershire to the west, Berkshire across the Thames to the south.
Wealth
Wool, the Thames and Cherwell trade, Oxford's cloth and the schools. No figures.
Military
Oxford castle; Woodstock is a palace, not a fortress.
Threats
- Forest grievances in Wychwood and Shotover
Sheriff in 1200
- Name
- Gilbert Basset
- How
- Sheriff
- Since
- 1199-1200, exact day not pinned
Hundreds
Bampton, Banbury, Binfield, Bloxham, Bullingdon, Chadlington, Dorchester, Ewelme, Langtree, Lewknor, Pirton, Ploughley, Thame and Wootton.
Forests
Wychwood, Shotover and Stowood; the edge of Bernwood on the Buckinghamshire border.
Castles
Oxford (royal); Banbury (bishop of Lincoln); Deddington and Middleton Stoney (baronial).
Places of note
- Oxford castle: Royal castle
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The sheriff change of 1199-1200 is not pinned to a day.
On the map: Traced at a coarse scale; Stokenchurch and the small detached parishes are roughly followed.
Primary sources for England
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
- Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
- Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
- English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
- Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
- Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online
22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.