Oakham and Horshoes

By Simon Haughtone

Oakham resides to the west of one of the largest man-made European lakes, Rutland Water. The town is on an incline and is in the Vale of Catnose. Oakham is part of Rutland. Oakham is the headquarters of the unitary Rutland County Council District Council.

The main tourist attractions are Oakham Castle and All Saints Church. It is possible to see the spire of All Saints Church from several miles away. The tower was built in the decorated gothic style in the 14th century. The majority of the rest of the exterior was designed in the perpendicular gothic style. The oldest part of the church is the south doorway which

dates bake to the early 13th century. The columns inside are beautifully decorated with animals, figures, birds, foliage and various scenes from the Bible.

The only part of Oakham castle that is still standing is the great hall. Surrounding the great hall is the inner bailey used for defense. The hall was constructed between 1180 and 1190. Much of the architecture is Romanesque. The hall was used as the Assize court until 1970. It is licensed for weddings and is occasionally used as the Crown court and Coroner's court. The outer bailey, currently called Cutts Close is a park with bandstand.

It was tradition when royalty passed through Oakham to leave a horseshoe as a forfeit. Royalty left horseshoes in Oakham for over 500 years. Today when royalty visits they present a commemorative horseshoe, over 200 hang n the wall in the great hall. The oldest horseshoe on the wall is from King Edward IV in 1470. The horseshoes are hung upside down to stop the Devil from sitting in the hollow.

Oakham is easily accessible as it has a railway station that has trains traveling to Birmingham, Leicester, Peterborough and Stansted Airport. It is also possible to reach Stamford, Corby, Uppingham, Melton Mowbray, Nottingham and Leicester by motorway.

Look for hotels in Oakham.