Goring-on-Thames (or Goring) is a village and
civil parish on the
River Thames in
South Oxfordshire, England. Situated on the county border with
Berkshire, it is 6 mi (10 km) south of
Wallingford and 8 mi (13 km) north-west of
Reading. It had a population of 3,187 in the
2011 census and was estimated to have increased to 3,335 by 2019.[2]
The village church is dedicated to St
Thomas Becket with a nave that was built within 50 years of the saint's death, in the early 13th century, along with a later bell tower. Goring faces the smaller
Streatley across the Thames; the two are linked by
Goring and Streatley Bridge.
Geography
Goring (right), at the end of the nineteenth century
The local bus service between Goring and Wallingford is run by a Goring-based
community interest company, Going Forward Buses, which was established in December 2016.[4]
Early history
The name Goring first appears in the
Domesday Book of 1086 as Garinges, then as Garingies in a charter once held in the
British Museum. It translates as "Gara's people".[5]
The Anglican Churches of Goring, Streatley and South Stoke form a united
benefice.[10] A
priory of
Augustinian nuns was built late in the 12th century with its own priory church adjoining St Thomas's.[6] This survived until demolished with the early 16th-century
Dissolution of the Monasteries.[11] The foundations of the priory church,
cloister, dormitory,
vestry,
chapter house and parlour were excavated in 1892.[9]
Goring Free Church belongs to the
Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion. The congregation was founded in 1788 and its first
chapel built in 1793.[12] At its centenary in 1893, a new church building was added[9] and the original chapel converted into a church hall.[12] It holds two Sunday services.[13]
The
Catholic Church of
Our Lady and St
John the Apostle was designed by the architect William Ravenscroft and built in 1898.[9] It now forms a single parish with the Roman Catholic Church of Christ the King in
Woodcote.[14]
Amenities
Flint House, on a hill, is a large flint cobblestone house in a Tudor style converted partly to offices. It is used by police forces nationally as a rehabilitation centre.[15]
On 10 July 2009, Goring was named
Oxfordshire's Village of the Year, ahead of 11 other villages and succeeding
Woodcote.[22] The £1000 prize was put towards the village's hydro-electric project to generate electricity from the River
Thames.[23] The competition considered the depth of infrastructure and activity in the village and at Goring's £1 million
hydro-electric plans.
Calor success
Goring-on-Thames was the winner in the Sustainability and Communications category and the Overall Regional Winner of the 2011
Calor Village of the Year regional heat for South England.[24]
In the summer of 1893,
Oscar Wilde stayed at Ferry House in Goring with
Lord Alfred Douglas. While there, Wilde began writing his play An Ideal Husband, which includes a main character named Lord Goring.
An enlarged Ferry Cottage became the retirement home of
Sir Arthur Harris, wartime leader of
RAF Bomber Command, from 1953 until his death in 1984.[25] He was buried in Burntwood Cemetery in Goring.[26]
In order of birth:
Sir John Soane (1753–1837), architect, was born in Goring.
Thomas Rome (1838–1916), Australian politician, died in Goring.
Digby Willoughby (1845–1901), military mercenary, died in Goring.
Aubrey Strahan (1852–1928), geologist, retired to Goring.
George Michael (1963–2016), musician, vocalist and producer.[28] Michael lived at Mill Cottage close to the river in his later years. He was found dead there at the age of 53 in the early hours of 25 December 2016.[29]