Life Lines: Naomi Warren Art Project Part of our commemorations of the 80th anniversary on 15 April 2025, Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum are inviting artists to participate in a three-part series of artist workshops to engage with the story of Jewish survivor Naomi Warren and the liberation of Bergen-Belsen, and create artwork in response to four themes: witnessing, kindness, vision and positivity. Artists will be encouraged to create artwork and/or…
Remembering the crew of AD714 A little over 82 years ago, at 6 minutes past midnight on 7 November 1942, an RAF Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bomber, serial number AD714, crashed at Ferryman’s Farm, in the small village of Northmoor, near Witney, following a night training exercise. Three of the five-man crew were killed and two injured. The men who died were the pilot, Sergeant Alfred Taney, navigator Sergeant Leonard Spratt…
Johnny Granville joined the 2nd Battalion of the Regiment as a Second Lieutenant in August 1936, when the Battalion was in India. He quickly made his mark as an instructor and as a polo player in the regimental team, as well as a fine shot. Posted home early in 1940 he was appointed Adjutant of 7th. Battalion of the Regiment as it was formed in Aldershot. As the Battalion expanded…
Oxfordshire’s D-Day Stories 2024 marks the 80th anniversary of D-Day. It is an opportunity to restate and refresh some of the compelling stories of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, and the Pegasus Bridge operation in particular. But there will also be many other less dramatic stories of how the county was involved in the run-up to D-Day which we are keen to bring to light, and which may…
The Man Behind the Medals In this blog series, SOFO Museum’s Research volunteers look at the stories behind some of the medal sets in the museum’s collection, from those that can be seen on a visit in our dedicated Medals display, to some of those that are still tucked away in the archive. While medals will tell you a little bit about a soldier’s service, it’s only with further research…
New Oxfordshire Gallantry Board to commemorate the county’s military and civilian heroes On 22 October 2023 we open a brand new permanent display to celebrate some of the county’s most remarkable heroes – the 31 men who have been awarded the Victoria Cross, the George Cross, or the Edward and Albert medals that preceded its institution. We always aim to excite the curiosity of visitors through the diverse…
The Man Behind the Medals In this blog series, SOFO Museum’s Research volunteers look at the stories behind some of the medal sets in the museum’s collection, from those that can be seen on a visit in our dedicated Medals display, to some of those that are still tucked away in the archive. While medals will tell you a little bit about a soldier’s service, it’s only with further research…
Contemporary Collecting Campaign – The Soldiers’ Story Can you help? We are always looking for the stories and objects that reflect the military life of the county. Today, it is especially important as we are creating a picture of what modern soldiering is about for a new exhibition ‘pod’ at the museum. We would like to collect any items of kit, personal stories; even blogs or videos. Anything that shows…
Their Finest Hour Second World War Digital Collections Day at Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum Join us at SOFO Museum to share your Second World War stories, photos and items on the 1st April 2023 – we’ll record your stories and photograph your objects to add to the Their Finest Hour online archive. The museum will open to visitors free of charge throughout the day and will be hosting a range of…
A Brief History of Cowley Barracks Cowley Barracks was the spiritual home of the Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and its antecedent regiments from 1876. Under the Localisation Scheme introduced in 1873, the British Isles were divided into sixty-six Sub- districts. For recruiting and recruit training purposes, two regular infantry battalions were allocated to each Sub-district, where a ‘brigade depot’ was established to house their depot companies. Previously, the depot…
