Oxford city walls

Oxford city walls are the remains of a defensive wall which encircled the medieval town of Oxford, England. Constructed from 1226 the walls enclose an area of some 120 acres (50 ha) with a circumference of approximately 2 miles (3 km). Built in stone, the curtain walls were castellated and pierced with over twenty-five bastions. The walls were a development of an earlier defensive system begun under the Saxons in response to Viking incursions in the 9th and 10th centuries. They featured a relatively rare example of concentric walling which may derive from near Eastern or north Wallian examples. During the English Civil War the walls were supplemented by an array of earthen field defences. The remnants of the walls are a scheduled monument and incorporate some twenty-seven Grade I listed structures.