Bladon, in Oxfordshire, is 66 miles northwest of London, and 8 miles northwest of Oxford.  We include it here because Sir Winston Churchill and many members of his family are buried in the cemetary in St. Martin's Church in Bladon.  The church is off a main road, just across from an entrance to Blenheim Palace, the place were Churchill was born.  We went to Bladen to pay a call at the gravesite.

 

We had visited Blenheim on an earlier trip, and were duly impressed by the luxuriousness and spaciousness of this monument to wealth, power and influence.  By invidious comparison, Chartwell, Churchill's own dwelling is much more like a lived in, comfortable home, albeit a very expensive home.  This trip we went directly to the church.

 

Our campsite was close.  We walked out, turned right on a wide road, passing some very nice homes.  In the driveway of one of these was a very pretty aqua-colored Chevrolet, a '57, Ron thought.  Then we came upon an entrance to Blenheim and an inviting-looking pub on the right.  Immediately thereafter was a sign on a telephone pole pointing to the left up a street, to St. Martin's Church and the burial place of Sir Winston Churchill.

 

We entered the church grounds and found the Churchill family area between the entrance and the church.  There were the graves of Sir Winston and Clementine, his wife; his father, Lord Randolph Spencer Churchill ,son of the 7th Duke of Marlborough; Winston's American mother, Lady Jennie Randolph Churchill ;  another American, Consuelo Vanderbilt, wife of the Ninth Duke of Marlborough; Major Randolph Frederick Edward Spencer Churchill, Winston's son; Diana Spencer Churchill, and Sarah Churchill, his daughters; John Strange Spencer Churchill, Winston's brother; and Christopher Soames, the husband of Winston's third daughter, Mary.  Quite a family gathering.

 

Engraved on a bench opposite Churchill's tomb was an homage from the Danish resistance movement.

 

After a short visit with this illustrious family--we did all the talking-- we went on and entered the church.  In the back of the church was a memorial alcove containing photos of the Churchill family. 

 

There are photos of Bladon, the grave sites and the church on our photos page. More about the gravesites can be found on the web site of the Churchill Society. 

 

On the way back to the campground, we came across a poster (see photo) that declared that David Cameron, MP represents the Parliamentary constituancy of Witney.  Bladon is part of that constituency.  Cameron also is head of the Conservative Party, which Churchill also was for many years.  Clearly, that part of England is traditionally conservative.