Ratley has traces of a manor recorded as belonging to Ordric
the Saxon before 1066.
The parish now includes the hamlet of Edge Hill and Upton,
with the National Trust property of Upton House, and is
a small friendly village with a Post Office and pub, often
frequented by walkers.
There is a large well-equipped village hall and a recreation
area.
The village church, close to the Rose and Crown, has the
unusual dedication of St Peter ad Vincula - 'St Peter in
Chains' (referring to his imprisonment in The Acts of the
Apostles, chapter 12), and dates from the 12th century.
It is a Grade 2* listed building. Outside it is an ancient
preaching cross, which may have been there before the church
itself. Time has robbed it of its arms, and only the vertical
is left.
