OAKLEY (GREAT), a parish in the hundred of
TENDRING, county of ESSEX, 7 miles (S. E. by E.) from
Manningtree, containing 990 inhabitants. The living is
a rectory, in the archdeaconry of Colchester, and diocese
of London, rated hi the lung's books at £23, and
in the patronage of the Master and Fellows of St.
John's College, Cambridge. The church is dedicated to
All Saints. There is a place of worship for Wesleyan
Methodists. This parish, with the other Oakleys, lies
contiguous to an inlet of the North sea, opposite Pewit
island, and is celebrated as the scene of a bloody battle
fought between King Ethelwolf and the Danes. It had
formerly a castle, the remains of the keep and moat of
which are still visible.