Rousham is a village and civil parish beside the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire. The village is about 6.5 miles (10.5 km) west of Bicester and 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Kidlington. The parish is bounded by the River Cherwell in the east, the A4260 main road between Oxford and Banbury in the west, partly by the B4030 in the north, and by field boundaries with Tackley parish in the south
The earliest known dedication of the Church of England parish church was to Saint Germanus of Auxerre, recorded in 1328. A "German's Well" recorded in the parish in 1626 refers to St. Germanus. By 1846 the church had been rededicated to Saint Mary and by 1864 it had been changed again to Saint James. The present dedication of Saint Leonard and Saint James dates from 1904.
The church building dates from the 12th century. The easternmost bay of the arcade for the south arcade was built in about 1180 and the bell tower was added early in the 13th century. Between 1296 and 1316 a chantry chapel was added to the north side of the nave. Slightly later the south aisle was extended the full length of the nave, a south chapel was included and a south porch was added. The arch to the south chapel is 14th century and all the windows of the south aisle are Decorated Gothic. In the 15th century a clerestorey was added to the nave and a rood screen and rood loft were built across the nave and aisle. The chantry chapel was in disrepair by 1520 and demolished shortly after 1530. Later in the 16th century a large window was inserted in the north wall of the nave towards its western end. It and all the other windows in the north wall are Perpendicular Gothic. In 1867-68 the church building was restored, the chancel and south porch were rebuilt and the height of the chancel was increased.
The tower has a ring of six bells. Five were cast in 1675 and the sixth was added in 1825.
Text added by Wertypop