Every factory in Northampton has an Oxford pattern of some kind. A hundred years ago, the well dressed man needed a shoe to match the smart suits of the day, and the town's makers built their reputations meeting that demand. The world is more casual now, but that is no reason to retire the pattern. We would rather carry it forward and make it work for today.
The history of the Oxford
The Oxford is one of the most recognisable shoes in the world. Traditionally a formal dress shoe, it is defined by its restraint. The closed lacing, with the quarters stitched under the vamp, means little more than the leather and the laces show from the outside. The upper sits close to the foot, giving the slim silhouette that worked with suits of the day.
It goes by other names in other places. In parts of Ireland, Scotland, and the United States it is sometimes called a Balmoral, after the royal castle. In France, it is a Richelieu. The name varies, and so does the story of where it came from.
Traditional Oxford shoe pattern. Seen here is the Redbourne five eyelet Oxford made by our sister brand E.Woodford & Sons.
A pair of antique Oxonian shoes in black leather. Interestingly, the laces are, in fact, open lacing, instead of the closed laces we’re used to seeing on Oxford shoes. This defining characteristic was quick to come about, cementing the Oxford’s signature style in history. (Image credit: Met Museum)
The most common version is that in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, men, and wealthy Oxford University students in particular, grew tired of the tall boots that had dominated fashion for years. They wanted something more comfortable and more casual, and something to set them apart from the older generation.
Styles shifted to suit. The cumbersome high heeled footwear, fastened with side buttons, gave way to something plainer. For a short while an ankle boot known as the Oxonian had its moment, but the lower front lacing shoe soon won out, and took its name from the city where it was first worn. Perhaps.
Can the Oxford work as a luxury sneaker?
We introduced our Abbey Unlined to the Hand Stitch Collection two years ago. The aim was to hold the formal Oxford silhouette while making the shoe feel as soft as a slipper. Made to order in Northampton, in full grain Horween leather, with the structure hidden inside so the silhouette holds its shape. Two years on, the idea has earned itself a whole collection. The Unlined Collection is now our softest range of handmade sneakers.
Blog: Introducing The Abbey Unlined Sneaker
The Abbey grew the way most of our best work does, through conversation. When you sell direct, the questions come straight to you, and one came up more than most. Our customers love Horween Shell Cordovan, and they wanted to know if the Abbey could be made in it.
Abbey Unlined Sneaker. Our version of an Oxford silhouette, unlined for ultra comfort and softness.
We were not sure, so we tried. A few trials in, it became clear that unlined construction with hidden structure does not work with Cordovan. The leather varies in thickness from one to two millimetres across the shell, which makes a consistent unlined build impossible. So we lined it with our Italian veg tan calf instead, matching the rest of our Shell Cordovan Collection. There really is only one way to present that leather, and this was it.
Today, the Abbey lives on the website in two forms, the unlined for everyday softness, and a lined version for occasions that ask for Cordovan.
The Abbey Lined Sneaker. A more formal sneaker, inspired by the traditional Oxford pattern but made with the very best Horween Shell Cordovan and lined with Italian veg tan to complement the rest of the Crown Shell Cordovan Collection.
Which Crown Northampton Oxford sneaker is right for me?
Two leathers, one shoe, and two different ways the Abbey can show up in your week.
The unlined Abbey was built for ease. Hidden structure inside the upper holds the silhouette, but with no lining, the leather sits straight against your foot and the shoe moves with you. It is the version that works on a flight, a holiday, a weekend, or any day that does not ask anything formal of you. The Dearborn leather softens further with wear, and by the second or third time on, it really does feel like a slipper that happens to look like an Oxford.
The Abbey Unlined Sneaker. The version that works on a flight, a holiday, a weekend, or any day that does not ask anything formal of you. Even better without socks.
The Cordovan Abbey was a different proposition. Lined, more structured, and built around one of the rarest leathers we work with. Shell Cordovan has weight and depth, and a surface that catches the light in a way few leathers can. It earns its place at evenings out, weddings, or any day you want to dress up a notch. Subtle enough that only the people who know what they are looking at will recognise it, which has always been part of its appeal.
We make the Abbey in both leathers because customers want different things from a shoe at different times. The unlined is for the everyday, the Cordovan is for the occasions in between. The Abbey sits between the casual sneaker and the dress shoe, made with the finest materials we could find, in a way a hundred year old Northampton factory enjoys making them.
Sneakers built to be worn for years
We believe in buying once and buying well. The Abbey is built to last, whether slipper soft in Dearborn or firm with the depth of Shell Cordovan. Both leathers are expertly tanned at Horween in Chicago, and both deserve the care that goes into making them.
The build is chosen to work together. A Lactae Hevea sole underfoot, with cork filler, and a veg tanned insole and footbed inside, all designed to age with you, holding their comfort for years before a resole is needed. When the time comes, the pair comes back to us in Northampton, and goes out again with a new life on the same uppers you have already worn in.
Good as new: Resoling service from Crown
What might come next at Crown Northampton?
There is a reason the Abbey grew into two shoes. It started with a question from our customers, and we kept going until we had an answer. The best ideas come from the people who wear what we make, the tanneries who supply us, and the makers here in Northampton.
Three corners of a collaboration, and the reason a shoe like this keeps growing in new directions. If you have a question, or an idea you would like to see us try, we would love to hear it.
