A clergyman has been told to move his cross or the council will move it for him.

The Rev Edwin Clements, parish priest for Hagbourne, Upton and Blewbury, erected the wooden cross at Churn Knob, an Iron Age burial mound, six years ago.

The 16ft cross marks the spot, high above Blewbury, where St Birinus gave his first sermon in 634AD, converting pagans to Christianity.

But the Vale of the White Horse District Council has told Mr Clements to move it or face enforcement action despite the fact he has planning permission.

The row surrounding the cross started in 2003 when English Heritage objected to it being placed on a scheduled ancient monument.

Mr Clements maintained it was not on the mound but had been erected next to it.

But heritage officers argued the cross was still within the monument area.

Following a site meeting in 2004, it was agreed the cross should be moved a further 100 yards from the mound. Mr Clements then decided to mount a passive protest and left the cross where it stood.

He said: "Churn Knob is an Iron Age burial mound of some significance to the Church. There used to be a cross up there years ago and I wanted to put a large cross there as witness during the Millennium year."

He added: "The visual effect is stunning. You have the Iron Age burial mound and next to it is the cross symbolising St Birinus converting this area."

Mr Clements said he spoke to English Heritage in 2000 along with an archaeological consultant in Oxford and was granted planning permission by the Vale.

But planners now say the cross is not in the place stipulated in the original planning permission.

Mr Clements said: "We did everything properly. We didn't give them a proper map reference but the location was marked on the map. It's just petty. I can understand where English Heritage are coming from but there are hundreds of these mounds."

With enforcement action looming, Mr Clements said he had no choice but to move the cross.

"We have to move it or they will simply take it down. It will hopefully still show on the skyline and be visible from the area," he said.

Vale spokesman Nikki Malin said: "We can confirm that Mr Clements has been asked to move the cross by the end of May to outside the boundary of the monument, due to objections by English Heritage.

"If this does not happen, the council will have to consider whether or not it is expedient to take enforcement action to achieve the removal of the cross."

She added an agreed site had been identified but the cross had never been moved from its original position.

A spokesman for English Heritage said: "It is a protected site in the same way as a listed building.

"Therefore you need to make proper applications to make any alterations. In this case, the cross was erected without that process being gone through."