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The Little Book of Wiltshire

The History Press

THE WONDERS OF WILTSHIRE

Stonehenge, Avebury, and Associated Sites were listed by UNESCO (1986) as World Heritage property of 'Outstanding Universal Value' and 'internationally important for its complexes of outstanding prehistoric monuments'.

STONEHENGE

Stonehenge covers 2,600 hectares and is 'the most architecturally sophisticated prehistoric stone circle in the world'. English Heritage describes it as 'a unique lintelled stone circle surrounded by landscape containing more than 350 burial mounds and major prehistoric monuments such as the Stonehenge Avenue, the Cursus, Woodhenge and Durrington Walls.' Latest carbon dating pinpoints its construction to 2,300 BC say Professors Tim Darvill and Geoff Wainwright. Its purpose: 'It is certain that Stonehenge was built as a temple to the sun and the changing seasons, carefully aligned to mark midsummer and midwinter', agrees Julian Richards.

Visitor Facts

1951 – 124,000 visitors

1971 – 550,000 visitors

1990 – 687,000 visitors

2010/11 – 1,023,000 visitors, of whom 50 per cent were from overseas

It regularly appears in top ten lists of most popular places to visit in Britain.

Who Owned Stonehenge?

Stonehenge was in private hands from the middle ages onwards, from the Benedictine nuns of Amesbury Abbey through to Henry VIII, who took the abbey and its land in 1540. He passed it down to various families, including Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford and the Marquess of Queensbury, then to the Antrobus family who bought the estate in 1824.

An attempt to sell Stonehenge in 1899 failed when there was public outcry and questions raised in Parliament. Sir Edmund Antrobus offered the 1,300 acres site, including 'certain pasturage and sporting rights' to the Government for £125,000. A Punch cartoon of 30 August 1899 speculated on what might happen to the site if Stonehenge were sold. In the end, Antrobus fenced off the site and imposed an admission charge of 1s to visitors. When the heir to the Antrobus baronetcy was killed in the First World War, the estate was finally put up for sale.

Going, Going, Gone!

The last private owner of Stonehenge was Sir Cecil Herbert Edward Chubb, 1st Baronet (1876–1934) who was born in Shrewton, and attended Bishop Wordsworth's School, Salisbury and lived at Bemerton Lodge. He went to a Messrs Knight Frank and Rutley auction held in the Palace Theatre, Salisbury, on 21 September 1915 where he bought Lot 15 (Stonehenge, with 30 acres adjoining land) on a whim as a gift for his wife, paying £6,600. Chubb gave Stonehenge to the Government on 26 October 1918, handing it over to Sir Alfred Mond, First Commissioner of Works. Its current valuation is in the region of £51 million.

Trouble at the Stones

The first organised Free Festival at Stonehenge was held in June 1974 to celebrate the summer solstice and continued for eleven years. In 1985, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher banned the solstice gathering and a High Court judge granted an order to enforce a four–mile exclusion zone around the Stones. There were violent clashes between more than 1,000 police, many in riot gear, drawn from six counties and the MOD, and the convoy of several hundred new-age travellers, peace activists, anti-nuclear campaigners and free festival-goers en route to Stonehenge. There were 520 arrests in what became known as the 'Battle of the Beanfield', after the field where the convoy was camping.

SIX PHONEYHENGES

Stonehenge, Alton Park, Staffordshire, is a Grade II listed early nineteenth-century garden folly, described in the National Heritage List as 'massive stone blocks. 3 bays with 2-tier central bay, monumental lintels'. It was built by the 15th Earl of Shrewsbury in the gardens of his estate, now part of Alton Towers Amusement Park.

The Britton Celtic Cabinet, 1824, in the Wiltshire Heritage Museum, Devizes, was made for George Watson Taylor of Erlestoke Park, MP for Devizes (1826–1832). In the shape of a Stonehenge trilithon it is made from mahogany and pine with pollarded elms and bird's eye maple veneer with glass fronted panels displaying watercolour views of megalithic monuments. The glass cabinet on top contains a cork model of Stonehenge made by Henry Browne, and a model of Avebury in a drawer beneath.

Foamhenge, Natural Bridge, Virginia, USA. This was the fastest Stonehenge ever erected. Mark Cline, fibreglass artist, set up his exact replica made from styrofoam in a single day on 1 April, 2004. He carved 16 ft tall blocks of foam then anchored them in cement on his property, Enchanted Castle Studios in Natural Bridge, Virginia. It has become a popular attraction worldwide, much respected for its accuracy in appearance, layout and astronomical alignment.

Phonehenge, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, USA. This half circle was created from a number of old–fashioned red British telephone boxes. It is used as performance area in the British Invasion section of the Freestyle Music Park, a 55–acre rock and roll themed amusement park near Myrtle Beach, opened in 2008. (Not to be confused with Phonehenge West (California) made from telephone poles by Alan Kimble Fahey, sentenced in December 2012 by a Los Angeles court to 565 days for failure to demolish his compound and structures).

Carhenge, Alliance, Nebraska, USA. Jim Reinders, farmer and artist, erected his homage to Stonehenge in 1987 built from 38 vintage American cars sprayed with grey paint. Over 80,000 tourists a year visit the site and it was voted No. 2 Wackiest Attraction in America in 2009.

Sacrilege, Turner Prize-winning artist Jeremy Deller's creation is a life-size replica of Stonehenge as a fully operational bouncy castle. It was launched in Glasgow in April and went on tour to twenty-five locations across Britain, as part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad.

AVEBURY

Avebury stone circle is the largest prehistoric stone circle in the world. It is fourteen times the size of Stonehenge and was built and altered over many centuries from about 2850 BC to 2200 BC. 'The encircling henge consists of a huge bank and ditch 1.3km in circumference, within which 180 local, unshaped standing stones formed the large outer and two inner circles.' (UNESCO) It is regarded by spiritual groups, such as druids, as an important spiritual centre and site for ritual.

On 15 June 1668, Samuel Pepys visited Avebury, and said of the area: 'Where, seeing great stones like those of Stonage standing up, I stopped, and took a countryman of that town, and he carried me and shewed me a place trenched in, like Old Sarum almost, with great stones pitched in it, some bigger than those at Stonage in figure, to my great admiration: and he told me that most people of learning, coming by, do come and view them, and that the King did so.'

Florrie's Ghost

The 400-year-old Red Lion Inn in the heart of the Avebury Circle appears in many top ten lists of most haunted places in Britain. One ghost said to haunt the pub is that of Florrie, killed by her husband who unexpectedly returned from the Civil War to find her with her lover. He shot the lover and slit his wife's throat, dragging her body to the well (still preserved in one of the pub's front rooms) where he threw it, sealing the well with a boulder.

How Marmalade Saved the Stones

Alexander Keiller (1889–1955) 'The Marmalade Millionaire' inherited the family business of James Keiller & Sons Dundee Marmalade when he was nine. He sold his shares in 1918 and used his wealth to pursue his many interests including racing cars, skiing, flying and archaeology. He became interested in Wiltshire with its Neolithic history and began buying land in 1924, including a large part of Windmill Hill, a mile north of Avebury. He added properties in the village, including the Manor House, and surrounding land with earthworks and stone circle. Thanks to his wealth, expertise and determination in excavating, recording and restoring the site, we are able enjoy its present-day splendour.

Two Special Stones

The Barber's Stone, re-erected by Keiller in 1938, was named after the skeleton discovered buried underneath the stone, along with a pair of scissors, a small iron lancet and three silver coins dating from early fourteenth century. Thought to be a medieval barber- surgeon (or a tailor) who was crushed under a stone while helping locals to destroy and bury the stones, perhaps part of the attempts to rid the site of its pagan associations in response to pressure from the Church against such practices.

The Diamond or Swindon weighing 100 metric tonnes (the equivalent of two Chieftain tanks) is heavier than any stone at Stonehenge, and also one of the few megaliths that has never fallen or been moved.

SILBURY HILL

Silbury Hill is the largest prehistoric mound in Europe. Built around 2400 BC, it stands 39.5m high and comprises half a million tonnes of chalk. It is privately owned and managed by English Heritage. The purpose of this imposing monument still remains a mystery. It seems to have been all things to all people at one time or another. From a burial mound, a platform for astronomical observations to a place for druidical sacrifices or the motte of a castle. It has always been considered a place of spiritual significance, some believing it to be the omphalos or navel (the centre of the spiritual world), the sacred 'eye' or the pregnant earth goddess.

The King and the Snails

John Aubrey recorded an important visit to Silbury Hill in his Natural History of Wiltshire in 1663, 'I had the honour to waite on King Charles II and the Duke of York to the top of Silbury hill, his Royal Highnesse happened to cast his eye on some of these small snailes on the turfe of the hill. He was surprised by the novelty, and commanded me to pick some up, which I did about a dozen or more immediately; for they are in great abundance.'

Merry Making on the Mound

The Bath Journal for 7 September 1747 announced that: 'At King Cool's Theatre at Celbury-Hill (Silbury) near Marlborough (which is the most beautiful and magnificent mount in Europe) the 12th and 13th days of October, will be Bull-Baiting, Backsword Playing, Dancing, and other Divertions. The second day will be Wrestling, a Smock and Ribbons run for, and Foot-Ball Playing, eight of a Side. At this entertainment the Company of the Neighbouring Nobility, Members, Clergy, and the Rest of the King's Friends is desired; and as eleven years ago about Six Thousand People met at the said Hill, the Publick-Houses had not proper accommodation, therefore several Booths will be erected.'

TV's First Live Archaeological Dig

In 1968, David Attenborough, who was controller of BBC2 at the time, commissioned a dig of Silbury Hill led by Professor Richard Atkinson. This involved tunnelling into its depths to discover why it was there. At the time, the programme was judged a flop, since it found no treasure, no tomb and no real answers at all.

WEST KENNET LONG BARROW

This is 'the largest, most impressive and accessible Neolithic chambered tombs in Britain' and part of the Avebury World Heritage site. It was built around 3650 BC and briefly used as a burial chamber for fifty people before being blocked up. It was excavated in 1859 and in 1955-56. It is privately owned but looked after by English Heritage.

In the seventeenth century, Dr Troope from Marlborough is said to have stolen human bones from the Barrow to grind up and sell as a quack medicine.

It is said that at sunrise on Midsummer's Day, a white spectral figure appears, accompanied by a red-eared hound.

SALISBURY PLAIN

'The turfe is of a short sweet grasse, good for the sheep, and delightful to the eye, for its smoothnesse is like a bowling green, and pleasant to the traveller; who wants here only variety of objects to make his journey lesse tedious: for here is nil nisi campus et aër, not a tree, or rarely a bush to shelter one from a shower.' (John Aubrey, The Natural History of Wiltshire, 1656–1691)

Salisbury Plain is the largest area of chalk grassland in North-West Europe. Much of the land is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Special Area Conservation (SAC) and Special Protection Area (SPA) for birds, and is rich in Scheduled Monuments (SM), as well as being the location of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site.

The Ministry of Defence has owned Salisbury Plain since 1897, when it began purchasing land, now totalling about 38,000 hectares (roughly the size of the Isle of Wight). This has enabled them to maintain this area as one of the best nature reserves in the country. Farmland has been carefully managed, and the absence of intensive farming methods has helped to create favourable conditions for all kinds of grasses and wild flowers to grow. This has helped to create a safe home for rare butterflies such as the Marsh Fritillary, Duke of Burgundy and Adonis Blue, and for birds such as Skylarks and summer visiting Stone Curlews, and now the Great Bustard. The regular movement of tanks across the land has proved useful too, for the rare Fairy Shrimp thrives in puddles in the tank tracks.

THE ROYAL HUNTING FOREST

Savernake Forest, near Marlborough, is the only privately owned forest in Britain and one of England's most important woodlands, being more than 1,000 years old. The forest ownership has an unbroken line from Norman times, passing down thirty-one generations – father to son (and four daughters) to the current hereditary warden, the Earl of Cardigan. The Grand Avenue of beech trees in Savernake was planted by Capability Brown in the 1790s, and runs for just under 4 miles across the 2,750 acres of woodland. One of the oldest trees in Britain is the Big Bellied Oak, aka the Decanter's Oak, on the side of the A346 road, south of Cadley. The forest is designated as an Area of Outstanding Beauty and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and managed by the Forestry Commission.

WINDMILL HILL

An important exhibit in the Alexander Keiller Museum, Avebury, is the Windmill Hill (Neolithic) Pot found during excavations at Windmill Hill, 'the classic Neolithic causewayed enclosure with three concentric but intermittent ditches', and part of the Avebury World Heritage Site. Archaeological excavations at the site in the 1920s revealed some of the earliest pots found in the British Isles. Pottery was first used in Britain at about the same time that farming was introduced from the Continent. This type of pottery was named after Windmill Hill because it was one of the first sites where it was recognised.

EIGHT WHITE HORSES

Westbury White Horse, aka Bratton Horse, is the largest and oldest of the eight horses carved into the chalk downland in Wiltshire. The present horse was cut in 1778.

Cherhill White Horse is the second largest and was cut in 1780.

Pewsey White Horse. The old horse was cut in 1785, the new one in 1937.

Marlborough White Horse, aka Preshute, was cut in 1804 and is maintained by Marlborough College.

Alton Barnes White Horse was cut on a hill known as Old Adam in 1812 by Robert Pile, who is also said to have cut the Pewsey Horse (or possibly his father).

Hackpen White Horse, aka Winterbourne Bassett or Broad Hinton White Horse, was cut in 1838.

Broad Town was cut on downland outside the village around 1864.

Devizes Millennium is the newest one, cut in 1999.

THE RIDGEWAY

The Ridegway National Trail is Britain's oldest road, possibly 5,000 years old or more, and is part of a much bigger track stretching 250 miles from the Dorset coast to the Wash in Norfolk. This surviving part is 87 miles long and follows the ancient chalk ridge route used by prehistoric man, probably travellers, herdsmen and soldiers. Sections were also known as the 'herepath', Anglo-Saxon for 'army road'. The road starts at Overton Hill near Avebury ending at Ivinghoe Beacon in the Chiltern Hills.

SALISBURY CATHEDRAL

Salisbury Cathedral is one of the finest medieval cathedrals in Britain. It took 38 years to build (AD 1220–1258) using: 60,000 tons of Chilmark Stone; 10,000 tons of Purbeck Stone; 28,000 tons of oak for the roof, and 420 tons of lead covering 4 acres used on the roof. It is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin of the Assumption and was consecrated on 20 September 1258.

Claims to Fame

The tallest spire in Britain. At 404ft high it was completed in the 1330s. The top 30ft of tower and spire were rebuilt in 1945–51.

The largest cathedral close in Britain. Its shape is roughly a rectangle measuring 80 acres. A licence to build a wall round the cathedral and houses was granted by Edward III in 1327.

The largest secular cathedral cloisters in Britain. Unusual, as they were never part of a monastic foundation and as Pevsner said, 'It was an afterthought ... It is entirely isolated from the cathedral.'

The world's oldest working clock. It has no face, only strikes the hour, and can be found in the north nave aisle of the Cathedral. It dates from AD 1386 and used to be situated in the Bell Tower, which was demolished in 1789.

The largest piece of modern art within a medieval cathedral. The Salisbury Font, designed by William Pye, was installed in the centre of the nave of the Cathedral and consecrated by the Archbishop of Canterbury on 28 September 2008. The reflections of the surrounding architecture and stained-glass windows in the still surface of the water in the vessel are particularly beautiful.

The first women Dean of a medieval cathedral. The Very Revd June Osborne, a former pupil of St Mary's School, Calne, took up post at the Cathedral in 2004.

MAGNA CARTA

'The greatest constitutional document of all times.'

Lord Denning, Master of the Roll, 1965

The Chapter House of Salisbury Cathedral holds the best preserved copy of only four remaining original copies of the 1215 Magna Carta. It was written on vellum (parchment made from calfskin) and measures 14 in × 17 in.

Clause 39 is one of the most famous from the document:

No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgement of his equals or by the laws of the land.

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Excerpted from The Little Book of Wiltshire by Dee La Vardera. Copyright © 2013 Dee La Vardera. Excerpted by permission of The History Press.
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