If Stonehenge had been demolished in WW1

Well you are entitled to your opinion….;)

Now Avebury…that IS impressive !!;)

There are also Netheravon and Upavon near by, it’s only when you hover above Stonehenge that you see the true scale of things, there are standing stones running off into the distance and perfectly aligned

I’ve heard that an aged mystic – a Druid, threw some bones which showed that there were possibly some Spitfires buried under the site. Verily is truth stranger than fiction.

Whilst I agree about there being other impressive standing stones and neolithic sites I was OVERwhelmed by my first visit and subsequent visits until walking within the henge was banned. That has diminished the effect, I agree.

I did a few months with English Heritage a few miles away at Old Sarum and got access to inside the circle and have to say I too was overwhelmed by it!

Whilst I agree about there being other impressive standing stones and neolithic sites I was OVERwhelmed by my first visit and subsequent visits until walking within the henge was banned. That has diminished the effect, I agree.

…someone had at some time erected a pile of massive stones,

Or as Thomas Hardy put it in Tess of the d’Urbevilles-

They had proceeded thus gropingly two or three miles further when on a sudden Clare became conscious of some vast erection close in his front

:highly_amused:

If Stonedhenge (Alvin Lee fans will recognise the spelling:cool:) had been removed then I doubt many people would have been that upset LOL most people I have spoken to are a bit underwhelmed by the first visit !!
It was a great engineering feat but Callenish up on the Isle of Lewis is much more spectacular 😉

Bit late to come into this arguement… the story the demolition of the stones is sadly likely to be little more than a myth. English Heritage aerchaeologist Martyn Barber has been studying the history of Stonehenge airfield 1917-1921… and found the earliest reference to the story was 1951. Much earlier suggestions exist… Lt F Briggs arrived on site in 1917 and wrote in his diary that someone had at some time erected a pile of massive stones, likely to presnt an obstruction. The following year permission was sought to demolish barrows on the flying ground, as many aircraft had been damaged landing at night… this was flatly refused. IMHO opinion is is in that account we might find the origins of the story? I am, however, also of the opinion that enough myths surround the stones already… a few aviation-based ones won’t do any harm!

I guess it would have been easier to bury it under a mound.

I imagine, if granted, they would have just flattened it to remove its “Distraction”. The evidence would still be there for Time Team to find.
Thankfully they didn’t flatten it.

Ignorance of the importance of history always amazes me, like using the Sphynx for target practice (Rifle – possibly artillery) for example. That was the Brits and the French.

No, that would have been Boscombe Down. Larkhill airfield closed down in 1914 when hutted garrisons were built over the airstrip although the original hangers still survive in situ.

On my sole visit to Stonehenge during a university trip many years ago…I recall it being near a RAF base, in fact there was a Nimrod in the pattern.

What base was it…the aforementioned Larkhill?