Larkhill is a garrison town in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

of Durrington, Wiltshire, England. It lies about west of the centre of Durrington village and north of the prehistoric monument of

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...

. It is about north of

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

. The settlement has a long association with the

British military The British Armed Forces are the unified military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, support international peacekeeping e ...

and originally grew from military camps. It is now one of the main garrisons in the Salisbury Plain Training Area, along with Tidworth Camp, Bulford Camp, and Waterloo Lines at

Warminster Warminster () is a historic market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in south-west Wiltshire, England, on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. The parish had a population of 18,173 in 2021. The name ''Warminster'' occurs first i ...

. The Royal School of Artillery is at Larkhill and the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

moved its main barracks there from Woolwich in 2008.

Etymology

Before the military garrison was established the area was known as Lark Hill, part of Durrington Down, owing to it being the highest point in the parish. After the first military buildings were established, it came to be known as Larkhill Camp.

History

Larkhill - St Alban The Martyr - geograph

Much of Larkhill lies within the Stonehenge World Heritage Site, an area rich in Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments. Several long barrows and round barrow groups are located within the settlement. Robin Hood's Ball, the

Stonehenge Cursus The Stonehenge Cursus (sometimes known as the Greater Cursus) is a large Neolithic cursus monument on Salisbury plain, near to Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England. It is roughly long and between and wide. Excavations in 2007 dated the construct ...

and the Lesser Cursus lie close to the garrison. The first modern settlement came in 1899, when a tented camp was established for units training on an area of

Salisbury Plain Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies within the county of Wiltshire, but st ...

that became known as Larkhill range. Units were accommodated in large official campsite areas whilst training throughout the summer.Clarke-Smith 1969 As Larkhill range was designated for artillery practice, many of the units were artillery batteries. In 1914, the first permanent huts were built on the down. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, 34

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

-sized hutted garrisons were built for use by all types of military forces. A light military railway line was built from the established Amesbury–Bulford line, to carry troops to Larkhill and on to Stonehenge Aerodrome and Lake Down (near Berwick St James). After the war, the garrison became an artillery domain and in 1919 the Royal School of Artillery was established there. The light railway was lifted and the aerodromes were closed. However, several other new facilities were established in the interwar years, including a military hospital, married quarters at Strangways, a

NAAFI The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI ) is a company created by the United Kingdom, British government on 9 December 1920 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their fam ...

service and military churches. The famed British Ordnance QF 25-pounder was developed by the school of artillery shortly before the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The Garrison Church of St Alban the Martyr was built in 1937 and replaced an earlier wooden church. During the Second World War War, the garrison was extended again, although primarily for artillery units. The 21st Independent Parachute Company of the 1st Airborne Division was also formed there. After the Second World War, many of the hutted buildings were replaced with modern structures. The Royal School of Artillery's garrison was rebuilt and permanently established at the site. The Officers' Mess (built 1936–41, designed by William A Ross, Chief Architect to the War Office) is now a

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

building. A new event was started in 1962 to showcase the military's artillery technology – originally named Larkhill Day, it evolved into Royal Artillery Day in 1970. A primary school opened at Larkhill in 1962.

Military flying

In 1909,

Horatio Barber Captain Horatio Claude Barber (1875–1964) was an early British aviation pioneer and First World War flight instructor. In 1911 he flew the first cargo flight in Britain, transporting electric light bulbs from Shoreham to Hove. He was also ...

, a flying enthusiast, rented a small piece of land in Larkhill. He built a shed to house his new aeroplane, and was soon joined by more enthusiasts. Among these were George Bertram Cockburn, a pioneer aviator, and Captain John Fulton who served with an artillery brigade, and it was partly as a result of their interest that the War Office quickly realised the importance of aircraft and founded the first army

aerodrome An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes inc ...

in Larkhill in 1910. Several more huts were built and a three-bay hangar was constructed by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, a forerunner of

British Aerospace British Aerospace plc (BAe) was a British aircraft manufacturer, aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer that was formed in 1977. Its head office was at Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. ...

. In 1911, No. 2 Company of the

Air Battalion Royal Engineers The Air Battalion Royal Engineers (ABRE) was the first flying unit of the British Armed Forces to make use of heavier-than-air craft. Founded in 1911, the battalion in 1912 became part of the Royal Flying Corps, which in turn evolved into the Ro ...

was established at Larkhill, the first flying unit of the armed forces to use

aeroplanes An airplane (American English), or aeroplane (Commonwealth English), informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, ...

as opposed to balloons. This evolved into No. 3 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps in May 1912, the first RFC squadron to use aeroplanes. July 1912 saw the first fatal air crash in the RFC. Captain Eustace Loraine and his observer, Staff-Sergeant R.H.V. Wilson, were killed when they crashed west of Stonehenge after flying from Larkhill aerodrome. A memorial was erected near the A303, and moved to a site near the Stonehenge visitors' centre in 2013. The nearby junction of the A360 with the former A344 is known as Airman's Corner or Airman's Cross. In August 1912, the first Military Aeroplane Trials were held at Larkhill aerodrome. Several aeroplanes including the Avro Type G and the Bristol Gordon England biplane were entered, and the competition was won by Samuel Franklin Cody in his Cody V aircraft. The aerodrome was closed in 1914 and hutted garrisons were built over the airstrip. The original BCAC hangar, the oldest surviving aerodrome building in the UK, is at the corner of Woods Road and Fargo Road. It was given

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

status in 2005.

Larkhill Garrison

Larkhill Garrison is controlled by Headquarters South West based at Jellalabad Barracks, Tidworth Camp. The following units are based at the garrison: * Royal Artillery Barracks, Larkhill **Headquarters,

**221 (Wessex) Battery, Royal Artillery **Royal Artillery Centre for Personal Development, at Royal Artillery Barracks ** Royal School of Artillery, at Royal Artillery Barracks *** 14th Regiment, Royal Artillery, at Royal Artillery Barracks *Purvis Lines ** 26th Regiment, Royal Artillery ** 19th Regiment, Royal Artillery ** 1st Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery *Roberts Barracks ** 32nd Regiment, Royal Artillery *Horne Barracks ** 47th Regiment Royal, Royal Artillery *''Unknown Barracks'' **12 Army Education Centre

Climate

In popular culture

The comic book ''

V for Vendetta ''V for Vendetta'' is a British graphic novel written by Alan Moore and illustrated by David Lloyd (comics), David Lloyd (with additional art by Tony Weare). Initially published between 1982 and 1985 in black and white as an ongoing Serial (li ...

'' (and its

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

) featured a fictional detention centre at Larkhill, where minorities and enemies of the fascist state were eliminated. The writer,

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', Swamp Thing (comic book), ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman: The Killing Joke' ...

, said that he chose Larkhill because of the obvious military connections, but also because of a particularly unpleasant hitchhiking trip that he had around the area. In May 1965, a scene from the Beatles' feature film ''Help!'' was filmed at Knighton Down, near the Larkhill army base. The scene included troops of Royal Artillery.

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

Durrington Town CouncilWiltshire Council — Wiltshire Community History – Durrington
includes a discussion of Larkhill {{authority control Villages in Wiltshire