Larkhill is a garrison town in the civil parish of Durrington, Wiltshire, England. It lies about 1+3⁄4 miles (2.8 km) west of the centre of Durrington village and 1+1⁄2 mi (2.4 km) north of the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge. It is about 10 mi (16 km) north of Salisbury.
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.[3] After the first military buildings were established, it came to be known as Larkhill Camp.[4]
The first modern settlement came in 1899, when a tented camp was established for units training on an area of Salisbury Plain that became known as Larkhill range. Units were accommodated in large official campsite areas whilst training throughout the summer.[6][7] 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.[7]
After the war, the garrison became an artillery domain and in 1919 the Royal School of Artillery was established there.[7] 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 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.[7]
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.[12]
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 building.[13] 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.[14][15]
Memorial to Capt Loraine and Staff-Sgt Wilson, killed 1912, outside the Stonehenge Visitors' Centre (December 2013)
In 1909, Horatio Barber, 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,[17] 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 in Larkhill in 1910.[18][19] Several more huts were built and a three-bay hangar was constructed by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, a forerunner of British Aerospace. In 1911, No. 2 Company of the Air Battalion Royal Engineers was established at Larkhill, the first flying unit of the armed forces to use aeroplanes as opposed to balloons. This evolved into No. 3 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps in May 1912, the first RFC squadron to use aeroplanes.[20]
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.[21] The nearby junction of the A360 with the former A344 is known as Airman's Corner or Airman's Cross.[22]
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 status in 2005.[25][26]
The comic book V for Vendetta (and its film adaptation) featured a fictional detention centre at Larkhill, where minorities and enemies of the fascist state were eliminated. The writer, Alan Moore, 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.[46]
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.[47]
