Stonehenge

What catches people's imagination more than a mystery? A mystery provides a void in information that people want to fill. The mystery of how Stonehenge was created has given many people the opportunity to make up many different myths and fables. Different groups of people seemed to provide some new solution, revealing their ideas about the unknown.

I had the privilege of hearing one of the older theories on the little audio tour at Stonehenge. The little person in the guide talked about how long ago people believed King Arthur, in a desire to commemorate his men that had died in battle, asked Merlin for advice. Merlin suggested getting some large stones set up by giants in Wales. Arthur sent a group of soldiers to collect the stones from a site in Wales, but because they were taking too long Merlin became inpatient and used his magic to bring the stones to England. Merlin set them up exactly how the giants in Wales had set them up.

Another theory, also on the audio tour, demonstrated the people's shift from the magic of Merlin to the Christian God. The story goes that Satan wanted some special bones that were owned by an old woman in Wales. He flew to Wales and offered the old woman all the money she could count while he was gathering the bones. She agrees, knowing the task should take the devil a very long time. Unfortunately for her, the moment she began to count the devil was done and he flew off with his booty. He deposited the bones at Stonehenge.

Modern theories show an equally fanciful nature with a twist. One current idea is that the stones were brought by aliens. The theorist do not explain why the aliens left the stones, only that they did. I do not know if anyone actually believes this theory, or if it was simply created by someone suggesting an idea that had never been discussed. Another theory sounds to me a bit more plausible but only explains who put the stones there not how. One major theorist, Stukeley, believed that the Druids constructed them as a religious sight (Stukeley, 10).

Why do so many people theorize about how Stonehenge was created? The answer is because it really is a mystery how stones that probably weigh close to 45 tons, requiring hundreds of men to move, were put up in a time when there was no heavy machinery (Historical, 1). Experts seriously have no idea how people were able to create the sight. They have found many burial grounds surrounding the place, but they do not even know if these graves were placed there from the people who created the place or later people.

What experts do know, is the original location of the stones. True to myths, the stones really did come from Wales. These stones actually formed in such a way that the great pillars at Stonehenge did not need to be quarried, but they could simply be carried off (Alexander, 53). Pillars litter the landscape catching people's imagination and mystery making them perfect candidates for such a sight like Stonehenge.

Because people have created so many different theories about Stonehenge, when I went to visit the place, I was surprised at it size. I expected something a little larger. I believe the place was so hyped up, I had a greater expectation for it then what was rational. Fortunately, the audio tour really helped me to see how impressive the place really is. It really would take a lot of man power to put those stones in place.

Until experts solve the mystery of Stonehenge, I believe the best thing for us to do is create our own myths and legends. Various theories were tossed around by students on our arrival at the sight, but I do have a favorite. I do believe the best idea was that the pillars were toy blocks for a baby giant. We may never find out how the stones were brought to England, but at least we can have fun making up our own theories.

Alexander, Caroline. “If the Stones Could Speak.” National Geographic (June 2008): Washington DC, 34-59.

Historical Background. English Heritage. June 9, 2008.

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.1914

Stukeley, William. Stonehenge, A Temple Restor’d to the British Druids. London: Innys and R, 1740.

Bath

When I think of England, I will be honest, the first thing to come to mind is the power of the Victorian era not the older civilizations. When I think of Bath, I imagine the time when it was the social spot of society and the rich and famous went their on holiday. I do not picture Roman soldiers bathing in the warm luxurious waters, yet that is where the story of this famous spa began.

Between the years 55BC and 450 AD the Romans ruled what is now known as England (Hibbert, 22). While there, they built lots of nice roads buildings and a wall that can still be seen in London, Bath and other places. The Romans discovered the natural water at Bath and made it into one of the most impressive Baths in Western Europe by surrounding the pools with arches and colonnades taken from the local limestone (Roberts, 27).

Although to me this pool of naturally warm water sounds like the best place to take a quick vacation, it was not such an exciting resort for the local people. The “ordinary British Notable” was not interested in spending time in town, but on staying at his own country estate (Roberts, 27). This ensured that when the Roman government failed in the fifth century, the town decayed (Roberts, 27). The nobles remained on their country estates. I love swimming in hot baths, so I hope I would have been different.

Before I actually visited Bath, all that stood out to me was that a natural hot spring was in this town and people went bathing. In my mind this was much like people going hot tubing. I was very surprised to learn that Bath was a very important religious sight. It was the temple of Sulis Minerva, and people from all over the Roman Empire made pilgrimages to Bath to receive the benefits of this sacred water.

Not only did Bath have a natural hot spring, but it was a mystery to the Romans why the waters bubbled when it was not boiling. This was explained by assuming the water was sent by the Goddess Minerva. A temple and shrine were built at the sight to show the people's reverence.

Water straight from a Goddess was expected to heal. People with leprosy, battle wounds, arthritis, and other diseases came to be healed by the water. Some seemed to receive a miraculous healing causing more people to flock to the waters.

Bath disappeared from the notice of the world while the rest of England fought wars and worked on establishing themselves with a stable government. Things did settle down, but it was not until the 18^th century that Bath really became of note. With the emergence of a middle-class structure came the demands of middle-class pleasure: hot tubing (Morgan, 443). It is this culture in the 18^th to the 19^th century that made its way into books. For example, we have various Bath scenes described in Charles Dickens’ The Pickwick Papers and in a couple of the Jane Austen novels. It was a fashionable scene worth describing to the world.

I was very excited that I was able to enjoy the water while I was at Bath. After I went on a tour of the Roman Baths, I went to the Pump Room and had a glass of the special healing water. It, quite frankly, was disgusting. I was still glad I drank the stuff, though, because it is talked about in books as one of the medicinal methods of the eighteen hundreds.

Now the story of Bath is much sadder because it is an unfulfilling tourist spot. The main economy is financed by tourism, but the tourist are only allowed to look at the baths, not swim. Once again, the purpose of the spa has been lost only this time it is not due to political turmoil, but to a nasty little parasite that lives in the water. The waters have been deemed unsanitary to swim in. Overall though, It was still a delightful city to visit. The Baths may only be looked at, but they teach about the past. The disgusting water can be drunk and the streets walked in. All these factors helped me, the traveling student to relieve memories recorded by the pens of various great authors.

Hibbert, Christopher. The Story of England. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 2006.

Morgan, Kenneth O. The Oxford History of Britain. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Roberts, Clayton. A History of England: Prehistory to 1714. United States of America: Prentice-Hall, 1998.

Burning

A curse or a blessing can come on the wings of a wind. For London in 1666, a curse blew with the wind for five days, five days that are known as the Great Fire of 1666. This fire changed the face of England permanently, It raged for only those five days yet so much was lost. To really learn about this fire, not only did I make a pilgrimage to where the fire began, but I also visited the exhibit at the Museum of London where I found enough information to produce an informative article on the subject.

The Great Fire began on Sunday, September 2, 1666 In Pudding Lane. When I went to see this little street, I thought it would be an exciting cool street because, come on, its name is Pudding Lane. The lane was quite ordinary. It was an old street that meandered by the Themes. It is ordinary, but because of the fire, it shall be remembered in history by at least the British School children who study about it in class.

This fire can be traced to a Baker’s oven on the street owned by Thomas Farrirer. They believe the fire began in his oven around one AM on that infamous Sunday. It had been a long dry summer and most of London was made out of wood. This provided the perfect fuel to feed a hungry fire that quickly spread, leaving thousands homeless in its tracks. The wind proved to be a curse as it sent this fire spinning from house to house consuming the city.

I was rather shocked to discover that although thousands of people lost their homes, they have only ten people recorded as actually dying. This number does not included the uncalculated number that lost their lives the following winter due to starvations, or exposure, but in the actual five days that fire raged throughout London, less than ten people were actually killed.

The fire was only put out after five days had passed and three fourths of the entire city of London was destroyed. This fire was finally extinguished because the wind died down and soldiers and sailors exploded buildings to create a firebreak. They used gunpowder to smash the building to smithereens, yet it was effective. It reminded me of farmers turning the earth to create a damp dead zone that would prevent the sudden wildfires to from destroying their house. You do what you have to do when their is not a fire truck.

Many people wanted to know why this great tragedy hit the city of London created a lot of theories. There were many various ideas. These included: God was punishing the Londoners for their sins, The French or the Dutch were behind them because of war, the Catholics wanted to destroy this Protestant nation, a crazy guy named Robert Hobart confessed (He was not even in England when the fire started, but he lost his head for the confession), it was an accident, or the Baker forgot to put out the oven (experts think this last one is the most likely). Interesting enough, the idea our text book The Story of England, on includes the idea that God was punishing the Londoners for their sins (Hibbert, 142). I think the experts were right and the poor baker simply screwed up and didn’t put out his oven. His little mistake created a fire so hot, the stones of St. Paul exploded.

England was destroyed, providing lots of opportunity for including new architecture. London had not really built any new churches during the 17^th century until the fire required some new one to be built (Morgan, 396). Christopher Wren took this opportunity to implement a new architectural style that still can be seen throughout London.

It was a great exhibit. I really felt like I learned a good amount of information on the Great Fire of 1666. They provided a detailed and interesting exhibit, that also included a great place where you can try on a fire hat from sometime in the past.

Hibbert, Christopher. The Story of England. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 2006.

Morgan, Kenneth O. The Oxford History of Britain. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Museum of London The Great Fire of 1666. June 3, 2006