The ancient temple of Stonehenge is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world and one of the most visited sites in the UK. 

 

Yet, despite hundreds of years of archaeological investigation and speculation, to some extent it remains a mystery. And it is a mystery that is deep at the heart of the British psyche, for Stonehenge has been a gathering place for thousands of years, and remains a nexus where prehistoric culture, mainstream culture and counterculture interact - and sometimes collide. 

 

40 years ago, in June 1985, an incident occurred near Stonehenge that saw the largest mass arrest of civilians in Britain's history. Over 1000 police, many in riot gear, some with their IDs covered so they couldn't be held accountable for what happened, clashed with a raggle-taggle convoy of travellers, hippies and bohemian folk heading towards the Stones to hold the free Festival, which had happened at Stonehenge every year since the early 70s.

 

It was brutal

 

Women with babies were dragged from their mobile homes, others were pulled through smashed windscreens. Vehicles were trashed. People were truncheoned to the floor.

 

There were huge numbers of arrests, but in the end, virtually nobody was found guilty of a crime, although the police themselves were subsequently taken to court and lost. 

 

Matt Pike came to the Bureau to tell us all about it. Matt has an official role at Stonehenge, as a guardian of the stones, as a guide to visitors and is the official writer in residence of the site. He also has an unofficial role as social historian and archivist of a huge amount of information, oral testimonies and lesser-known histories of Stonehenge and the things that has happened there, including 'The Battle of the Beanfield', the shameful incident 40 years ago, when the British state turned its security forces on its own people as a warning to the counterculture of the times.

 

Matt's Youtube Channel

Matt's Instagram

 

Photos: Andy Worthington