Cecil Chubb was born in Shrewton, a village about 4 miles west of Stonehenge, the eldest child of Alfred and Mary Chubb.
The Amesbury estate, including the land on which Stonehenge stands and roughly corresponding to the modern-day parish of Amesbury, was a royal property from the early medieval period, beginning with King Alfred the Great.
It remained under royal ownership until the 1140s, when it was granted to various royal followers, including the Earls of Salisbury and later the Earls of Warwick.
During the Dissolution of the Monasteries between 1536 and 1541, the vast 200,000-acre estate, which included Amesbury Abbey, was bestowed upon Sir Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, by Henry VIII.
The estate remained in the Seymour family until 1676 when it was transferred through marriage to Thomas Bruce, Earl of Ailesbury. His son Charles Bruce sold it in 1720 to his cousin, Henry Boyle, Lord Carleton, who then passed it to his nephew, Charles Douglas, Duke of Queensbury, upon his death in 1725.
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Sir Edmund Antrobus
Ownership of the manor transferred in 1778, along with the dukedom, to Archibald Douglas, Lord Douglas. In 1825, he sold it to Sir Edmund Antrobus. The estate then descended through the Antrobus baronetcy, ultimately reaching Sir Edmund Antrobus, the 4th Baronet, by 1901.
Sir Edmund Antrobus, the last in this line, enclosed about 20 acres around Stonehenge in 1901 and began charging for admission.
His right to charge for entry was legally upheld by the High Court in 1905. During World War I, the estate was thrust into a new chapter when Sir Edmund’s son and heir was killed in action, serving with the Grenadier Guards.
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Upon Sir Edmund’s death in 1915, the estate passed to his brother, Sir Cosmo Antrobus, who decided to sell the property. The estate was listed for auction by Knight, Frank, and Rutley, with Stonehenge itself being part of lot 15.
Auction
Before the auction, there was concern that Stonehenge might be purchased by a wealthy international buyer, who could potentially dismantle it and relocate it overseas, much like what occurred over fifty years later when London Bridge was transported to Arizona.
In its coverage leading up to the sale, the Daily Telegraph remarked that the announcement of Stonehenge being up for sale was “enough to rouse the envy of all American millionaires bitten by the craze for acquiring antiques.” This potential outcome may have motivated Cecil Chubb’s decision to purchase the historic site.
At 2pm on 21 September 1915, the Palace Theatre in Salisbury was bustling with an eager crowd of potential buyers and onlookers as Stonehenge was put up for auction by Messrs Knight, Franck, and Rutley.
The auctioneer, Sir Howard Frank, began with a call for bids: “Surely someone will bid me £5,000 to start with.” A hand went up in the stalls, signaling the first bid of £5,000 in a composed, business-like manner.
The bidding escalated in £100 increments from £6,000 until it reached £6,500, a bid placed by local Isaac Crook, whose grandson Richard continues to farm the surrounding fields of Stonehenge to this day.
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Another bid followed, and after a brief pause, the auctioneer’s hammer came down with a decisive rap, sealing the deal at £6,600. Cecil Chubb was the new owner of Stonehenge.
Chubb had won Lot 15: “Stonehenge with about 30 acres, 2 rods, 37 perches of adjoining downland.”
He later described his spontaneous purchase by saying he felt “a Salisbury man ought to buy it,” and acquired Stonehenge for £6,600 (approximately £837,398 today). After owning it for three years, Cecil Chubb donated it to the nation on 26th October 1918, handing it over to Sir Alfred Mond, the First Commissioner of Works.
The deed of gift stipulated several conditions, including that an entrance fee not exceeding one shilling could be charged. This entrance fee policy changed in the 1970s when it was raised to manage visitor numbers and reduce strain on the site and local infrastructure.
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Though the 1918 deed did not grant local residents free access, public rights of way that once passed near the stones were deemed problematic.
In 1921, these rights of way were diverted further from the stone circle, and in exchange, residents of the Amesbury Rural District and Parish of Netheravon were granted free access to the monument. This arrangement was formalized by a resolution passed by the Amesbury Parish Council on 12th April 1921:
“… the Council relinquishes all claims on the right of way now enclosed,
on condition that all householders and their families, (or all
inhabitants) of the parishes, comprising the Rural District of Amesbury,
and the householders and their families (or inhabitants) of the Parish of
Netheravon, be granted free admission to Stonehenge at all times. Subject
to the usual rules and regulations made by the Board for the proper
management of Stonehenge as an Ancient Monument.”
Cecil Chubb
Cecil Chubb was born in Shrewton, a village about 4 miles west of Stonehenge, the eldest child of Alfred and Mary Chubb. His father, known as “Fred,” was the village saddler and harness maker, continuing a family trade.
Cecil attended the local village school and later Bishop Wordsworth’s School in Salisbury, where he also worked briefly as a student teacher from the age of 14.
The Office of Works has started the work of reconstructting Stonehenge, which was presented to the nation in 1918 by Mr. Chubb, Salisbury. The stones are protected by baulks of timber as they are moved into position.
Chubb met his future wife at a cricket match between Bishop Wordsworth School and Fisherton House Asylum. He went on to Christ’s College, Cambridge, where he excelled, earning a double first in Science and Law and graduating with a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Law.
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Chubb pursued a career as a barrister, building a considerable fortune over time. In 1902, he married Mary Bella Alice Finch, whose uncle, Dr. W. Corbin Finch, owned Fisherton House, a mental asylum that later became the Old Manor Hospital and is now known as Fountain Way.
After her uncle’s death in 1905, Mary inherited the business and property, which faced financial challenges until a limited company was formed in 1924 to manage it.
Cecil became chairman of the hospital under this new structure, and under his leadership, it grew to become the largest private mental hospital in Europe. A plaque at the hospital honors his contributions.
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Sir Cecil was also active in local governance, serving on the Salisbury City Council and as a Justice of the Peace. He was a successful racehorse owner and bred Shorthorn cattle. He passed away from heart disease on 22 September 1934 at his home in Bournemouth, Rothwell Dene, at the age of 58.
In the late 1980s, a plaque was placed on his birthplace in Shrewton to commemorate his life, unveiled by his two surviving nephews.
Restoration
The modern era of restoration efforts at Stonehenge began in 1880 when William Flinders-Petrie conducted a thorough survey of the site and introduced the stone numbering system still used today. The first recorded stabilisation effort to prevent the stones from collapsing occurred in 1881, as detailed by Simon Banton.
In 1893, the Inspector of Ancient Monuments noted that several stones were at risk of falling, a concern that materialized when stone 22 fell during a New Year’s Eve storm on 31 December 1900. Although the stone itself remained intact, the lintel it supported, numbered 122, was shattered into two pieces, with a fragment landing 81 feet away.
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These were the first stones to fall since 1797, which happened after a rapid thaw followed a hard frost. At the time of the collapse, the site’s guardian was ill, prompting Sir Edmund Antrobus to hire a police constable to manage the crowd of sightseers.
This dramatic event on the last night of the 19th century spurred numerous letters to the editor of The Times newspaper, reflecting public concern and fascination with the fate of Stonehenge.
March 1901
In March 1901, a significant meeting was convened at Stonehenge, attended by Sir Edmund Antrobus, the monument’s owner. The gathering, which was reported in the Times newspaper on April 13, 1901, aimed to discuss the optimal strategies for the monument’s ongoing protection and preservation.
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Representatives from the Society of Antiquaries, the Society for the Protection of Ancient Monuments, and the Wiltshire Archaeological Society offered several recommendations:
- Enclose the circle with a fence, ensuring the enclosed area is as extensive as possible to avoid obstructing the overall view of Stonehenge.
- Stabilize specific stones that were at risk of falling due to environmental factors such as frost or storms.
- Re-erect the two stones that had fallen on the last day of the previous century during a severe gale, placing them back in their original, precisely known locations.
Further observations were made by Mr. Howard Payn of the Solar Physics Laboratory, South Kensington, who conducted theodolite measurements of the sunrise position on June 25.
Lady Antrobus closely observed the restoration efforts carried out in September 1901 and wrote about the experience in an article published in the October 19, 1901, edition of Country Life.
She noted, “The most dangerous and intricate piece of work undertaken was the raising to an upright position of the great monolith known as the Leaning Stone, the king of the mystic circle and the largest in England, second only to Cleopatra’s Needle.
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This stone, part of the great trilithon located behind the Altar Stone, is believed to have been toppled in 1620 due to the excavations and researches of the Duke of Buckingham. The fallen upright has broken into two pieces, and its lintel remains lying across the Altar Stone, exactly where it fell.”
Leaning Stone 56
The oversight of raising the great monolith was given to Mr. Detmar Blow, an architect. Dr. Gowland, Professor of Mineralogy at the Royal College of Science, oversaw the excavations, while Mr. Carruthers provided engineering expertise.
Excavations around the leaning stone 56 and its adjacent fallen and fractured counterpart stone 55 unearthed a range of artifacts. Among these were a Roman coin—a sestertius of Antonia—and a George III penny found at a shallow depth, as well as many fragments of both blue and sarsen stones.
Several flint axe-heads and large stone hammers, weighing between 37 to 64 pounds, were discovered between 2 and 3 feet 6 inches deep.
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Notably, a deer antler pick was located near the bottom of one of the pits, and a bright green stain, the color of corroded bronze, marked a sarsen block seven feet down. Animal bones were also found in the vicinity.
Stone 56, almost 30 feet long with over 8 feet embedded in the ground, originally supported the lintel 21 feet above the ground. Its partner, stone 55, was slightly shorter at 25 feet, with just over 4 feet of its base set in chalk.
Lady Antrobus remarked on the project that began in August 1901 and concluded on September 25th, taking six weeks to complete. The base of the stone, situated 8 feet 6 inches deep, was meticulously prepared and set using flint tools, reflecting the builders’ profound skill.
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She discussed the repositioning of the two stones that had fallen the previous year, whose original placements were well-documented, and highlighted the need for preventive measures to secure other unstable stones.
Lady Antrobus expressed her views firmly, disagreeing with the notion of letting Stonehenge deteriorate naturally: “It would be in the worst possible taste to restore Stonehenge in any sense, but I cannot agree with those who say ‘Let the stones lie as they fall and take no precautionary measures.’
This is a flawed argument, as Stonehenge, if left untouched, would soon resemble a chaotic pile of ninepins, many stones being in such a state that a strong westerly gale could topple them.”
As previously mention, after the personal losses suffered by the Antrobus family during the First World War, Stonehenge was sold at auction on September 21, 1915, and later bequeathed to the nation in 1918. The Office of Works then took over its maintenance.
Restoration After the Handover
Soon after Stonehenge was handed over to the Office of Works, it was assessed that many of the stones had been unsatisfactorily supported by larch poles, which were not only unsightly but also inadequate for long-term stability.
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The initial plan included straightening several leaning sarsens and securing them in concrete foundations, in addition to re-erecting stones that had fallen in 1797 and 1900.
These restoration efforts were predicated on two assumptions: that excavations would confirm the original positions of both the leaning and fallen stones, and that all stones had initially been set perpendicular to the ground.
Work commenced in 1919 under the direction of the Society of Antiquaries, with Lieutenant-Colonel William Hawley leading the excavation efforts.
The Society initially aimed for a thorough examination of the entire area within the ditch surrounding the stones, down to the level of the undisturbed chalk. By 1926, when Hawley’s involvement ended, about half of the interior area had been explored.
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Challenges with the restoration surfaced early on. When two stones (6 and 7) on the eastern side of the outer sarsen circle were repositioned after excavation of their stone holes, it became evident that there was no clear indication of their original placements. Ultimately, the decision on their placement was left to Hawley’s expert judgment.
There were concerns that environmental exposure might have eroded the tenons protruding from the uprights, so a plan was made to cap each tenon with lead recycled from Hampton Court Palace’s roof to ensure a secure fit into the lintel’s mortice holes.
However, Charles Peers, Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments and the overseer of the operations, deemed the capping unnecessary and halted the use of additional lead.
Attention then shifted to the northeast façade of Stonehenge’s outer circle. The central pair of uprights (stones 30 and 1) were straightened and set in concrete.
However, this caused their lintels to no longer align with adjacent stones, necessitating further adjustments and contradicting the initial assumption that the stones had originally been perfectly perpendicular.
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While the discontinuation of the restoration efforts has been attributed to financial constraints, it is more plausible that Peers halted further work due to insufficient archaeological evidence to justify the alterations.
In later years, the Office of Works resisted calls to resume restoration, citing concerns over potential accusations of ‘faking’ the monument. No further restoration or excavation would occur at Stonehenge until the 1950s.
Key Discoveries
While Hawley’s excavations at Stonehenge were concluded earlier than initially anticipated, his contributions were substantial. Over the years, some have criticized the quality of his work; however, much of this criticism is unwarranted.
Hawley was meticulous, patient, and observant, often working solo for extended periods. By the standards of his time, his methods, site records, and published reports were commendable. He maintained a daily site diary and kept the Office of Works well-informed through regular and sometimes detailed correspondence.
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During these years, one of the key discoveries was the Aubrey Holes—a circle of 56 pits just inside the enclosing earthwork, named after John Aubrey, the 17th-century antiquarian who had identified similar shallow depressions.
Initially, Hawley believed these pits had once held a circle of bluestones. However, after discovering what is now known as Woodhenge, he revised his hypothesis to suggest they might have supported a circle of timber uprights.
More recently, the theory that they may have held stones has gained traction again. Hawley also uncovered two additional circles of pits, named the Y and Z holes, surrounding the stone monument.
Hawley shared insights on the dating, phasing, and potential purposes of Stonehenge. A significant challenge for him was the limited understanding of the Neolithic and early Bronze Age, particularly outside of burial monuments. At that time, the concept of ‘henges’ as a distinct class of monument had not yet been established.
Significant advancements in the understanding of the period during which Stonehenge was constructed and used only began towards the end of Hawley’s tenure, sparked by the discovery and excavation of sites like Woodhenge and Windmill Hill near Avebury. These developments marked major transformations in the knowledge about the era.
