Ethandun Memorial

The Memorial to the Battle of Ethandun is a sarson stone standing in the NE corner of the public recreation area adjacent to Bratton Castle. The battle took place between the 6 and 12 May 878AD, in this area. King Alfred summoned his levies from Somerset, Wiltshire and Hampshire and marched against Guthrum's Army; the Danish invader camped at Chippenham. The two armies met on the downs above Edington and Bratton and after a fierce "shield to shield" fight, the Danes were chased back to Chippenham. There King Alfred's Saxon warriors held them under siege for two weeks before they surrendered.

This battle marks the turning point against the attempt by the Vikings to conquer the British Isles. The Anglo Saxon people under King Alfred and his successors, from this pivotal battle, brought together the kingdoms of England (Wessex, Anglia, Mercia and Northumbria) under one King. Consequently the English Nation started from this victory.