Westbury White Horse
Located on the edge of Bratton Downs and lying just below an Iron Age hill fort, it is the oldest of several white horses carved in Wiltshire.
A contemporary engraving from around 1772 appears to show a horse facing in the opposite direction that was rather smaller than the present figure.
[1] It is often claimed to commemorate King Alfred's victory at the Battle of Ethandun in 878, and while this is quite plausible, there is no trace of such a legend before the second half of the 18th century.
Historians have generally located the battle of Ethandun or Edington on the high ground, somewhere within a few kilometres of the white horse, which would have been a strong defensive position for Alfred and the Saxons of Wessex, marching north-east from Egbert's Stone (popularly believed to be located at Kingston Deverill or King Alfred's Tower nearby), whilst facing the Danes led by Guthram, advancing south-west from their stronghold in Chippenham.
It is popularly believed that Bratton Castle, the Iron Age hillfort immediately adjacent to the white horse may have played some part in the battle, but there is no evidence of this, and the 'fortress' referenced in Medieval texts is much more likely to have been the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Chippenham, which had been occupied by Guthram's Danes as their headquarters.
However, there are some who dispute this account and believe this key battle was fought elsewhere, as there is very little real evidence either way, it remains contested, although the majority agree the vicinity of Edington is the most likely, and logical site.
[3] Another hillside chalk figure, the Uffington White Horse, featured in King Alfred's early life.
A white horse war standard was associated with the continental Saxons in the Dark Ages, and the figures of Hengest and Horsa who, according to legend, led the first Anglo-Saxon invaders into England, are said to have fought under a white horse standard (a claim recalled in the heraldic badge of the county of Kent).
[4] Paul Newman suggests in his book Lost Gods of Albion (2009) that the horse may have been inspired by the popularity of folly buildings in the 18th century.
Wiltshire folklore has it that when the nearby Bratton church clock strikes midnight, the white horse goes down to the Bridewell Springs,[note 1] below the hill, to drink.
For the 1950 event, which used World War Two searchlights, traffic in Westbury and Bratton came almost to a standstill as drivers slowed down to look.
[9] In 1957 the horse was concreted over and painted white by Westbury Urban District Council, in an attempt to save on long-term maintenance costs, as the chalk of the face was eroding and unstable, due to the steepness of the slope.
[3] Since then, the concrete has tended to turn grey and deteriorate over time, requiring regular cleaning, as well as periodic repairs and repainting.
The newly whitened horse was illuminated on the night the repairs were finished, by Second World War searchlights, as in 1950.
Also on the side of the hill is a toposcope dated 1968, mounted on a small stone structure, which identifies the towns and cities that can be seen from the hillside.
[17] BBC News had a video in June 2018 showing the horse being cleaned with high pressure water jets by up to 18 volunteer abseilers.
The White Horse was referenced in G. K. Chesterton's epic poem The Ballad of the White Horse (1911) and the books The Tontine (1955) by Thomas B. Costain, The Emigrants (1980) by Caribbean author George Lamming, and in the novel The English Patient (1992) by Michael Ondaatje, as the place where the sapper Kip learned how to deactivate bombs.
