Marlborough has some of the most significant and oldest features of English Heritage on its doorstep. Less than 7 miles away stands the Avebury Stone Circle, erected by ancient man more than 4,000 years ago. You reach Avebury by travelling west from Marlborough along the A4, passing the prehistoric Silbury Hill en route. From the stone circle, it is just a short stroll to Avebury Manor, which the National Trust opens to the public during the tourist season, along with the 17th century thatched barn now housing much of the Alexander Keiller Museum.

Just off the A303 and less than 20 miles from Marlborough, you come to Stonehenge, probably the most famous stone circle in the world. The purpose of this gigantic monument is still unknown, but it is a “must see” for anybody visiting Wiltshire and has its own spacious visitors centre next to the A342.

Another ancient site worth visiting is the Uffington White Horse, a huge Bronze-age image etched into the Ridgeway escarpment. You can view it at close quarters, and take in spectacular views of the Oxfordshire countryside by walking across the downland from the nearby car park. There are no less than 13 white horses to explore in Wiltshire too, including one right here in Marlborough.

For those who prefer history connected with the built environment, particularly the industrial revolution, other local attractions include:

• Crofton Beam Engines - the oldest working steam engines in the world still performing the job they were built to do
  
• Wilton Windmill - the only working windmill in Wessex still producing wholemeal, stone-ground flour
  
• Caen Hill Locks - This famous fight of 20 canal locks is a spectacular feature of the Kennet and Avon Canal on the outskirts of our neighbouring market town, Devizes.

For an insight into the social and cultural history of this area, you could visit Lacock Village, Buscot Park and Stourhead - all major National Trust destinations within an hour’s drive of Marlborough. For a grand day out, go south via the A338 to visit Salisbury and its beautiful Cathedral and Close; drive northwards to visit the university city of Oxford and discover its “dreaming spires”, or travel west along the A4 to Bath, a spa town famous for its historic Roman Baths and starring role in Jane Austen novels. On the way to Bath, the picturesque old town of Bradford- Upon-Avon, home of the Moulton Bicycle Company, is a delightful place to break your journey.

The landscape both in and around Marlborough is a rich archaeological feast which becomes more exciting with every new discovery_. The very first evidence of people using the land on which Marlborough now lies stems from a few Palaeolithic hand axes from the site of the gasworks and from Granham Hill, ephemeral proof that hundreds of thousands of years ago people used this area as they followed migratory herds across the landscape.

After the last ice age, which ended roughly 11,000 years ago, semi-nomadic Mesolithic hunter- gatherers began making temporary camps along the banks of the River Kennet, utilising the river as a routeway and for its natural resources.  In doing so, they left large quantities of flint tools behind them; one such camp site is located just off London Road and another on Elcot Lane.

A few thousand years later, during the Neolithic and Bronze age, people were living in more permanent settlements and evidence of early farming communities is still visible on the surrounding hillsides in the form of Neolithic Long Barrows and Bronze Age Round Barrows.  A small community of late Neolithic/early Bronze Age people settled on the valley floor, now Ducks Meadow.  A ditched trackway was discovered in the grounds of St. John’s School, possibly a routeway for taking their animals to graze up on the hillside, and where they would have probably tended their crops.

Marlborough Mound, a 19 metre high chalk structure which is located in the grounds of the college, has recently been dated to the Neolithic period. The radiocarbon date of 2,400 BC has effectively changed our perception of the Neolithic landscape of the area, making it likely that Marlborough was an important ritual landscape during these times.  The mound was built at the same time as Silbury Hill, located approximately 8km west of Marlborough, some 4,400 years ago.  In recent years the shape of Marlborough Mound has been obscured by tree and shrub growth, making it diffcult to pick out, even from the top of St Peter’s Church tower. Such growth can also be damaging, but there is now a plan to carefully restore and cut back the unwanted growth. The mound, being within the grounds of Marlborough College, is not often accessible to the public.

Frequent discoveries of brooches, coins and pottery found all over Marlborough are testament to the people of the Iron Age and there are many, many finds left behind by the Romano-British people who lived here shortly afterwards, including a settlement with a cemetery at St. Margaret’s  Mead and a Villa at Brown’s Farm.  In addition, the famous ‘Cunetio Hoard’.  The Saxon period shows little evidence of occupation and archaeological fnds are limited to a few coins and shards of pottery; there was however a Saxon burial located near Savernake Hospital.

The plaque for Eglantine Jebb (1876-1928) is on the Library (formerly St Peter’s School) in the High Street, as founder of “Save the Children Fund” in 1919. She graduated from Oxford, trained as a teacher and spent her first few years teaching girls at St Peter’s School. This remarkable young lady, from a privileged background was anxious to teach in a poor working class area and was helped in this ambition by her Uncle James who was a master at the College. She scandalised her uncle by insisting on living on her meagre wages!

The plaque for the Hancocks is on number 3 High Street. Thomas Hancock (1786-1865) invented the process to vulcanise rubber and Walter Hancock (1799-1852) invented a passenger steam coach. Natural rubber is a soft sticky substance with no uses, it is only through vulcanization that it can be used for vehicles tyres etc.

The plaque for author William Golding (1911-1993) is on the house in The Green where he spent his early years. He was a student at Marlborough Grammar School where his father Alec was an inspirational teacher of science.

Marlborough's most recent plaque commemorates Bob Pelham, founder of Pelham Puppets. It can be found at 1-3 Kingsbury Street and was unveiled in February 2019 on what would have been his 100th birthday. Read more here

The plaque for Cardinal Wolsey (1473-1540) is on St Peter’s Church where he was ordained a priest in 1498. He became a cardinal in 1515 and as well as his many high offces of church and state he was a candidate for the papacy in 1522 on the death of Leo X.

The plaque for The Great Fire of Marlborough is on the shops at 41 to 47 High Street which in 1653 belonged to the tanner Francis Freeman. The fire started here and fanned by a south westerly wind spread to destroy 150 properties including St Mary’s Church. Such was the scale of the disaster that Cromwell launched one of the first ever national appeals for the relief of the town. St Mary’s Church was rebuilt and is unusual in that it looks more like a chapel meeting room, than the interior of a church, refecting the period. During the fire, Dutch prisoners of war were in the town and the heroic efforts made by them at rescuing people were recognized once more when the Dutch Ambassador was invited to the dedication of the plaque in 1997.

The plaque for The Lord Chamberlain’s Men is in Russell Square (beside the Marlborough & District Conservative Club). A property in the vicinity was The White Hart Inn (destroyed in 1653) and was where Shakespeare’s company, The Lord Chamberlain’s Men, gave performances.

The Plaque for Samuel Pepys commemorates his stay “at the Hart” in Marlborough on June 15th 1668, about which he wrote... “a pretty fair town for a street or two” giving mention to “their houses on one side having their pent-houses supported with pillars, which makes it a good walk”. Historians continue a discussion as to which White Hart he may have referred, but the Plaque can be found on 114 High St.

The plaque for the Statutes of Marlborough 1267 is on the College gates, the site of the former Castle. Henry III had been married in the Castle and his last Parliament was held here in 1267 at which was passed “The Statutes of Marlborough”.

The plaque for the Battle of Marlborough 1642 is on the Castle and Ball Hotel. The West Country was generally Royalist in its sympathies with the Seymour family at the castle supporting the king. The town was a strong supporter of Parliament, however, and was garrisoned with Parliamentary troops. The Royalists attacked the town on December 5th 1642 from the north, entering via the alleyways that lead into the High Street. The Mayor, along with many citizens, was taken to Oxford in chains.

You can download a leaflet for a self guided walk here

The Castle on the Mound had fallen into disrepair and stones from the building were now being used locally.

Around 1700, Charles Seymour, the 6th Duke of Somerset, built a splendid mansion in the Castle grounds as a hunting lodge, now “C” house of the College. Marlborough was becoming an important staging point on the fast coach route between London, Bath and Bristol. The Seymour mansion became the Castle Inn, one of the most famous in England. This trade virtually ceased with the coming of Brunel’s Great Western Railway in 1841 which went through Swindon and contributed much to Marlborough’s economic decline. The celebrated Castle Inn was obliged to close but was not empty for long.

A group of enthusiasts for the educational principles expounded by Dr Arnold of Rugby School, was looking for a place to establish a school based on his methods. They chose the Castle Inn. At this stage Marlborough College was founded as a school to educate the sons of the clergy and the first boys started in 1843.  However the College did not have the endowments of the older public schools. Friction between staff and boys led to the “Great Rebellion” of October to December 1851 which involved the local militia. The problems overcome, the college went on to become one of the most famous public schools in the land.

The school was put on a sound footing after 1855 by Dr Cotton who had served under Thomas Arnold. He instituted the House system with House Masters, Priory and Preshute Houses being among the first to be established. The College went from strength to strength and achieved Dr Cotton’s aim of competing with the best English Public Schools such as Winchester and Rugby. The College was an all boys school until girls were admitted to the sixth form after 1968 and to the whole school after 1989.

Old Marlburians have not only served as Mayors of the town but gained 13 VCs and one George Cross in the two World Wars. They suffered 750 deaths in action in WWI and 415 in WWII. Famous old Marlburians include Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Eugenie, grand-daughter of the Queen, notorious double agent Anthony Blunt, poet John Betjemen and William Morris, poet, artist and social reformer, to mention but a few. The full list is available, like everything else, on the web.