Rollright Stones

Our View

The Cotswolds only has one stone circle of note, but it’s a pretty good one, not to mention a sneaky beast. It’s one of three distinct ancient monuments on the side of the A3400 road between Shipston-on-Stour and Chipping Norton, near Long Compton. The monuments are believed to have been built at different times for different purposes. The names of the megaliths, the King’s Men, the Whispering Knights and the King Stone, derive from a legend explaining their origins. Long ago a band of soldiers met a witch. She told them that their leader might take seven long strides, and then ‘if Long Compton thou canst see, King of England thou shall be’. The aspiring monarch risked all, saw nothing and was, along with his followers, turned to stone. The Whispering Knights, clustered together off in their own tight circle, were traitors who planned to overthrow the king once he became ruler of all England. There’s a more banal origin story for the Stones too. The three monuments are said to date from 3000–2000 bc, during the Bronze Age. Scholars believe that there were originally 105 King’s Men, but there are now only 77, each 100 feet in diameter. The remaining 77 are mysteriously difficult to count. If you can count them three times in a row and get the same total, it’s said you will receive a wish. The Whispering Knights are believed to be all that remains of a Neolithic long barrow. The Stones are open to the public, but note that parking is limited.