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96-532: The Battle of the Beanfield took place over several hours on 1 June 1985, when Wiltshire Police prevented The Peace Convoy , a convoy of several hundred New Age travellers , from setting up the 1985 Stonehenge Free Festival in Wiltshire , England. The police were enforcing a High Court injunction obtained by the authorities prohibiting the 1985 festival from taking place. Around 1,300 police officers took part in

192-403: A smoulder . The food is then placed in the oven and covered. This covered area can be used to bake bread or other various items. Steaming food in an earth oven covers a similar process. Fire-heated rocks are put into a pit and are covered with green vegetation to add moisture and large quantities of food. More green vegetation and sometimes water are then added, if more moisture is needed. Finally,

288-564: A Polynesian oven. Examples from the European prehistoric vary in form but are generally bowl-shaped and shallow in depth (30–45 cm), with diameters between 0.5 and 2 metres. Exceptions do exist, such as the Irish Fulacht fiadh , in common use up to the Middle Ages. In Greek cuisine , there is also a tradition of kleftiko ("thief style") dishes, ascribed to anti-Turkish partisans during

384-629: A covering of earth is added over everything. The food in the pit can take up to several hours to a full day to cook, regardless of the dry or wet method used. Today, many communities still use cooking pits for ceremonial or celebratory occasions, including the indigenous Fijian lovo , the Hawaiian imu , the Māori hāngī , the Mexican barbacoa , and the New England clambake . The central Asian tandoor use

480-509: A documentary shown on Channel 4 in 1991. Nick Davies reported for the Observer that "There was glass breaking, people screaming, black smoke towering out of burning caravans and everywhere there seemed to be people being bashed and flattened and pulled by the hair. Men, women and children were led away, shivering, swearing, crying, bleeding, leaving their homes in pieces." Freelance photographer Ben Gibson, engaged by The Observer that day,

576-506: A journalist. He also remarked on the number of people that had been "clubbed" by police including those "holding babies in their arms". He felt that an inquiry should be held into what had happened. Sabido later claimed that when he went back to the ITN library to look at the rushes , most of the footage had "disappeared, particularly some of the nastier shots." Some of this missing footage was later rediscovered and incorporated into Operation Solstice

672-603: A registered charity which operates its own helicopter; the charity leased the Devizes airbase until it moved to a newly built base near Melksham in June 2018. Between 2013 and 2019, a collaboration with the Avon & Somerset and Gloucestershire forces covered roads policing, firearms and police dogs. As of 20 August 2021 , the Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC)

768-508: A result, Wiltshire became the first county to use the provisions of the Act to form a county-level police force, with Wiltshire Constabulary being established on Wednesday 13 November 1839 at The Bear Hotel, Devizes , mere hours before the second ( Gloucestershire ). Wiltshire Constabulary's first chief constable was Captain Samuel Meredith , a distinguished Royal Navy officer. An advertisement

864-440: A roof in case of rain, and it is separate from the house. There are no walls, which allows the smoke from the umu to escape. The Samoan umu starts with a fire to heat rocks which have been tested by fire as to whether they will explode upon heating. These rocks are used repeatedly but eventually are discarded and replaced when it is felt that they no longer hold enough heat. Once the rocks are hot enough, they are stacked around

960-610: A stand-off developed that persisted for several hours. According to the BBC, "Police said they came under attack, being pelted with lumps of wood, stones and even petrol bombs". Conversely, The Observer states the travellers were not armed with petrol bombs and that police intelligence suggesting so "was false". Eventually the police launched another attack during which the worst of the violent police behaviour took place. According to The Observer , during this period pregnant women and those holding babies were clubbed by police with truncheons and

1056-458: A traditional element of New England cuisine, traditionally uses a type of ad hoc earth oven (usually built on a beach). A large hole is dug into the sand and heated rocks are added to the bottom of the hole. A layer of seaweed is then laid on top to create moisture and steam, followed by the food. Finally, another layer of seaweed is added to trap in the steam and cook the food, which mainly consists of shellfish and vegetables. The curanto of

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1152-414: A very pregnant woman being "repeatedly clubbed on the head" by police, many of whom had their ID numbers covered up. He also saw police with hammers smashing up the dashboards of several of the now-abandoned motor-coach homes. Cardigan also described how he was approached by the police the following day, who wanted permission to remove travellers who were still at Savernake: "They said they wanted to go into

1248-495: A very sour taste in the mouth." In court, individual police officers were difficult to identify, as they had hidden their identification numbers on the day. Despite this, one police sergeant was convicted of an assault occasioning actual bodily harm on a member of the Convoy. Police radio and video was used as evidence during the court case, however there was a recording gap in both the radio and video recordings. The recording gap in

1344-605: Is Philip Wilkinson. The police and crime commissioner is scrutinised by the Wiltshire Police and Crime Panel, made up of elected councillors from the local authorities in the police area. Before the first PCC was elected in 2012, the force was under the local oversight of the Wiltshire Police Authority. The police authority had nine councillor members, who were appointed from Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council , and eight independent members, one of whom

1440-513: Is also a police post at Leigh Delamere services on the M4. In 2021, ten former station buildings were offered for sale, namely Marlborough, Malmesbury, Warminster, Highworth, Westbury, Cricklade, Alderbury, Calne, Pewsey and Wilton. The facilities at Chippenham (Monkton Park), Corsham (Springfield campus), Salisbury (Bourne Hill) and Tisbury (Nadder Centre) are within Wiltshire Council buildings;

1536-539: Is one of the safest counties in the UK, with the 6th lowest crime rate per 1000 people in England. Recorded crime dropped by 7%, or 2,706 crimes, between April 2009 and March 2010. Wiltshire Police's detection rate is 6% higher than average, at 28%. Wiltshire Police also have a favourable public image with the 2nd best in the UK for the public perceptions that police are dealing with anti-social behaviour effectively, and 3rd best in

1632-497: Is owned by the Earl of Cardigan 's family. The Earl of Cardigan decided to follow the convoy on his motorbike. The Earl describes that during the initial confrontation there were negotiations with police who insisted that the travellers would not be allowed to pass. The travellers subsequently began entering into a field. Then "police rushed out on foot, from behind their barricades. Clutching drawn truncheons and riot shields, they ran round to

1728-545: Is sometimes used for celebratory cooking in North Africa, particularly Morocco : a whole lamb is cooked in an earth oven (called a tandir , etymologically related to the Central- and South-Asian tandoor and possibly descended from an Akkadian word tinuru ) in a manner similar to the Hawaiian kālua . Among Bedouin and Tuareg nomads, a simple earth oven is used – often when men travel without family or kitchen equipment in

1824-678: The 2006 FIFA World Cup . Wiltshire Police responded to a fatal shooting in Savernake Forest on 19 August 1987, which escalated to a further 15 killings in the neighbouring police area ( Thames Valley Police ) and came to be called the Hungerford massacre . Between 2007 and 2011 the Wiltshire town of Wootton Bassett was host to the repatriations of fallen service men and women who died in Afghanistan and Iraq . The bodies were brought through

1920-642: The Chiloé Archipelago consists of shellfish , meat, potatoes, milcao chapaleles , and vegetables traditionally prepared in an earth oven. It has spread to the southern areas of Chile . The huatia or watia and pachamanca are traditional earth ovens of the Andean regions of Peru , Bolivia , and Chile. They are both indigenous practices that pre-date the Inca Empire . In China, dishes such as beggar's chicken were originally prepared with earth ovens, where

2016-480: The County Police Act 1839 . This established a framework and some government funding for magistrates in a county to form a police force based on London's Metropolitan Police, though there was no requirement for them to do so. In the same year the Act passed, groups of labourers had rioted across Wiltshire over the price of food and the introduction of new farm equipment, starting fires and destroying machinery. As

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2112-597: The Second World War , possibly one of the biggest in English legal history. Two years after the event, a Wiltshire police sergeant was found guilty of Actual Bodily Harm as a consequence of injuries incurred by a member of the convoy during the Battle of the Beanfield. In February 1991 a civil court judgement awarded 21 of the travellers £24,000 in damages for false imprisonment, damage to property and wrongful arrest. The award

2208-570: The Solomon Islands the word in Pidgin is Motu. Despite the similarities, there are many differences in the details of preparation, their cultural significance, and current usage. Earth ovens are said to have originated in Papua New Guinea and have been adopted by the later arriving Polynesians. The Samoan umu uses the same method of cooking as many other earth ovens and is closely related to

2304-507: The 1970s. The People's Free Festival at Windsor ran from 1972 until 1974 when it was violently terminated by the authorities. Stonehenge Free Festival began in 1974. In 1975 the Windsor festival switched to Watchfield but did not prove successful at the abandoned military site. Consequently, The People's Free Festival at Stonehenge became the focal point of the movement. In 1980, the Festival

2400-411: The 1998 album Mr. Love Pants , by Ian Dury & The Blockheads , was inspired by Dury's experiences during the incident. The police riot is a feature of the 2001 fictional novel He Kills Coppers by Jake Arnott , partially following changes in police culture between the 1960s and the 1980s, later made into an ITV TV series. The confrontation is also featured in the 2018 novel The Fountain in

2496-421: The 1999 summer solstice English Heritage granted "limited access" to Stonehenge to neo-druids . This access permission was later rescinded when 200 New Age travellers broke on to the site. Twenty people were arrested. Despite repeated calls, an inquiry into the events of 1 June 1985 has never been honoured. In the 1985 song "Stonehenge" by Poison Girls , the Battle of the Beanfield is referenced, highlighting

2592-566: The 2017 review stated a goal to increase the use of shared buildings. In late 2019 and early 2020, officers began using Wiltshire Council libraries in Malmesbury, Westbury , Downton and Wilton as "touchdown" points, to increase contact with the public. Wiltshire Police's headquarters used to be on Bath Road in Devizes, formerly the Wiltshire Militia Stores; it was acquired in 1879 by Wiltshire Police as their headquarter, and nearby

2688-450: The Battle of the Beanfield, stating: "The Police operation had been planned for several months and lessons in rapid deployment learned from the miners' strike were implemented." Most independent eyewitness accounts of the events relate that the police used violent tactics against men, women and children, including pregnant women; and purposely damaged the vehicles used by the convoy. The travellers had departed from Savernake Forest , which

2784-464: The Beanfield", from their 1991 album Levelling the Land , was inspired by the Battle of the Beanfield. British progressive-rock band Solstice wrote a song which comments on the Battle. "Circles" is found on their 1997 album of the same name, and includes what sounds like reporting from the battle, with Kim Sabido's voice-over. The song "Itinerant Child", by Ian Dury and Chaz Jankel , which appears on

2880-411: The Convoy received head injuries. An ambulance was allowed through to take them to hospital. Police Officer Bernie Lund, who was on scene, claimed that during the stand-off, petrol bombs and sticks were thrown at officers. However The Guardian states that travellers were not armed with petrol bombs and that police intelligence suggesting that they were "was false". At 7pm officers in riot gear entered

2976-578: The Forest by Tony White . Wiltshire Police Wiltshire Police , formerly known as Wiltshire Constabulary , is the territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Wiltshire (including the Borough of Swindon ) in South West England . The force serves 722,000 people over an area of 1,346 square miles (3,490 km ). In terms of officer numbers, it is the second smallest force in

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3072-456: The Hawaiian earth oven, the imu , which is made underground by digging a pit (although generally the umu is done above ground rather than in a pit). It is a common day-to-day method of preparing roasted foods, with modern ovens being restricted to western-style houses. In the traditional village house, gas burners will be used inside the house to cook some food in pots. The umu is sheltered by

3168-458: The Midlands and even to northern England. Not all children and parents ended up in the same region. Most of the arrests did not result in successful prosecutions. Traveller Alan Lodge, speaking to the BBC, described it as "an ambush that happened on a small, mild mannered bunch of people". The UK miners' strike had ended earlier in the same year, and police compared this event with tactics used at

3264-570: The Neolithic period onward, with examples from this period found at the sites of Rinyo and Links of Notland on Orkney , but are more commonly known in the Bronze and Iron Ages from sites such as Trethellan Farm , Newquay and Maiden Castle, Dorset , and in Scandinavia. Many pot boilers from British prehistoric sites are now considered to be the by-product of cooking with stones, in something similar to

3360-632: The Pacific, which some islands use the similar word umu, but not all Micronesian islands having many different languages use that base word umu, however, other words are used instead of umu - in Fiji it is a lovo , in Rotuman it is a koua and in Tahiti , it is a ahima'a . In Papua New Guinea , "mumu" is used by Tok Pisin and English speakers, but each of the other hundreds of local languages has its own word. In

3456-729: The Police Memorial Trust has erected 50 memorials nationally to some of those officers. The following officers of Wiltshire Police have died during the course of their duties: The Wiltshire Police Ports Unit was established in April 2000. It is responsible for policing all non-designated airfields in Wiltshire, making sure that legislation is followed, particularly the Terrorism Act 2000 . It also obtains any intelligence on smuggling and contraband. Ports in Wiltshire include Old Sarum Airfield and Clench Common Airfield . The air support unit

3552-493: The Trowbridge Christmas Eve murder in 1925 and escorting Louis Blériot when displaying his famous cross-channel aeroplane. Between July 2022 and May 2024, Wiltshire Police was placed under " special measures " by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary. The Police Roll of Honour Trust and Police Memorial Trust list and commemorate all British police officers killed in the line of duty. Since its establishment in 1984,

3648-673: The UK for the public perceptions that police are dealing with drunk and disorderly behaviour effectively. Drink driving in Wiltshire was highlighted as a problem in the National Summer 2010 Drink Drive Campaign that saw 2.87% of 3377 positive for drink driving in June 2010. However this is a drop of 3.53% from 2009. A report from March 2010 by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary placed Wiltshire Police among 10 forces that were graded as being 'excellent' and improving on reducing crime, 'fair' at protecting citizens from serious harm, and 'fair' for confidence and satisfaction. Wiltshire

3744-649: The United Kingdom (after the City of London Police ). Prior to the 1830s, policing in Wiltshire was the responsibility of petty and parish constables, who were supervised by magistrates . This was largely ineffective as they were unpaid and untrained, and so independent and forces made up of private citizens such as the Devizes Prosecution Society emerged, and these did not immediately disappear when professional police forces came into being. The Yeomanry Cavalry

3840-470: The allegation of assault in Melksham Custody against Somerville. Andrews claimed that Somerville had grabbed hold of the door frame of the cell and on letting go she had fallen to the floor. Mr Justice Bean declared Somerville was drunk when she was put in the cells and he believed that Andrews did not intend to throw her to the floor. Deputy Chief Constable David Ainsworth, formerly ACC of Kent Police,

3936-580: The boroughs in Wiltshire, spending almost all his £400 salary on travel. The first ranks were only constable and superintendent, but sergeant, inspector, detectives and five classes of constable were later introduced. Notable events for Wiltshire Police in the 19th century include the Rode Hill House murder in 1860 and the bomb explosion outside Salisbury Guildhall in September 1884. In 1909, His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary raised concerns over

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4032-404: The bread. Sometimes this type of bread is also made when the family is together, because people like the taste of it. The bread is often mixed with molten fat (sometimes oil or butter) and labneh (goat milk yoghurt) and then formed into a dough before eating. This bread is known as Arbut but may be known under other local names. Earth oven cooking was very common in the past and continues into

4128-585: The bulbs of sotol . The Mayan pib and Andean watia are other examples. In Mesoamerica and the Caribbean nations, barbacoa is a common practice. Barbacoa, originally a Taino word referring to the pit itself, consists of slow-roasted meat in a maguey -lined pit, popular in Mexico alongside birria , tortillas , and salsa . The clambake , invented by Native Americans on the Atlantic seaboard and considered

4224-476: The campsite 'suitably equipped' and 'finish unfinished business'. Make of that phrase what you will. I said to them, that if it was my permission they were after, they did not have it. I did not want a repeat of the grotesque events that I'd seen the day before." ITN Reporter Kim Sabido was at the scene and recorded a piece-to-camera in which he claimed that he had witnessed "some of the most brutal police treatment of people" that he had seen in his entire career as

4320-541: The centre of Wiltshire. The operational headquarters are at Melksham for county division and Gablecross, South Marston , for Swindon division. The emergency communications centres for Wiltshire Police are at Devizes and Gablecross. The SNEN non-emergency call centre is at Devizes. Devizes is also the home of the Dog Squad and the training facilities for all new recruits. There are enquiry offices at Gablecross, Chippenham , Marlborough , Trowbridge , Melksham (south of

4416-542: The conflict between festival-goers and police forces. Singer Roy Harper 's song "Back to the Stones" refers to the Battle of the Beanfield. It was recorded in 1989 and appears on his 1993 live album Unhinged . The Hawkwind song "Confrontation" from the album Out & Intake includes a description of the day's events and includes a dramatisation of some events including the repeated phrase "I am not interested in anything you have to say". The Levellers ' song "Battle of

4512-656: The crowd and 22,000 participants. Wiltshire Police took part in Operation Fairline – the multi-agency response to the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in March 2018 at Salisbury – and Operation Fortis, which followed further poisonings in June at Amesbury . They received mutual support from 40 other forces, involving 1,200 officers. By June 2018 the cost of the first incident was estimated at £7.5 million, and in November total costs were projected to be £10.8m. Wiltshire

4608-432: The desert. The oven is mostly used to bake bread but is also used to cook venison and waran . When baking bread, the wheat or barley flour is mixed with water and some salt and then placed directly into the hot sands beneath the camp fire. It is then covered again by hot coal and left to bake. This kind of bread is eaten with black tea (in the absence of labneh ). The sand has to be knocked off carefully before consuming

4704-426: The driver's door of each vehicle, slamming their truncheons into the bodywork to make a deafening noise, and shouting at every driver, 'get out, get out, hand over your keys, get out'". He states that police were "smashing up vehicles" and instructions to "Get out!" often happened simultaneously, giving travellers no time to react before police used riot sticks to break the vehicles' windscreens. Cardigan described seeing

4800-457: The events of 1985, the four-mile blockade of Stonehenge was maintained for future summer solstices. Consequently, conflict between police and those trying to reach Stonehenge continued to take place every year. Neo-druid leader Arthur Uther Pendragon was arrested on each and every summer solstice between 1985 and 1999 whilst trying to access Stonehenge. In the summer of 1988 around 130 people were arrested and in 1989 that figure rose to 260. For

4896-531: The field and launched a final attack. Pregnant women and those holding babies were hit by police with truncheons according to The Observer , who also noted journalist Nick Davies stating that police were hitting "anybody (that) they could reach". When some travellers tried to escape by driving away through the field police allegedly threw truncheons, shields, fire-extinguishers and stones at them to stop them. The Observer and The Independent report that travellers' vehicles were smashed and set on fire. One traveller

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4992-462: The force was one of six that were subject to this additional scrutiny. A review in December 2022 found a decline in the force's performance in investigating crime effectively. In May 2024, the inspectorate found that the force had made good progress in the three areas of concern and therefore removed the 'Engage' monitoring. In the year 2007/8 complaints and allegations recorded slightly decreased from

5088-516: The former British India , laid the foundation stone of the new Wiltshire Police county headquarters at Devizes . Twice in the 1980s, Wiltshire Police officers had to cover for the prison officers of Erlestoke Prison when they went on strike. In 1985, the force was involved in the Battle of the Beanfield , which prevented a convoy of new age travellers , known as the Peace Convoy , from establishing

5184-513: The fourteenth Stonehenge free festival at Stonehenge . The incident led to accusations of a police riot . Most significantly the 1980s saw the introduction of the Police National Computer , command and control systems and the HOLMES investigation system. Also a national probationary training programme was introduced in all forces for new recruits. Notable events in this century include

5280-419: The inventor is said to have "dug a hole, lit a fire and buried the chicken." The Hakka of China that live in tulou have been known to use earth ovens to cook. In Taiwan , earth ovens ( Chinese : 炕窯 ) are also a popular way to cook. In early Taiwanese agricultural society, adults would take children to build earth ovens and cook simple ingredients like sweet potatoes and taro. Earth oven cooking

5376-470: The lack of a mounted division in the force. As a result, six constables were transferred to the new mounted division, which doubled to 12 the next year. Although the mounted division was not active every day, they were of particular use at the Salisbury Races , ceremonial duties such as escorting judges, and guarding the royal carriage. They were also occasionally loaned to neighbouring forces. The fate of

5472-523: The method primarily for uncovered, live-fire baking, which is a transitional design between the earth oven and the horizontal-plan masonry oven . This method is essentially a permanent earth oven made out of clay or firebrick with a constantly burning, very hot fire in the bottom. In many areas, archaeologists recognize "pit-hearths" as being commonly used in the past . In Central Texas , there are large " burned-rock middens" speculated to be used for large-scale cooking of plants of various sorts, especially

5568-533: The mounted division is unknown, but it most likely was ended during the introduction of motor vehicles in the 1920s. A roads policing unit was founded on 7 May 1939 at the urging of the Home Secretary. The force did not have a true Criminal Investigation Department until 1936. On 30 June 1857, the Magistrates Committee that oversaw the force expressed interest in forming an investigation department which

5664-538: The national average. Of the 460, 26% were investigated, 43% came to a resolution and 31% were withdrawn, dispensed with or discontinued. Of the 26% allegations investigated in 2007/8, 91% were unsubstantiated, 2% higher than the national average. In 1985, Wiltshire Police prevented a vehicle convoy of several hundred new age travellers from setting up at the 11th Stonehenge Free Festival at Stonehenge in Wiltshire , after site custodians English Heritage were granted an exclusion zone of 4 miles (6.4 km) around

5760-442: The operation against approximately 600 travellers. The convoy of travellers heading for Stonehenge encountered a police road block seven miles from the landmark. Police claimed that some traveller vehicles then rammed police vehicles in an attempt to push through the roadblock. Around the same time police smashed the windows of some of the convoy's vehicles and some travellers were arrested. The rest broke into an adjacent field, and

5856-485: The parcels of food which are wrapped in banana leaves or aluminium foil. Leaves are then placed over the assembly and the food is left to cook for a few hours until it is fully cooked. The Hawaiian imu was the easiest way to cook large quantities of food quickly and efficiently for the Hawaiians . Because their creation was so labor-intensive, imu s were only created for special events or ceremonies where it would be worth

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5952-481: The police set up a roadblock near Shipton Bellinger about 7 miles (11 km) from Stonehenge. This was achieved by tipping three lorry loads of gravel across the road. According to The Observer , the convoy evaded the main roadblock on the A303 by slipping down a side road but were then met with a second roadblock. At this juncture the police claim that some traveller vehicles rammed police vehicles in an attempt to escape

6048-413: The police were hitting "anybody they could reach". When some of the travellers tried to escape by driving away through the fields, The Observer stated that the police threw truncheons, shields, fire extinguishers and stones at them to try to stop them. Dozens of travellers were injured, and 537 travellers were eventually arrested. This represents one of the largest mass arrests of civilians since at least

6144-537: The police were unable to shut them down or implement the law. Consequently, most illegal drugs were unrestrictedly available and advertised for purchase. Traders at the festival were neglecting to obtain licences or pay taxes. Critics claimed that the 1984 festival had resulted in the destruction of archaeological information and on the site itself, "holes had been dug in Bronze Age barrows for latrines and as bread ovens , motorcycles had been ridden over them, churning

6240-496: The present – particularly for special occasions, since the earth oven process is very labor-intensive. In some part- Melanesian , Polynesian , and other closely related languages, the general term is "umu," from the Proto-Oceanic root *qumun (e.g. Tongan ʻumu , Māori umu or hāngī , Hawaiian imu , Samoan umu , Cook Island Māori umu ). In some non-Polynesian, part-Polynesian, and Micronesian parts of

6336-546: The previous year. Wiltshire Police has one of the lowest rates for 'incivility' allegations at 11%, but one of the highest for 'oppressive conduct or harassment' at 15% and 'breach of PACE Code C' at 9%. In the same 2007/8 period, Wiltshire Police received 234 complaints and 460 allegations. Wiltshire has an above-average 358 allegations per 100 officers, spread across five categories. Wiltshire Police are 1% or 0% lower on allegations except for 'incivility, impoliteness and intolerance', for which they receive 10% less allegations than

6432-437: The proposed 1985 festival from taking place. After staying the previous night in Savernake Forest , the Convoy on the morning of 1 June numbered up to 140 vehicles, most of them buses and vans converted into living spaces; it is estimated they contained 600 people. The police had laid down an exclusion zone 4 miles (6.4 km) around the perimeter of Stonehenge , which the convoy hoped to breach. The Convoy met resistance when

6528-489: The roadblock. At around the same time the police smashed the windscreens of traveller vehicles and arrested occupants. Most traveller vehicles broke into an adjacent field, by driving through a hedgerow according to one source. A stand-off consequently ensued. Travellers made attempts to negotiate with police but the officer in charge, Assistant Chief Constable Lionel Grundy, ordered that all travellers be arrested. There were outbreaks of violence during which several members of

6624-476: The role of DCC. The report also said the force was "ill-prepared" to deal with the "exceptional situation" of the harassment complaints made. Wiltshire Police responded saying that ACPO should share some of the burden as they had 'green lit' the application for the ACC to DCC promotion, a form that did not include a section for vetting. Earth oven To bake food, the fire is built, then allowed to burn down to

6720-400: The stones. A violent exchange between the travellers and police in riot gear took place over several hours. Eight police officers and 16 travellers were taken to hospital with minor injuries. One traveller suffered from a fractured skull. As much of the action took place in a field containing a bean crop, the events became known as the Battle of the Beanfield. A sergeant in the Wiltshire Police

6816-422: The surface. Fences had been torn down, and a thousand young trees cut down for firewood". The clean-up cost upwards of £20,000, besides the archaeological information that was lost. Landowners also claimed that damage to Stonehenge, other property damage, trespassing, recreational drug use and bathing naked in rivers had occurred during the festival. A civil high court injunction was consequently imposed prohibiting

6912-533: The time and hard work. An imu is created by first digging a 2- to 4-foot hole in the ground. Porous rocks are heated for a while and subsequently added to the bottom of the pit; next, a layer of banana stumps is added on top of them along with banana leaves. After the vegetation is laid down, the meat, fish, and any other foods are placed on top and covered once again with more vegetation. Wet cocoa sacks are also sometimes added on top to add even more moisture and trap in more heat. In Europe, earth ovens were used from

7008-534: The town at Hampton Park) and Salisbury . Custody units are at Gablecross and Melksham. The number of other sites was reduced after a 2017 review by the Police and Crime Commissioner. Swindon division has police posts at North Swindon, West Swindon and Swindon Centre. County division has sites at Cricklade , Royal Wootton Bassett , Calne , Malmesbury , Corsham , Bradford on Avon , Warminster , Tisbury , Mere , Devizes , Amesbury , Tidworth and Pewsey . There

7104-562: The town from RAF Lyneham on their way to the John Radcliffe Hospital at Oxford . Wiltshire Police were responsible for policing the crowds and any special events. Officers from Wootton Bassett station received a special award at the Jane's Police Awards for their contribution to policing the repatriations. Police were again praised for policing the 'Ride of Respect' in March 2010, the operation included planning, marshalling and policing

7200-402: The video footage was allegedly due to the video tape breaking when the convoy was initially halted at the roadblock. There was also evidence that radio logs of conversations between officers on the day of the battle had been altered. The Earl of Cardigan testified in court against Wiltshire Police. His testimony proved vital in supporting the allegation that police violence had been excessive. He

7296-419: The war, after which it slowly expanded, and in 1997 it had 170 detectives. Salisbury continued to have a separate police force, Salisbury City Police , from the rest of Wiltshire until World War II, when the two were merged. The merger took effect on 1 April 1943 and was initially a temporary measure, but became permanent after the war ended. On 6 July 1961, Sir Charles Carter Chitham , a retired policeman of

7392-507: Was a justice of the peace . The responsible government department is the Home Office . Wiltshire Police has two divisions – Swindon and Wiltshire – incorporating eight Community Policing Team areas. A proposal was made in 2013 to abolish the rank of Chief Inspector, but this proposal was eventually scrapped. The headquarters of Wiltshire Police is at London Road, Devizes , where it has always been because of its geographical position in

7488-457: Was a row of houses where senior officers lived. The building has since been demolished. Wiltshire Police remained at this site for 85 years until the early 1960s when the organization required a larger headquarters and the new building was commissioned on the London Road site, which was opened in 1964. The station at Highworth closed in 2018 and the station (with adjoining house) at Wroughton

7584-491: Was active in Wiltshire during this period and utilised as a quasi-police force. The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 standardised the structure and responsibilities of borough councils in England and Wales, including requiring they provide a professional police force. The Act applied both to new boroughs formed on application in large industrial cities, and to 178 already incorporated boroughs, including Salisbury (officially known as New Sarum until 2009). The New Sarum Police

7680-469: Was also among 13 forces classed as 'good' for local policing, and 13 forces that received no 'poor' grade in any category. In July 2022, the inspectorate found the force 'inadequate' in three areas: responding to the public, protecting vulnerable people – in particular, victims of domestic abuse – and making use of its resources. Consequently, Wiltshire Police began to be monitored under the 'Engage' process, sometimes called "special measures". At that time,

7776-517: Was an increase from a total of 11 in 2005. The increase resulted in a reduction of arrests at games, with 22 people being arrested attending games in 2005–06 compared to 39 arrests in 2004–05. Of the 22 arrests in 2005–06, 11 were for public disorder, 5 for violent disorder and the rest were made up of offences relating to missile throwing, racist chanting, pitch invasion, alcohol-related offences and one incident of being in possession of an offensive weapon. 33 Swindon fans were banned from travelling to

7872-675: Was arrested and charged with obstructing a police officer. He was later acquitted. Another freelance photographer, Tim Malyon, had to flee at one point. Twenty-four of the travellers sued Wiltshire Police for wrongful arrest, assault and criminal damage to themselves and their property. Six years after the event a verdict was reached. Twenty-one of the travellers were successful in their case and were awarded £24,000 in damages towards their false imprisonment, damage to property and wrongful arrest. The judge declined to award their legal costs and their compensation consequently went towards paying for this. Their barrister , Lord Gifford QC , stated "It left

7968-495: Was arrested near Melksham after being found asleep in her car, for failing to provide a specimen of breath for breath alcohol analysis. The custody officer in Melksham police station, Sergeant Mark Andrews, was accused of assaulting Somerville during her detention, including dragging her through the custody suite and dropping her onto the concrete floor of a detention cell. Andrews was initially found guilty of actual bodily harm and

8064-666: Was criticised by several national newspapers for acting as a witness against Wiltshire Police; Bill Deedes' editorial in The Daily Telegraph claimed he was a class traitor . Consequently, the Earl successfully sued for defamation . Legislation was introduced in the form of the Public Order Act 1986 and later the Criminal Justice Act 1994 that made the travellers' way of life increasingly difficult to sustain. Following

8160-616: Was found dead at his home on 22 March 2011. He had hanged himself. He had been removed from his normal duties while an "internal staff issue" was investigated. Wiltshire Police allowed South Wales Police and the Independent Police Complaints Commission to conduct an inquiry into the matter. The coroner released Wiltshire Police of any burden noting they had implemented 'comprehensive welfare arrangements' for Ainsworth. The independent report criticised Wiltshire Police for failing to properly vet Ainsorth when assuming

8256-481: Was founded in 1836, but was disbanded and reformed only two years later as the Salisbury City Police – the first modern police force to operate in Wiltshire. In the same year, a detachment of London's Metropolitan Police , which had been established in 1829, was called in to control riots. Social unrest in the 1830s led to the appointment in 1836 of a royal commission on policing in the counties, which led to

8352-477: Was founded with three of the 'most intelligent constables'. In 1936, three detective constables and a detective sergeant were appointed, but it was not until 1939 that an official head of the department was appointed, and a detective sergeant was appointed to take charge of new equipment such as that for the Photographic, Printing and Fingerprinting departments. CID remained stagnant in its development until after

8448-505: Was marred by significant violence, largely by biker groups. In 1984 the Department of the Environment passed management of Stonehenge and the surrounding land to English Heritage . By that time the festival had grown in size, the attendance figure for the 1984 festival was estimated at 100,000. Due to the high attendance figures there was little authority present at Stonehenge festivals and

8544-526: Was officially created in the spring of 1990, but Wiltshire Police had been renting helicopters since the late 1980s. They experimented with fixed-wing aircraft, a Robinson Beta 22 helicopter and an Aérospatiale Gazelle , but later chose a Bolkow Bo 105 in 1990, which was used for seven years until it was replaced by a McDonnell Douglas MD 902 Explorer . This helicopter was shared with the Great Western Ambulance Service , an arrangement that

8640-407: Was placed to recruit 200 constables who were paid 17/6d a week (£0.875). In those first years, new constables were simply given their uniform and an instruction booklet and then sent off to work without any training or guidance. Wiltshire Constabulary started operating from January 1840 and had filled almost all its posts by the summer. The chief constable spent the first months of his time visiting all

8736-509: Was seen in only one other area of the country. Besides the pilot, the helicopter carried an observer and a paramedic. The air support unit was based at the headquarters in Devizes, where a hangar was built in 1993. In 2014, the unit was merged into the National Police Air Service , meaning the force no longer owned or operated its own helicopter. From January 2015, the air ambulance function separated into Wiltshire Air Ambulance ,

8832-441: Was sentenced to six months in prison and faced dismissal from the police force. Assistant Chief Constable Patrick Geenty criticised his subordinate and apologised to Somerville. On 14 September 2010, Andrews was bailed after serving only six days of his sentence pending an appeal against his conviction to be held at Oxford Crown Court in November 2010. On 18 November 2010, Andrews was cleared of any wrongdoing with regards to

8928-439: Was sold at around the same time. Stations at Alderbury , Westbury and Wilton had closed by March 2020. Swindon Town Football Club on County Road attracts continuous police attention as the club has been known for hooliganism since the 1970s. Swindon Town has imposed banning orders on those supporters who cause disruption, criminal damage or are violent when attending games. There were 29 banning orders in place in 2006, which

9024-493: Was subsequently found guilty of having caused actual bodily harm to a traveller. Members of the convoy sued Wiltshire Police for wrongful arrest, assault and criminal damage as a result of the damage to themselves and their property. David Brudenell-Bruce, Earl of Cardigan who had witnessed the events, gave evidence against the police. After four months of hearings, 21 of the travellers were successful in their case and were awarded £24,000 in damages. In June 2008 Pamela Somerville

9120-509: Was swallowed by their legal bill as the judge did not award them legal costs. The British New Age Travellers movement developed in the 1970s with the intended purpose of attempting to create an alternative way of life. Travellers maintained themselves partly by travelling between, organising and trading at free festivals . After a stay with Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament demonstrators, one group of travellers came to be known as The Peace Convoy . The free festival scene thus also emerged in

9216-476: Was taken away with a suspected fractured skull. The large majority of the travellers, over 500, were arrested on suspicion of obstructing police and obstructing the highway . One source states that this represented the largest mass arrest of civilians in English legal history, another that it was the biggest figure since the Second World War . There were insufficient holding cells in local jails to hold all those arrested. Convoy members were transported throughout

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