Amesbury

Amesbury: church of St. Mary and St. Melor

Amesbury, town (parish), administrative and historic county of Wiltshire, southern England. It is situated in the southern part of the Salisbury Plain, in the valley of the River Avon (East, or Hampshire, Avon).

The region is rich in prehistoric remains, including Stonehenge, 1.5 miles (2.5 km) west of Amesbury, the greatest surviving megalithic structure in the British Isles (designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1986). At Amesbury (Ambresbyrig, or Ambresbery) a Witan, or Witenagemot, the Anglo-Saxon kings’ council of wise men, was held in 932. Now a small market town, it also caters to the needs of tourists visiting Stonehenge and serves such neighbouring army camps as Larkhill. Pop. (2001) 8,907; (2011) 10,724.