The Chalke History Festival 2025
- Sarah
- Jun 23
- 14 min read
Updated: Jun 28
It's time to dust off the panama hats and unpack the colourful chinos, as the Chalke History Festival has finally opened its doors for the week. The UK's biggest history festival is back, with a new format and new Speakers' tents, although still with the firm favourites which make it so popular.
The usually peaceful setting of the Chalke Valley near Salisbury will spend the next week as home to thousands of visitors, living historians, speakers, volunteers, and staff. An important traditional feature is that the sun is back, and it promises to keep shining for the rest of the week. The volunteers, many fresh from their A-Levels are here to conduct visitors to their seats and ensure all runs smoothly. The site staff are poised with litter pickers, the military hardware is assembling ready to demonstrate its might, and the re-enactors are setting up their temporary homes and stalls.
There’s a new philosophy behind the Festival this year. The aim is to provide better value and to provide a broad range of events and talks which are accessible to all. And it works! More screens and more seating both in and outside the main tents make it easily possible for people to hear a number of speakers and try out a range of subjects. There are four tents this year, the biggest of which, the Guildhall Tent, will seat 900. The Forum is open sided with six strategically placed screens, with pub tables at the back allowing for greater ease of movement and for people to eat their picnics while listening to a talk.
For the first time, a Day Ticket buys access to everything on offer, including all of the talks (with the exception of interactive activities like Sword School). If you do want exclusivity then there are various categories of membership of the Chalke History Club which give priority booking, parking and reserved seating.
The top tier of membership gives access to the very luxurious Plantagenet Lounge with refreshments, comfortable sofas and very fancy umbrellas. But the overall intention is very clearly to get all visitors involved and interested in as much varied history as is possible.
All of the favourites are unchanged though. The sunshine, the big top bar, the fairground rides, the varied food trucks, the bright colours against the lush green grass and bright blue sky, the eclectic mix of living historians, the mixture of smells such as gunsmoke, oil, and newly threshed hay, the random sounds which include the crack of gunshot, an accordion and engines whirring - they all combine to make this a unique sensory experience.
Today and tomorrow, the site is host to the schools, who come for a day of education and fun, listening to some of the biggest names in history give talks on relevant A-Level and GCSE subjects. This year there are more evening talks for the public, who were all eagerly queuing outside at 4pm, waiting to get in as soon as the kids had gone.
Tracy Borman took delight in announcing that she was officially the first speaker at the Festival and gave us the story behind Hans Holbein’s Ambassadors. Holbein’s portraits and paintings were the equivalent of court photographs, dazzlingly realistic, giving us a strong flavour of high ranking Tudor life. There was detailed analysis of the the hidden clues in the famous painting of the two French ambassadors resident in England in 1533 - subtle inclusions like a broken lute string, which pointed to the turmoil and division in Europe following the Reformation. The new screens in the tent really proved their worth, with even people at the back able to look at the paintings in detail as she was describing them, a real enhancement to the experience.
A familiar aspect of the history festival is being utterly torn over which talk to listen to when they clash, and we sacrificed a talk on our beloved Edwardian era to listen to Trump and the End of Liberal Democracy: What Next? a talk between political philosopher John Gray and Cambridge Professor of Political Economy, Helen Thompson. In a truly momentous opening, they explained that when they conceived the idea for this talk some time ago, Trump had yet to be inaugurated. Since discussing their talk this morning and presenting it this evening, Iran had bombed Qatar to avenge America's attack on them. It felt as if we were living in critical history, with events happening at such an speed that it is impossible to comprehend it. However, with these two discussing it with such clarity and erudition, the incomprehensible started to make sense.
Trump was not talked about as if he was some sort of madman or the lone wolf demagogue which much of today's divisive press narrative resorts to, he was discussed as a statesman and a product of his time: without the failure of the liberal state of previous US governments, he would not exist as he does. He is gifted, inscrutable and a lot more measured than people assume; when he writes a tweet or a post, he is not ranting, raging and frothing at the mouth as many of us imagine, he is very calm and very in control.
They likened the situation the world is in now to the days before World War I, when it was not just one big power, but many countries involved, all playing each other off, seeking and breaking alliances. They explained how the Hamas attack of 2023 changed the landscape of the Middle East, leaving it wide open to events such as todays; it all seems so random yet there is a lot more reason and logic behind what is going on.
The talk took us through events in Ukraine, the role of China, Trump's stated intention to annex Canada not being quite as crazy as it seems, the role of Elon Musk, Europe now being mostly de-industrialised with little military power. They emphasised the current American weakness - the fear that a financial crisis is already looming, that tariffs will fail to work and that Chinese dominance in AI and technology will increase. The education system in the US produces lawyers and financiers, that of China produces engineers, industrialists and technicians. Will the world lose faith in America because of its coming inferiority and its political dysfunction?
When it came to questions from the audience, one man asked, "Can you offer us any grounds for optimism at all?", which got a huge laugh from the audience. John Gray said he couldn't do that, he was just presenting the facts about the world, but that others have lived through much worse periods of history than we are. In the West, we have an overly optimistic and facile view of the world, and if things aren't going our way and there is no progress, we assume that it is end times, as we have a tendency to be too apocalyptic.
It was a harrowing talk, yet the speakers were so incredibly knowledgeable and intelligent, that despite its gloom, we still emerged back into the setting sunlight with some reassurance that in a world which still has history festivals, there was still hope for the future ahead.
Tomorrow sees talks from Michael Palin and the wonderful Tom Holland, and in the days ahead we have many festival favourites such as James Holland, Al Murray, Ben MacIntrye and, a highlight for many will be Anthony Scaramucci, once White House Communications Director under President Trump, who may be able to throw more light on these interesting times we live in.
Go to https://www.chalkefestival.com/ for more information
Day Two
Day Two was another day for the schools, this time with bus loads of secondary school students filling the site for a day of talks and activities.
The festival opened to the general public at 4pm, who again were queuing up to get in, with a mad rush to see Michael Palin, who gave an amusing talk on his latest diaries to a packed out audience, which over spilled onto the picnic tables outside.
Later on and as the sheep grazed quietly on the hills above the Guildhall Tent, Tom Holland explained to a rapt audience that his love of Roman history had begun here, in this very valley, where he played as a child and had also met the local vicar, the Reverend Neil Benson, who introduced him to the Roman centurions who were once stationed here, and also to the biographies of Roman Emperors written by Suetonius.
He described the work of Suetonius as a sensational source for a fascinating period of history, biographies amazingly rich and detailed, which continue to haunt the imagination long after you have finished reading them. He then took us through the lives of many of these Caesars, with much humorous commentary - Otho who wore a toupee and so could not be taken seriously, Vitellius who ate too many pies, Vespasian rising from humble origins. We had some inevitable wars and battles, some horrific death scenes and some astonishing licentious behaviour (“Tiberius was the worst - but you need to buy the book to find out exactly…..”). A great talk from one of the best, most erudite and always entertaining speakers at the Chalke Festival.
Day 3
The first full day of public access has seen over 20 talks, in subjects ranging from the Ptolemies to the Soviets, culminating in a performance of Henry V. More Living Historians have arrived on site, the foggy curl of wood smoke now joining the eclectic sights and scents which permeate the valley.
One of the very best aspects of the History Festival is the sheer incongruity of seeing the varied mix of Living Historians wandering around the site; a medieval peasant chatting away to an American GI or 16th century militia walking alongside a Neolithic hut dweller. They are what make the festival for me, the part that complements the academic talks and makes the past something more real, alive and current. They lighten what can be a heavy mood, particularly after a talk which has left you reeling; several this year have inevitably discussed the current state of the world, which seems to be teetering on the edge of war.
Ehud Barak was one such talk - former Prime Minister of Israel and one of their most decorated soldiers. Although he gave some hope, the message was a bleak one with no obvious solutions, the rage in Israel after the October 7th attack in 2023 and the desire in some parts of Israeli society for bloodthirsty revenge mean that there is unlikely to be a peaceful solution, for now at least.
Simon Jenkins in his Short History of British Architecture took his audience through a brief resumé of architectural styles from the classical through the Gothic, back again through the Renaissance and on into modernism - which he described as a complete failure to deliver what people actually wanted. His anger against the brutalist monoliths following WWI I that led to depravation and crime was clear, as was his rage against the architects and governments that permitted it to happen. He ended with a very pointed contrast between the deserted piazza in London at the base of the Shard, and the bustling and cheerful Borough Market only a few hundred yards away where local people had decided what they needed and worked out, architecturally, how to achieve it. Whether today’s planners are listening to real people, during the existing rush for new houses, is highly debatable.
The Dining Tent has started serving its splendid lunches and your intrepid reporters decided they had to experience Lunch in the Dining Tent in the interests of good journalism. This turned out to be a great treat. Long tables beautifully decorated with colourful fresh flowers in milk bottles and tomato tins, and a simple but delicious meal, sitting next to historically minded people, so good conversation flowed easily.
The food stalls here offer a huge variety of choice, from beef burgers to crepes, veggie flans and smoothies - but if you would like a little exclusive luxury this is the place to eat.
The highlight of the day was definitely Anthony Scaramucci, Financier and former White House Communications Director, in conversation with James Holland, discussing the "Age of Dishonour, the Changing Values of the President from FDR to Trump". The Guildhall Tent was packed to capacity and spilt over to the tables and screens outside as they took us on a fascinating and knowledgeable journey through the presidents, providing much insight into the historical developments which brought us Trump for a second term.
Scaramucci explained how presidents such as Truman and FDR had had a Christian orthodoxy about them, looking for moral guidance to help them govern and basing their decisions on what was best for the people. From 1945 until 1971, America had the highest standard of living in the world, where a blue collar worker could afford a house, his wife could stay at home and his children could grow up into a brighter future of the American Dream. With Nixon and Watergate, collective trust in the president was lost, and since then the presidents have succumbed to baser instincts and so ruled over a very different country.
After the 1970s, both the Democrats and Republicans got together to stop a 3rd party from being able to get into the White House - Scaramucci likened Washington to a hot tub, where everyone in there is sipping champagne, smoking cigars and finding out who can be bought and who can't, and if they can't, they're kicked out of the hot tub.
He also told us how voting boundary lines are being redrawn, based on how politicians think the residents will vote - this is the politicians picking the voters and not what could be considered a true democracy. Today's Congress has a 14% approval rating, only slightly higher than that of Kim Jong Un.
Since the days of Bush II, who blew the recovery and gave away all the money to banks and skewed everything in favour of the big companies rather than the people, there has been a series of financial crises which has led to poverty and financial anxiety. People are cross, the Tea Party and similar movements were created as a result of this, which in turn led to the MAGA movement we have today. Trump (or the Orange Maniac as Scaramucci called him) wasn't created in a vacuum, he is a product of this background, and is playing into people's hatreds, preying upon the weaker parts of human nature and using it to create division.
Scaramucci said that he missed all of this at first, he got sucked into the world of Washington with its corruption and forgot about his background and his family. However, he only lasted as Communications Director for 11 days, a period of time now referred to as a Scaramucci. As James Holland said, Liz Truss lasted in politics for 4.1 Scaramuccis, and Elon Musk for 13 of them.
It was an exceptional talk, and Scaramucci proved himself to be highly intelligent, funny and yet very modest for a man with such an impressive background.
Day 4
A drizzly start soon led into brilliant sunshine, and there were some equally brilliant talks today. Second World War Morning this time focused on War in the Far East, while popular author Dan Jones gave two packed out talks on Warrior Kings and Agincourt.
An unusual and fascinating talk was given at the new Henge Stage by Lance Geiger, otherwise known as The History Guy on You Tube, and Jackson van Uden from History with Jackson, which has a significant presence on Tik Tok. The subject matter was "Communicating British History: An Influencer's Perspective".
They discussed the pitfalls and benefits of using social media as a way to communicate history. On the one hand they only have a limited time to impart their knowledge - 90 seconds on Tik Tok - which doesn't allow for context, methodology and nuance, but equally it makes the subject matter much more available to a wide range of people.
Other issues are that social media won't allow creators to discuss death, killing or dictators, which is a problem when dealing with most historical matters, and runs the risk of people not learning about the very history that we need to remember the most. It was an excellent discussion, with one of the volunteers saying it was the best that they had had in the Henge.
A later talk was by Laurence Edwards, the sculptor who created The Walking Men sculptures which grace this year's festival. He gave us an interesting background of how bronze has been used in sculpting across time, starting with the copper seams which ran through 'sweat caves' and how ancient man discovered bronze, before telling us about his relationship with it, saying that he uses bronze because every culture across time has expressed itself in bronze.
He also told us the background of The Walking Men, which is a truly enigmatic piece. Many years ago he had been sculpting in a forest when a herd of deer walked by. Every one of them looked directly at him except for the one in the front. This stuck with him and over the years he created smaller versions of these walking men, at one time thinking of the one looking away as either a hostage or a leader.
Over time, and as they evolved into the 8 foot figures we see at the festival, he sees them as people on a journey together, leaving their lands and heading off to find a new place to belong. The objects attached to them, that almost seem to grow out of them, are indecipherable talismans from their former home that they have forgotten the meaning of but somehow know that they are significant.. It was a thought provoking and entertaining talk.
James Holland, Mick Ryan and Hamish de Breton-Gordon spoke passionately - and compassionately - about Russia’s history of ineptitude in warfare. The figures are shocking -approximately 26 million people died in WWII - many millions in battle, many because of the Russians’ own scorched earth policy and deliberate decimation of its citizens. And now they have lost one million men in Ukraine and continue to lose 1000 a day. The speakers asked what kind of mentality puts so little value on human life that they allow this to happen? So often it is due to poor command at all levels, poor training, gross inefficiency and underlying corruption. And, as long as the aims of the war are achieved, the means of achieving them are unimportant. In Imperial Russia, Soviet Russia and Putin’s Russia, the story is the same. The culture seems to be the greater the sacrifice, the greater the achievement. It was an excellent, if very sobering, discussion.
The talks ended with Scaramucci taking the stage again, this time to 'dish the dirt' on Trump. To the biggest crowd in festival history, he gave us some incredible and very humorous insights into the 'Orange Maniac', even dropping the f-bomb at one very appropriate point, which may also be another festival first.
Day 5
Friday started with a packed Guildhall tent, who gathered to listen to Francis Dearnley, Dominic Nicholls and Adeline Pojzman-Pontay give the latest news from Ukraine after 3 years and 124 days since Russia’s invasion. On the live link to Ukraine was the human rights lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Oleksandra Matviichuk.
The present situation is one of stalemate: there has been little movement on the front line for six months because of the deployment of drones which prevent either side from launching an attack without been spotted and destroyed. So Russia continues its relentless aerial attacks every night, waging war on the civilian population in the hope of breaking the will of the people and the government. Meanwhile Putin now looks to Trump’s “diplomacy” to bring about the defeat and subjugation of Ukraine. Oleksandra Matviichuk described the terrorism and horrors that are currently being inflicted on the Ukrainian soldiers and civilians - brutality, rape, torture, the seizure and kidnapping of children - terrible war crimes for which Russia is not being held to account. We were reminded forcefully that people in Europe, whose leaders vacillate and stand well back, are only saved from all of this because Ukraine is doing the fighting for us.
Anne Sebba spoke to a (largely female) audience about the women’s orchestra of Auschwitz, which she subtitled “A Story of Survival”. Her purpose was to give life and humanity back to these 45/50 women, about half Jewish, half Christian, who had been forced to play their instruments as a “marching band” to accompany the camp women going daily to hard labour in the munitions factories or at the demolition sites.
Anne Sebba described the various women and their musical talent, some of whom she has subsequently met personally and heard their harrowing stories. Particular tribute was paid to Alma Rosé, the Austrian and Jewish violinist and leader of the orchestra who did her best to include as many young Jewish girls as possible to save them from death. It was a very moving tribute to these little known victims of the Holocaust.
Social historian Annie Gray gave a brilliant talk on the changing history of the British High Street.
With much enthusiasm, she described the change from the days when we had a lot more freedom of choice over what we bought; when we could have clothing designed to fit us by dressmakers and tailors, or buy ingredients in the quantities we wanted, to now, when clothing is one size fits all, even though it doesn't, and we are forced to buy food in quantities that the retailers want us to.
She ended her talk with a plea for people to stop using Amazon and instead shop with local and independent retailers, before they disappear altogether.
Tomorrow is the weekend, and with it will come the families. The site will get busier, but there will be more activities and events for everyone to watch and get involved in, as well as evening entertainment when the Chalke Valley Tap will be filled with people enjoying the party into the late hours.