King Alfred's Tower Stourton, England Gothic tower

King Alfred's Tower Stourton, England Gothic tower mentioned in Thomas Hardy poem "The Channel Firing." KING ALFRED’S TOWER IS ONE of many “follies” built in Britain. Follies are those buildings erected by the upper classes during the heights of British power for the sole purpose of displaying wealth and entertaining friends. This particular folly was built to celebrate a victory by the Saxon, King Alfred, over the Danes in AD 878 and is the legendary site where the King raised his standard prior to the battle. Built by the Hoare banking family, the triangular tower is constructed from over one million red bricks and stands 50 meters in height. Work on the tower began in 1762 and was completed in 1779 with the addition of a ten-foot-high statue of King Alfred in an alcove above the entrance. Source : atlasobscura website Photographer @tom _juenemann @trisrowcliffe @jameslloydcole