12 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About Aldershot
From a village of 875 people to Olympic swimming and a Beatles gig nobody came to, here are twelve checked facts about Aldershot.
Aldershot was a village of 875 people in 1851 before the Army arrived in 1854. It has since hosted Olympic events, The Beatles (to an audience of about 18), a 1906 Army observatory and the largest equestrian statue in Britain. Rushmoor also has the highest share of Buddhists of any local authority in England and Wales.
Aldershot gets a hard time from people who have never looked closely. Here are twelve things that are true, checked against more than one source where we could, and well worth a look next time you are in town.
1. It was a village of 875 people
According to Wikipedia's Aldershot entry, the village had 875 residents in 1851. By 1861 the population was over 16,000. That jump came from one decision: in 1854 the War Department bought heathland near the village for Aldershot Garrison, a permanent training camp for the Army.
2. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert took a personal interest
The same Garrison article says the Queen and Prince Albert followed the camp's development closely, and that Albert established the Prince Consort's Library there in 1860. It is part of why Aldershot became known as the "Home of the British Army". The Aldershot Military Museum tells the story of soldier and civilian life in the town from 1854 onwards.
3. The Wellington Statue is the biggest of its kind in Britain
The bronze Duke of Wellington on Round Hill stands about 30 feet high and weighs around 40 tonnes, and was described as the largest equestrian statue in Britain when finished. Wikipedia says it was cast using cannon captured at Waterloo. Our full guide to the statue has the story.
4. London did not want it
The statue first stood on top of the arch at Hyde Park Corner in 1846. The Friends of the Aldershot Military Museum record that it was criticised as out of proportion with its setting and that Queen Victoria stepped in to stop it being dismantled when the arch was moved. The Prince of Wales suggested Aldershot, and it was handed over to the Army in August 1885.
5. The Beatles played to about 18 people
On 9 December 1961, at the Palais Ballroom, The Beatles played what was reported to be their first gig in the south of England. Accounts put the crowd at 18. Read the full story.
6. Aldershot hosted Olympic events in 1948
For the London Games, two parts of the modern pentathlon were held in Aldershot: the fencing at the Central Gymnasium on 31 July and the swimming at Aldershot Lido on 3 August.
7. The lido is nearly a century old
Aldershot Lido opened in 1930 on a ten-acre site and holds around 1.5 million gallons of water, according to Wikipedia. It is still a traditional outdoor pool, with an indoor pool alongside.
8. British flight began just up the road
Samuel Franklin Cody made what is recorded as the first official piloted, heavier-than-air flight in Great Britain on 16 October 1908, at Farnborough, a few miles from Aldershot. He had been appointed Chief Instructor of Kiting at the Balloon School in Aldershot in 1906 and was buried with military honours in Aldershot Military Cemetery. Wikipedia has his biography, and the museum has a Cody Gallery.
9. There is a Victorian-era observatory on Queens Avenue
The Aldershot Observatory was a gift to the Army from aviation pioneer Patrick Young Alexander, with its dome fitted in August 1906 and official opening on 22 December 1906. It houses an 8-inch refracting telescope made by Grubb of Dublin and is Grade II listed, per the listing record.
10. A field marshal, a novelist and an actor were all born here
Claude Auchinleck (1884), Ian McEwan (1948), Martin Freeman (1971) and Sugababes singer Amelle Berrabah (1984) were all born in Aldershot. Auchinleck and McEwan even share a birthday, 21 June.
11. There is a Victoria Cross hero in Princes Gardens
A life-size bronze of Kulbir Thapa Magar, the first Nepalese Gurkha to receive the Victoria Cross, was unveiled in Princes Gardens on 25 September 2021. It was commissioned by the Greater Rushmoor Nepali Community, and the sculptor was Hampshire-based Amy Goodman. See Wikipedia on Kulbir Thapa Magar and Mackenzie Smith.
12. Rushmoor has more Buddhists, proportionally, than anywhere else in England and Wales
Wikipedia's Rushmoor entry reports that the 2021 Census gave the borough the highest Buddhist share of any local authority in England and Wales. The 14th Dalai Lama opened the Buddhist Community Centre UK in Aldershot on 29 June 2015. More in our guide to Aldershot's Nepalese community.
Where next?
If any of this has made you curious, the Aldershot Military Museum is the best single place to start, and the history of Aldershot fills in the gaps.
Checked 5 October 2026. Details change, so follow the official links above before you travel.
Frequently asked questions
- When did Aldershot become the Home of the British Army?
- Aldershot Garrison was established in 1854, when the War Department bought heathland near the village as a permanent training camp (Wikipedia, Aldershot Garrison).
- How many people saw The Beatles in Aldershot?
- Most accounts say about 18 people were at the Palais Ballroom on 9 December 1961. One musician's later recollection puts it nearer 12, so figures vary.
- What Olympic events were held in Aldershot?
- Two parts of the 1948 modern pentathlon: fencing at the Central Gymnasium (31 July) and swimming at Aldershot Lido (3 August).
- Who was the first Nepalese Gurkha to receive the Victoria Cross?
- Kulbir Thapa Magar. A bronze statue of him was unveiled in Princes Gardens, Aldershot, on 25 September 2021.
- Where is the Wellington Statue?
- On Round Hill, next to the Garrison Church of All Saints. Historic England lists it as the Wellington Monument, Claycart Road, Aldershot, Grade II.
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