Dan Snow, a rival historian whom Tom Holland dubbed “deranged,” had suggested that Stonehenge was “overrated” and that visitors should instead visit Durham Cathedral.
Mr. Snow faced criticism when he suggested that anyone interested in British history visit Stirling Castle, Durham Cathedral, and Hadrian’s Wall in the North.
The TV host told the podcast Moon Under Water that Stonehenge was “a little awful,” and that those traveling from across the Atlantic would find it disappointing in comparison to other natural marvels like the Taj Mahal.
Tom Holland, a best-selling historian, was shocked when his colleague defiled the 5,000 monument.
He has becoming insane, Holland said. The Houses of Parliament and Stonehenge are the two landmarks in Britain that, if you were a visitor, you would recognize from a silhouette.
Despite Salisbury and its surroundings having so much to offer, including England’s highest spire and an original copy of the Magna Carta, the 54-year-old novelist agreed with Snow that daytrippers should avoid Bath and Windsor.
Dan Snow (shown on the left) faced criticism for calling Stonehenge “overrated” and advising travelers and history buffs to go to the North of England instead if they wanted to immerse themselves in British history. Tom Holland, depicted on the right, rebuked his opponent and asserted that it was Britain’s most important prehistoric site.
On The Rest is History Podcast, Holland said to his co-host Dominic Sandbrook, “Salisbury has Britain’s greatest prehistoric monument [in Stonehenge]; it has Britain’s tallest spire, which draws tourists from all over Russia in addition to the United States; and it has in Old Sarum an Iron Age fort that is Roman city, a medieval castle, which is home to an abandoned cathedral and a rotten borough, so you have everything.”
In response, Snow remarked that his upbringing in the region had colored his perception and that “his partiality for warm ale, cricket, and ham hock has blinded him to the deeper forces that have produced our society.”
The 11th-century Durham Cathedral (seen above) is regarded as a masterpiece of Norman construction. Compared to Stonehenge, historian Dan Snow advised tourists to explore this marvel.
According to historian Tom Holland, Stonehenge, a World Heritage site, is Britain’s grandest ancient structure. Salisbury Plain’s circular design took more than a thousand years to construct.
The Making of the Western Mind and Dominion were written by Holland, who also serves as the president of Stonehenge Alliance.
He is opposing government plans to widen the A303 road and enclose it in a tunnel cut through the World Heritage Site of Stonehenge.
It took more than a thousand years and four distinct phases to create Stonehenge, which was built 5,000 years ago during the Neolithic era.
The massive stones, which were erected by tens of thousands of ancient people, are arranged in a circle and rise tall.
The Salisbury Plain monument was oriented towards the sun and may have been used as a location for watching the sun and moon, however historians are dubious of the site’s original usage.