The Illustrated London News extensively covered the event; there were daily reports and excellent illustrations. It was a very popular spectacle - there were 100,000 visitors on one day alone. Heads of state came from all over Europe. The most famous visit was by Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort.

To celebrate this year's 150th anniversary, activities bringing together many village organisations are planned:

• Surrey Heath Local History Club are organising a guided ‘Battlefield Walk’ on the evening of 11 June.
• Phil Stevens, local historian, is making a collection of all the contemporary illustrations and records of the camp. Phil will publish the material in a booklet.
• The Chobham Museum will be organising a display in the museum and a talk scheduled for Saturday the 6th September in the evening.
• Gill Willis, of the Reduced Theatre fame, is hoping to organise a re-enactment of the 1853 West End farce ‘The Camp at Chobham’.
• The Chobham Museum will be using the Great Camp as the theme of its third anniversary celebrations on Benhams Green on 27th September. Suggestions for this event, which will have a Victorian feel, include:
  • A recreation of a hospital tent and surgery of the time
  • The Prince Consort with Queen Victoria side-saddle on white horse
  • The legendary treacle mine
  • An authentic camp meal
• Andy Wragg, Chobham Common ranger, will make the runic cross monument more accessible and the Parish Council will add a plaque for 2003, whilst the Friends of Chobham Common have undertaken to renovate the Le Marchant Stone

We would like to involve the schools and youth groups; the Brownies, and Flexlands and Chobham St Lawrence schools have already expressed interest.

If you, or your organisation, would like to be involved in this fun celebration then please telephone Ged Mann.