Thousands greet winter solstice at ancient Stonehenge monument

Thousands of tourists, pagans, druids and people simply yearning for the promise of spring marked the dawn of the shortest day and longest night of the year at the ancient Stonehenge monument yesterday.

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Revelers cheered and beat drums as the sun rose at 8:09 a.m. local time over the giant standing stones on the winter solstice - the shortest day and the longest night in the Northern Hemisphere.

No one could see the sun through the low winter cloud, but that did not deter a flurry of drumming, chanting and singing as dawn broke.