Hundreds of white supremacists carrying burning torches and chanting Nazi-era slogans rallied in Virginia on Friday night before violently clashing with counter-protesters.

The brawl at the University of Virginia came ahead of a much larger rally planned for Saturday, when thousands are expected for what monitors described as the "largest hate-gathering of its kind in decades in the US".

The “alt-Right” demonstrators gathered late on Friday and chanted “blood and soil” and “one people, one nation, end immigration” as they carried burning torches through the university campus.