Beacon Hill, West Sussex
Beacon Hill, also known as Harting Beacon, is a
The fort extends approximately 400 metres (1,300 ft) east-west by approximately 500 metres (1,600 ft) north-south, and covers an area of approximately 10 hectares (1,100,000 sq ft).
Description
The hillfort is situated on the top of the hill and is defined by a single rampart and a flat-bottomed ditch,[3] which survives as a low bank up to 6 metres (20 ft) wide.[4] The rampart was originally faced with timber,[3] with timber palisades acting as retaining walls on both the inside and the outside.[5] The rampart infill was built with a mixture of soil and chalk,[2] and is best preserved on the south side. On the east and west sides, erosion has reduced the rampart to a scarp, with the ditch silted in to form a terrace.[1] The enclosure is roughly rectangular, with an entrance on the west side.[4] Excavations of the west entrance revealed that a large timber gate was built within the entrance causeway,[1] and uncovered two penannular gold rings (incomplete or unclosed rings). It is possible that there was a second entrance on the northeast side, where a modern track crosses the rampart.[3] Investigation of the interior revealed a general lack of features except for traces a number of small four- and six-posted structures.[6] These are interpreted as having been raised granaries.[2]
Related monuments
Within the enclosure is a small
Also within the fort enclosure are the remains of a late 18th-century
Air Crash
On the 19 February 1936 a Royal Air Force, Handley Page Heyford (K4024) of No. 10 Squadron RAF crashed into the side of Beacon Hill in heavy fog. Three of the Four crew died in the crash. [8][9]
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f Historic England 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f Historic England 2017.
- ^ a b c d e Dyer 2001, p. 175.
- ^ a b Historic England 2017. Dyer 2001, p. 175.
- ^ Cunliffe 1995, p.30.
- ^ Cunliffe 2006, p. 156. Historic England 2017.
- ^ Cunliffe 2006, p. 157.
- ^ "Handley Page H.P.50 Heyford Mk.IA".
- ^ "Handley Page Heyford K6900". 27 February 2010.
References
- OCLC 972875750
- Cunliffe, Barry (2006). "Understanding hillforts: have we progressed?". The Wessex Hillforts Project: Extensive Survey of Hillfort Interiors in Central Southern England. London, England: English Heritage. pp. 151–162. OCLC 124023930.
- Dyer, James (2001). Discovering Prehistoric England. Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, UK: Shire Books. OCLC 51109530.
- Historic England (2015). "Harting Beacon (246178)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 1 March 2017.
- Historic England (2017). "Harting Beacon: a hilltop enclosure, Anglo-Saxon burial mound and telegraph station on Beacon and Pen Hills (1015915)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
External links
Media related to Harting Beacon at Wikimedia Commons
