Uffington Castle

Coordinates: 51°34′30″N 1°34′09″W / 51.5750587°N 1.5692032°W / 51.5750587; -1.5692032
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Uffington Castle
a concrete triangulation point and steepsided ramparts of close-cropped grass
Ramparts of Uffington Castle at Whitehorse Hill, the highest point in Oxfordshire.
Map
LocationWhitehorse Hill, between Swindon and Wantage. (SU299863)
RegionOxfordshire England
Coordinates51°34′30″N 1°34′09″W / 51.5750587°N 1.5692032°W / 51.5750587; -1.5692032
TypeHillfort
History
PeriodsIron Age
Site notes
Excavation dates1995
ArchaeologistsDavid Miles, Oxford Archaeological Unit
Conditionsubstantial earthworks
Public accessYes
WebsiteEnglish Heritage
Designated1882 [1]
Reference no.1008412[2]

Uffington Castle is an early

univallate hillfort in Oxfordshire, England. It covers about 32,000 square metres and is surrounded by two earth banks separated by a ditch with an entrance in the western end. A second entrance in the eastern[3] end was apparently blocked up a few centuries after it was built.[4]
The original defensive ditch was V-shaped with a small box rampart in front and a larger one behind it. Timber posts stood on the ramparts. Later the ditch was deepened and the extra material dumped on top of the ramparts to increase their size. A parapet wall of
White Horse Hill
.

Uffington White Horse, sketched by William Plenderleath in The White Horses of the West of England (1892)

Excavations

Excavations have indicated that it was probably built in the 7th or 8th century BC and continued to be occupied throughout the Iron Age. Isolated

Romano-British
burials and one containing eight Saxon burials, lie nearby.

The Ridgeway

An ancient track passes by the northern entrance to the hillfort; it is known as

Waylands Smithy
, about a mile to the west.

Protection

The hillfort is a Scheduled Monument,[2] and was included in the Ancient Monuments Protection Act 1882 as one of the first 68 sites in Britain and Ireland to receive legal protection.[1] Along with the Uffington White Horse on the slopes below the ramparts, it is in the care of English Heritage.[2]

  • Ditch and ramparts
    Ditch and ramparts
  • Western side
    Western side
  • Ditch and bank on the southeast side
    Ditch and bank on the southeast side

References

  1. ^ a b Hunter, Robert (1907). "Appendix A" . The Preservation of Places of Interest or Beauty. Manchester University Press – via Wikisource.
  2. ^ a b c Historic England. "Uffington Castle: a univallate hillfort immediately north of the Ridgeway on Whitehorse Hill (1008412)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  3. ISBN 0947816771
    .
  4. ISBN 187359285X
    . Retrieved 13 April 2018.

External links
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Uffington_Castle&oldid=1092893567"