EN0146: Uffington Castle   | (Woolstone Castle) |
Sources: Esri, DigitalGlobe, Earthstar Geographics, CNES/Airbus DS, GeoEye, USDA FSA, USGS, Getmapping, Aerogrid, IGN, IGP, and the GIS User Community
HER:  Oxfordshire 7304 (MOX227)
NMR:  SU 28 NE 6 (225401)
SM:  1008412
NGR:  SU 2995 8633
X:  429945  Y:  186325  (EPSG:27700)
Boundary:  ✗
Near the village of Uffington, on White Horse Hill, a dominant position overlooking the Vale of the White Horse to the N and the Berkshire Downs to the S. In Aubrey's Monumenta Britannica (1665-93). Associated with the complex of monuments on the hill, especially the Uffington White Horse and Dragon Hill. A well preserved (National Trust) D-shaped enclosure of 3.2ha, univallate with ditch and counterscarp bank for entire circuit, Blocked entrance to the E which was originally a passageway with guard chambers, original entrance to W which is out-turned and links with enlarged counterscarp bank, two breaks through the rampart at NE and SE which are probably Romano-British. Geophysics and excavation (Miles et al 2003) have revealed internal features and dated the ramparts to two phases: box rampart c.8th/7th century BC, dump rampart c.4th century BC. Romano-British re-use of the enclosure, 2nd-4th centuries AD.
Citizen Science:   | ✓   | Helen Wendholt |
Reliability of Data:   | Confirmed:   | Modern excavation |
Reliability of Interpretation:   | Confirmed |
X:  -174694  Y:  6723633  (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude:  -1.5693  Latitude:  51.574952  (EPSG:4326)
Country:  England
Current County or Unitary Authority:  Oxfordshire
Historic County:   Berkshire
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Uffington
Extant:   | ✓ |
Cropmark:   | ✗ |
Likely Destroyed:   | ✗ |
Preservation is good for rampart, ditch, counterscarp and western entrance. Interior has been ploughed in the past, now National Trust, sheep grazing. SSSI.
Woodland:   | ✗ |
Commercial Forestry Plantation:   | ✗ |
Parkland:   | ✗ |
Pasture (Grazing):   | ✓ |
Arable:   | ✗ |
Scrub/Bracken:   | ✗ |
Bare Outcrop:   | ✗ |
Heather/Moorland:   | ✗ |
Heath:   | ✗ |
Built-up:   | ✗ |
Coastal Grassland:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
A contour fort on a prominent hill on the chalk escarpment overlooking the Vale of the White Horse
Contour Fort:   | ✓ |
Partial Contour Fort:   | ✗ |
Promontory Fort:   | ✗ |
Hillslope Fort:   | ✗ |
Level Terrain Fort:   | ✗ |
Marsh Fort:   | ✗ |
Multiple Enclosure Fort:   | ✗ |
A contour fort on a prominent hill on the chalk escarpment overlooking the Vale of the White Horse
Hilltop:   | ✗ |
Coastal Promontory:   | ✗ |
Inland Promontory:   | ✗ |
Valley Bottom:   | ✗ |
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop:   | ✗ |
Ridge:   | ✗ |
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp:   | ✓ |
Hillslope:   | ✗ |
Lowland:   | ✗ |
Spur:   | ✗ |
Dominant Topographic Feature:  On the chalk escarpment, good views in all directions.
North:   | ✗ |
Northeast:   | ✗ |
East:   | ✗ |
Southeast:   | ✗ |
South:   | ✗ |
Southwest:   | ✗ |
West:   | ✗ |
Northwest:   | ✗ |
Level:   | ✓ |
Altitude:  260.0m
Boundary Type:   | ✗ |
Second HER:  ✗
Second Current County or Unitary Authority:  ✗
Second Historic County:  ✗
Second Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  ✗
1st phase c. 8th/7th century BC (box rampart), 2nd phase c. 4th century BC (dump rampart). Romano-British re-use and modification
Reliability:  A - High
Pre 1200BC:   | ✗ |
1200BC - 800BC:   | ✗ |
800BC - 400BC:   | ✓ |
400BC - AD50:   | ✗ |
AD50 - AD400:   | ✓ |
AD400 - AD 800:   | ✗ |
Post AD800:   | ✗ |
Unknown:   | ✗ |
Pre Hillfort Activity:   | ✓   | Nearby Neolithic long barrow, early Bronze Age round barrows. Hillfort constructed at the end of a late Bronze Age linear ditch |
Post Hillfort Activity:   | ✓   | Romano-British re-use of the enclosure plus burials nearby, Saxon burials nearby |
Artefactual:   | Iron Age and Romano-British pottery typology |
In Aubrey's Monumenta Britannica (1665-93). Excavations and geophysics 1989-1995, interior, ramparts and surrounding monuments including a RB enclosure, the White Horse, the long barrow and nearby Tower Hill LBA settlement (Miles et. al. 2003).
1st Identified Written Reference (1665-93):   | Aubrey's Monumenta Britannica |
Geophysical Survey (1989):   | |
Excavation (1989-1995):   | Miles et al 2003 |
Geophysical Survey (1990):   | |
Other (2003):   | Visited by Hillfort Study Group |
No internal features from surface evidence, pits, postholes, rectangular structures fro geophysics and excavations. A good range of material culture and environmental evidence from excavations.
No water inside, springs at the foot of the escarpment within 1km
None:   | ✓ |
Spring:   | ✗ |
Stream:   | ✗ |
Pool:   | ✗ |
Flush:   | ✗ |
Well:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
None
No Known Features:   | ✓ |
Round Stone Structures:   | ✗ |
Rectangular Stone Structures:   | ✗ |
Curvilinear Platforms:   | ✗ |
Other Roundhouse Evidence:   | ✗ |
Pits:   | ✗ |
Quarry Hollows:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
Pits and possible 4-poster
No Known Excavation:   | ✗ |
Pits:   | ✓ |
Postholes:   | ✓ |
Roundhouses:   | ✗ |
Rectangular Structures:   | ✓ |
Roads/Tracks:   | ✗ |
Quarry Hollows:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
Nothing Found:   | ✗ |
Magnetometry shows pits and other possible features
No Known Geophysics:   | ✗ |
Pits:   | ✓ |
Roundhouses:   | ✗ |
Rectangular Structures:   | ✗ |
Roads/Tracks:   | ✗ |
Quarry Hollows:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
Nothing Found:   | ✗ |
A good range of material culture and environmental evidence from modern excavations
No Known Finds:   | ✗ |
Pottery:   | ✓ |
Metal:   | ✓ |
Metalworking:   | ✗ |
Human Bones:   | ✓ |
Animal Bones:   | ✓ |
Lithics:   | ✓ |
Environmental:   | ✓ |
Other:   | ✗ |
None
APs Not Checked:   | ✗ |
None:   | ✓ |
Roundhouses:   | ✗ |
Rectangular Structures:   | ✗ |
Pits:   | ✗ |
Postholes:   | ✗ |
Roads/Tracks:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
Original entrance to the W, out-turned corridor linking to counterscarp bank. Blocked entrance to E shown by change in the line of the rampart and by excavation, originally a passageway with guard chambers. Two breaks through the rampart (NE and SE) not original, may be Roman.
Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:   | 4  |
Number of Possible Original Entrances:   |   |
Guard Chambers:  ✓
Chevaux de Frise:   | ✗   |
Entrance 1 (West):   | Passage-way/Corridor:   | Original entrance to the W, out-turned corridor linking to counterscarp bank |
Entrance 2 (East):   | Blocked:   | Blocked entrance to E shown by change in the line of the rampart and by excavation. |
Entrance 2 (East):   | Passage-way/Corridor |
Univallate with ditch and counterscarp bank for whole circuit. First phase - box rampart, small outer ditch. Second phase - dump rampart, inner low revetting wall of chalk blocks, large V-shaped ditch
Enclosed Area 1:   | 3.2ha. |
Enclosed Area 2:   | ✗ |
Enclosed Area 3:   | ✗ |
Enclosed Area 4:   | ✗ |
Total Enclosed Area:   | 3.2ha. |
Total Footprint Area:  ✗
Multi-period Enclosure System:   | ✗   |
Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:   | ✓   |
Number of Ramparts:   | 1:   | Univallate with ditch and counterscarp bank for whole circuit. |
Number of Ramparts NE Quadrant:   | 1 |
Number of Ramparts SE Quadrant:   | 1 |
Number of Ramparts SW Quadrant:   | 1 |
Number of Ramparts NW Quadrant:   | 1 |
Partial Univallate:   | ✗ |
Univallate:   | ✓ |
Partial Bivallate:   | ✗ |
Bivallate: | ✗ |
Partial Multivallate:   | ✗ |
Multivallate:   | ✗ |
Unknown:   | ✗ |
Partial Univallate:   | ✗ |
Univallate:   | ✗ |
Partial Bivallate:   | ✗ |
Bivallate:   | ✗ |
Partial Multivallate:   | ✗ |
Multivallate:   | ✗ |
Earthen bank with counterscarp
None:   | ✗ |
Earthen Bank:   | ✓ |
Stone Wall:   | ✗ |
Rubble:   | ✗ |
Wall-walk:   | ✗ |
Evidence of Timber:   | ✗ |
Vitrification:   | ✗ |
Other Burning:   | ✗ |
Palisade:   | ✗ |
Counter Scarp Bank:   | ✓ |
Berm:   | ✗ |
Unfinished:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
First phase - box rampart, small outer ditch. Second phase - dump rampart, inner low revetting wall of chalk blocks, large V-shaped ditch
None:   | ✗ |
Earthen Bank:   | ✓ |
Stone Wall:   | ✓ |
Murus Duplex:   | ✗ |
Timber-framed:   | ✓ |
Timber-laced:   | ✗ |
Vitrification:   | ✗ |
Other Burning:   | ✗ |
Palisade:   | ✗ |
Counter Scarp Bank:   | ✓ |
Berm:   | ✓ |
Unfinished:   | ✗ |
No Known Excavation:   | ✗ |
Other:   | ✗ |
Gang Working:   | ✗  |
Ditches:  ✓
Number of Ditches:   | 1:   | One ditch for each of the two phases of rampart |
Annex:   | ✗   |
Miles, D., Palmer, S., Lock, G., Gosden, C. and Cromarty, A-M. 2003. Uffington White Horse and its landscape. Investigations at White Horse Hill Uffington, 1989-95 and Tower Hill Ashbury, 1993-4. Oxford: Oxford Archaeology. Thames Valley Landscapes Monograph 18.
Noon, S. 1990. UFFINGTON CASTLE, OXFORDSHIRE: REPORT ON GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY, 1989. AM LAB REPORT 94/90
Atlas of Hillforts:  https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk/?query=Atlas_of_Hillforts_4166_0%2CMain_Atlas_Number%2C0146
Wikidata:  http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q31116532
The online version of the Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland should be cited as:
Lock, G. and Ralston, I. 2017.  Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. [ONLINE] Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk.
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