Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN0038 Westington Camp, Herefordshire

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Herefordshire MHE667 (1316)

NMR:  SO 55 NE 6 (110640)

SM:  1001742

NGR:  SO 580566

X:  358000  Y:  256650  (OSGB36)

Summary

Hillslope fort overlooking a stream above Holly Brook, a tributary of the River Lugg. Internal area c. 0.4ha. Severely affected by agriculture, the rampart being ploughed-out (or unfinished) on the NE; the ditch also. Only the SW part of the site remains. Here on the NW side there is a two scarp slope visible with inter-spaced berm, with remnants to the W and S. The whole of the NE end destroyed or never completed. Within the enclosure is a slight E to W cross scarp. Interior severely affected by ploughing and much of the earthworks lost. A management agreement is now in force to revert the cultivated interior to pasture. Undated. On 1st Ed OS map (1886).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -291218  Y:  6837537  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.6160540946132116  Latitude:  52.20642979609851  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Herefordshire

Historic County:  Herefordshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Grendon Bishop

Monument Condition

Interior severely affected by ploughing and much of the earthworks lost. A management agreement is now in force to revert the cultivated interior to pasture.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✓

Land Use

Reversion to pasture from arable.

Current Use:
Woodland   ✗
Commercial Forestry Plantation   ✗
Parkland   ✗
Pasture (Grazing)   ✓
Arable   ✓
Scrub/Bracken   ✗
Bare Outcrop   ✗
Heather/Moorland   ✗
Heath   ✗
Built-up   ✗
Coastal Grassland   ✗
Other   ✗

Landscape

Hillfort Type

Hillslope fort located on spur end overlooking a stream above Holly Brook, a tributary of the River Lugg.

Type:
Contour Fort   ✗
Partial Contour Fort   ✗
Promontory Fort   ✗
Hillslope Fort   ✓
Level Terrain Fort   ✗
Marsh Fort   ✗
Multiple Enclosure Fort   ✗

Topographic Position

Position:
Hilltop   ✗
Coastal Promontory   ✗
Inland Promontory   ✗
Valley Bottom   ✗
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   ✗
Ridge   ✗
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   ✗
Hillslope   ✓
Lowland   ✗
Spur   ✓

Dominant Topographic Feature:  Spur

Aspect:
North   ✗
Northeast   ✗
East   ✗
Southeast   ✗
South   ✗
Southwest   ✓
West   ✗
Northwest   ✗
Level   ✗

Altitude:  210.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

None

Reliability:  D - None

Principal Activity:
Pre 1200BC   ✗
1200BC - 800BC   ✗
800BC - 400BC   ✗
400BC - AD50   ✗
AD50 - AD400   ✗
AD400 - AD 800   ✗
Post AD800   ✗
Unknown   ✓

Other Activity:
Pre Hillfort:   None
Post Hillfort:   None

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

On 1st Ed OS map (1886). Herefordshire Council survey 2012.

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1886):   OS map.
Other (2012):   Herefordshire Council survey.

Interior Features

None

Water Source

Stream located 0.2 km outside the hillfort.

Source:
None   ✓
Spring   ✗
Stream   ✗
Pool   ✗
Flush   ✗
Well   ✗
Other   ✗

Surface

None

Interior Features (Surface):
No Known Features   ✓
Round Stone Structures   ✗
Rectangular Stone Structures   ✗
Curvilinear Platforms   ✗
Other Roundhouse Evidence   ✗
Pits   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗

Excavation

None

Interior Features (Excavation):
No Known Excavation   ✓
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Geophysics

None

Interior Features (Geophysics):
No Known Geophysics   ✓
Pits   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Finds

None

Interior (Finds):
No Known Finds   ✓
Pottery   ✗
Metal   ✗
Metalworking   ✗
Human Bones   ✗
Animal Bones   ✗
Lithics   ✗
Environmental   ✗
Other   ✗

Aerial

None

Interior Features (Aerial):
APs Not Checked   ✓
None   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Other   ✗

Entrances

No evidence of entrances, but probably located where the ramparts have been lost on the E side.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
0:   No entrance recorded and probably destroyed.

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   No entrance recorded and probably destroyed.

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

Only the SW part of the site remains. On the NW side of this area there is a two scarp slope visible with inter-spaced berm, with bank remnants to the W and S. Within the enclosure is a slight E to W cross scarp. Most of site destroyed. Possible slight ditch to the SW.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.4ha.
Total:   0.4ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   So little of the site remains, the area of 0.4ha bears little relationship to the actual area of the hillfort.

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   Most of site destroyed

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   0
SE Quadrant:   0
SW Quadrant:   2
NW Quadrant:   0
Total:   2

Morphology

Current Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✗
Partial Bivallate   ✓
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗
Unknown   ✗

Detailed Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✗
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗

Surface Evidence

Possible earthen bank fragment. The whole of the NE end destroyed or never completed. Berm on NW.

Enclosing Works (Surface):
None   ✗
Earthen Bank   ✓
Stone Wall   ✗
Rubble   ✗
Wall-walk   ✗
Evidence of Timber   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✓
Unfinished   ✓
Other   ✗

Excavated Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Excavation):
None   ✗
Earthen Bank   ✗
Stone Wall   ✗
Murus Duplex   ✗
Timber-framed   ✗
Timber-laced   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
No Known Excavation   ✓
Other   ✗

Other

Gang Working:
✗   None

Ditches:
✓   Possible slight ditch to the SW.

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

Dorling, P. and Wigley, A. 2012. Assessment of the archaeological and conservation status of major later prehistoric enclosures in Herefordshire and Shropshire, EH PNUM, Version 3.2, Hereford and Shrewsbury: Herefordshire Council/Shropshire Council.

RCHME 1932. An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Herefordshire, 2, 84-5, London: HMSO.



Terms of Use

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and should be cited as:

Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk


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