Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN0574 Burrowses Camp, Northumberland

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Northumberland 2026 (None)

NMR:  NT 93 SW 29 (3919)

SM:  None

NGR:  NT 9311 3063

X:  393110  Y:  630630  (OSGB36)

Summary

Lying 640m NW of Yeavering, in a field known as the Burrowses, the site of a former multivallate hillfort lying on a gravel spur at 52m OD. The site was recorded as a slight earthwork by MacLauchlan (1867) but was later bisected E-W by the former North East Railway line and destroyed in the N. The southern half is still visible in the SE as the cropmarks of three ditches spaced less than 10m apart. The ground slopes steeply away in the N and W and it is possible that only a single rampart was there. Cropmarks suggest it was circular and in its original form approximately 160m in diameter with an internal area of approximately 0.8ha. Not recorded on OS maps. Minimal investigations, undated.

Status

Citizen Science:  

Reliability of Data:  Unconfirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -234974  Y:  7473154  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.110811776316521  Latitude:  55.56932460310163  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England; None

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Northumberland

Historic County:  Northumberland

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Kirknewton; Ewart

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant  
Cropmark  
Likely Destroyed  

Land Use

Railway line

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

A former contour fort lying on a N-facing gravel spur at approximately 52m OD

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:  Gravel spur

Aspect:
North  
Northeast  
East  
Southeast  
South  
Southwest  
West  
Northwest  
Level  

Altitude:  52.0m

Boundary

Parish boundary between Kirknewton and Ewart runs to the N

Boundary Type:  Parish/Townland


Dating Evidence

Undated

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

Recorded by MacLauclan (1867). Field investigation 1967. Mapped from the air as part of the Milfield Geoarchaeology Project - archive object MD000295. Rog Palmer transcription in Passmore and Waddington (2012, 72)

Investigations:
1st Identified Written Reference (1867):   None
Other (1967):   Field investigation
Other (None):   Aerial transcription

Interior Features

No internal features recorded

Water Source

River Glen runs to the N.

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

Unknown

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
None:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  

Chevaux de Frise:  

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

Destroyed in the N. The southern half is still visible in the SE as the cropmarks of three ditches spaced less than 10m apart.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.8ha.
Total:   0.8ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   Ditches only

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   None
SE Quadrant:   3
SW Quadrant:   None
NW Quadrant:   None
Total:   3

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

None

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:
✓   None

Number of Ditches:  3

Annex:
✗   None

References

MacLauchlan,H. 1867. Additional Notes to Memoir to Roman Roads in Northumberland. 45

Passmore, D.G. and Waddington, C. 2012. Archaeology and Environment in Northumberland. Till-Tweed studies, Vol 2. Oxbow



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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