Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN3158 Oakley Wood Camp, Warwickshire

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Warwickshire MWA715 (None)

NMR:  SP 35 NW 15 (335341)

SM:  1003742

NGR:  SP 3064 5927

X:  430641  Y:  259271  (OSGB36)

Summary

South of Bishops Tachbrook, a possible hillslope fort in Oakley Wood. Roughly triangular in form, measuring 218m x 198m internally, enclosing c. 4.7ha (Hingley 1996, Fig. 10). Impressive inner rampart with external ditch to the N, the former 4m high and 9m wide with the ditch is 11m wide. In some places there are remnants of a second bank and ditch. There are further connected banks and ditches within the wood originally thought to be outworks of the hillfort although now considered medieval. At the SE corner a later external bank cuts the rampart. Recent interpretation of aerial photographs for the Warwickshire NMP, suggests that the enclosure itself is part of the medieval woodland bank complex. There are at least six gaps in the circuit but only those to the NE and E are presumed original. Minimal investigations, undated. On 1st Edition OS map (1885-1900).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  -172856  Y:  6841957  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -1.5527914300380867  Latitude:  52.230754806986205  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England; None

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Warwickshire

Historic County:  Warwickshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Bishops Tachbrook; Newbold Pacey

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

None

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

Possible hillslope fort lying at 84m OD on a westerly-facing slope

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:  Hillslope

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

Altitude:  84.0m

Boundary

The parish boundary between Bishops Tachbrook and Newbold Pacey runs along the western side

Boundary Type:  Parish/Townland


Dating Evidence

Not dated.

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 Edition OS map (1885-1900). Recorded in VCH (1904). Field investigation in 1969. Scheduled

Investigations:
1st Identified Written Reference (1904):   None
Other (1969):   Field investigation
1st Identified Map Depiction (None):   None
Other (None):   Scheduled

Interior Features

No information

Water Source

None

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

Woodland

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

Entrances

At least six gaps in the circuit but only those to the NE and E were presumed by Hingley (1996) to be original.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
6:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (North east):   None
2. Simple Gap (East):   None

Enclosing Works

The inner rampart with external ditch, the former 4m high and 9m wide with an 11m wide ditch. In some places there are remnants of a second bank and ditch.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   4.7ha.
Total:   4.7ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   Remains of second bank in places

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   1
SE Quadrant:   1
SW Quadrant:   1
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   1

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:  2

Annex:
✗   None

References

Doubleday, H. A. and Page, W. (eds) 1904. Victoria County History, Warwickshire, Vol 1. 396-7, 349-50.

Hingley, R. 1996. Prehistoric Warwickshire: a review of the evidence. Trans Birm Warwicks Archaeol Soc, 100, 1-24.



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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