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HER:  South Gloucestershire 2112 (None)
NMR:  ST 78 SE 1 (205114)
SM:  1002485
NGR:  ST76458438
X:  376450  Y:  184380  (OSGB36)
Univallate inland promontory fort located on small SW-facing spur on Cotswold edge overlooking valley of Little Avon River. Very steep surrounding slopes on S and W, moderate NE-SE. Roughly D-shaped measuring c. 203m long by 158m wide max. with flat interior c. 2.78ha. Good curvilinear rampart cuts off spur NNW-SSE, generally c. 3m high and c. 12.1 wide, with ditch to c. 7.2m wide, just traceable in part as stone-free dark ploughed soil, now buried feature and nearly gone by 1883 (Witts 1883, 27), its line determined by National Trust geophysical survey 1998. Bank fades to S after farm entrance on NE. Slight bank, to 0.6m high, runs for short distance to W from SE gap. Exposed parts of rampart show fire-reddened limestone on the outer face, midway along its length. Three entrance gaps in rampart: on N a 2m gap near W slope, on NE probably levelled for farm access and at SE corner. Original unclear, but that on SE seems favoured. Pasture interior, with trees/scrub on line of bank in SE. Tree line boundary before steep slope on W and scattered trees on S boundary. On 1st Ed. OS map (1882). Undated.
Citizen Science:  ✓
Reliability of Data:  Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed
X:  -260611  Y:  6720554  (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude:  -2.3411127893494563  Latitude:  51.5577580892775  (EPSG:4326)
Country:  England
Current County or Unitary Authority:  South Gloucestershire
Historic County:  Gloucestershire
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Horton
Good bank, fading from entrance S. Tractor damage in part. Ditch probably ploughed-out. Cattle grazed.
| Extant   | ✓ |
| Cropmark   | ✗ |
| Likely Destroyed   | ✗ |
Pasture interior, with trees/scrub on line of bank in SE. Tree line boundary before steep slope on W and scattered trees on S boundary.
| Woodland   | ✓ |
| Commercial Forestry Plantation   | ✗ |
| Parkland   | ✗ |
| Pasture (Grazing)   | ✓ |
| Arable   | ✗ |
| Scrub/Bracken   | ✗ |
| Bare Outcrop   | ✗ |
| Heather/Moorland   | ✗ |
| Heath   | ✗ |
| Built-up   | ✗ |
| Coastal Grassland   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
Univallate inland promontory fort located on small SW-facing spur on Cotswold edge overlooking valley of the Little Avon River. Very steep surrounding slopes on S and W, moderate NE-SE.
| Contour Fort   | ✗ |
| Partial Contour Fort   | ✗ |
| Promontory Fort   | ✓ |
| Hillslope Fort   | ✗ |
| Level Terrain Fort   | ✗ |
| Marsh Fort   | ✗ |
| Multiple Enclosure Fort   | ✗ |
| Hilltop   | ✗ |
| Coastal Promontory   | ✗ |
| Inland Promontory   | ✓ |
| Valley Bottom   | ✗ |
| Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   | ✗ |
| Ridge   | ✗ |
| Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   | ✗ |
| Hillslope   | ✗ |
| Lowland   | ✗ |
| Spur   | ✓ |
Dominant Topographic Feature:  Spur promontory.
| North   | ✗ |
| Northeast   | ✗ |
| East   | ✗ |
| Southeast   | ✗ |
| South   | ✗ |
| Southwest   | ✗ |
| West   | ✗ |
| Northwest   | ✗ |
| Level   | ✓ |
Altitude:  207.0m
N/A
None.
Reliability:  D - None
| Pre 1200BC   | ✗ |
| 1200BC - 800BC   | ✗ |
| 800BC - 400BC   | ✗ |
| 400BC - AD50   | ✗ |
| AD50 - AD400   | ✗ |
| AD400 - AD 800   | ✗ |
| Post AD800   | ✗ |
| Unknown   | ✓ |
| Pre Hillfort:   | None |
| Post Hillfort:   | None |
In Aubrey's Monumenta Britannica (1665-1693). Reference by Samuel Rudder 1779. Reference by T. Baker 1821. On 1st Ed. OS map (1882). Field investigations 1962, 1977 - no details. English Heritage field visit 1984. Geophysical survey M. Papworth National Trust 1998. LiDAR survey Citizen Science information 2015.
| Other (1821):   | Reference by T. Baker. |
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1882):   | OS map. |
| Other (1984):   | English Heritage field visit. |
| Geophysical Survey (1998):   | M. Papworth for National Trust garden investigation. |
| LiDAR Survey (2015):   | Citizen Science information. |
| 1st Identified Written Reference (None):   | In Aubrey's Monumenta Britannica. |
| Other (None):   | Field investigations- no details. |
None.
None
| 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   | ✗ |
None
| No Known Excavation   | ✓ |
| Pits   | ✗ |
| Postholes   | ✗ |
| Roundhouses   | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
| Nothing Found   | ✗ |
None
| No Known Geophysics   | ✓ |
| Pits   | ✗ |
| Roundhouses   | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
| Nothing Found   | ✗ |
None
| 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   | ✗ |
Three entrance gaps in rampart: on N a 2m gap near W slope, on NE probably levelled for farm access and at SE corner. Original unclear, but that on SE seems favoured.
| 3:   | Gaps in rampart on N a 2m gap near W slope, on NE probably levelled for farm access and at SE corner |
| 2:   | Possibly at SE corner. |
Guard Chambers:  ✗
Chevaux de Frise:  ✗
| 1. Simple Gap (South east):   | Possible. |
Good curvilinear rampart cuts off spur NNW-SSE, generally c. 3m high and c. 12.1 wide, with ditch to c. 7.2m wide, just traceable in part as stone-free dark ploughed soil, now buried feature and nearly gone by 1883 (Witts 1883, 27), its line determined by National Trust geophysical survey 1998. Bank fades to S after farm entrance on NE. Slight bank, to 0.6m high, runs for short distance to W from SE gap. Exposed parts of rampart show fire-reddened limestone on the outer face, midway along its length.
| Area 1:   | 2.78ha. |
| Total:   | 2.78ha. |
Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.
None
| ✗   | None |
| ✗   | None |
| NE Quadrant:   | 1 |
| SE Quadrant:   | 1 |
| SW Quadrant:   | 0 |
| NW Quadrant:   | 0 |
| Total:   | 1 |
| Partial Univallate   | ✓ |
| Univallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Unknown   | ✗ |
| Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
| Univallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Multivallate   | ✗ |
Exposed parts of rampart show fire-reddened limestone on the outer face, midway along its length.
| None   | ✗ |
| Earthen Bank   | ✓ |
| Stone Wall   | ✗ |
| Rubble   | ✗ |
| Wall-walk   | ✗ |
| Evidence of Timber   | ✗ |
| Vitrification   | ✗ |
| Other Burning   | ✓ |
| Palisade   | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank   | ✗ |
| Berm   | ✗ |
| Unfinished   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
None
| None   | ✗ |
| Earthen Bank   | ✗ |
| Stone Wall   | ✗ |
| Murus Duplex   | ✗ |
| Timber-framed   | ✗ |
| Timber-laced   | ✗ |
| Vitrification   | ✗ |
| Other Burning   | ✗ |
| Palisade   | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank   | ✗ |
| Berm   | ✗ |
| Unfinished   | ✗ |
| No Known Excavation   | ✓ |
| Other   | ✗ |
| ✗   | None |
| ✓   | Ditch, to c. 7.2m wide, just traceable in part as stone-free dark ploughed soil, now buried feature and nearly gone by 1883 (Witts 1883, 27), its line determined by National Trust geophysical survey 1998. |
Number of Ditches:  1
| ✗   | None |
Anon 1999. Note, The National Trust annual archaeological review, 7/1999.
Lloyd Baker, T.J.1821. An Account of a Chain of Ancient Fortresses, extending through the South Western part of Gloucestershire, Archaeologia, 19, 161-75.
RCHME 1976. Ancient and Historical Monuments in the County of Gloucester Iron Age and Romano-British Monuments in the Gloucestershire Cotswolds, London: HMSO, 65-66.
Rudder, S. 1779. A new history of Gloucestershire, Cirencester: Samuel Rudder, 503.
Witts, G.B. 1883. Archaeological handbook of the County of Gloucester, Cheltenham: G. Norman, 27.
Atlas of Hillforts:
Wikidata:
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
Document Version 1.1