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HER:  Clwyd Powys 1604 (None)
NMR:  SO 05 SW 5 (305834)
SM:  None
NGR:  SO 0355 5280
X:  303550  Y:  252800  (OSGB36)
Small, nearly circular, contour hillfort located on Welfield Rocks, a prominent spur summit above the River Wye at Builth Wells and at the confluence of the Wye and Irfon and the Irfon and Chwerfri. Moderate to strong surrounding slopes to N, steep to S, E and W. Measures c. 60m diameter overall and c. 50m diameter interior, with internal area c. 0.18ha. Site nearly levelled as a result of past forestry operations, but now survives as scarp up to 1.5m high externally for 40m on NE, E and S sides. On E stretch of bank for 10m on top of the scarp, c. 4m wide and 0.7m high. No evidence for ditches. Entrance unknown. Wooded. On 1st Ed. OS map (1889). Minimal investigations, undated.
Citizen Science:  ✗
Reliability of Data:  Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed
X:  -379776  Y:  6830011  (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude:  -3.4115840055832245  Latitude:  52.164978400241274  (EPSG:4326)
Country:  Wales
Current County or Unitary Authority:  Powys
Historic County:  Radnorshire
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Llanelwedd
Site nearly levelled as result of forestry operations in past.
| Extant   | ✓ |
| Cropmark   | ✗ |
| Likely Destroyed   | ✓ |
Wooded site.
| Woodland   | ✓ |
| Commercial Forestry Plantation   | ✗ |
| Parkland   | ✗ |
| Pasture (Grazing)   | ✗ |
| Arable   | ✗ |
| Scrub/Bracken   | ✗ |
| Bare Outcrop   | ✗ |
| Heather/Moorland   | ✗ |
| Heath   | ✗ |
| Built-up   | ✗ |
| Coastal Grassland   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
Small, nearly circular, contour hillfort located on Welfield Rocks, a prominent spur summit above the River Wye at Builth Wells and at the confluence of the Wye and Irfon and the Irfon and Chwerfri.
| 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 summit
| North   | ✗ |
| Northeast   | ✗ |
| East   | ✗ |
| Southeast   | ✗ |
| South   | ✗ |
| Southwest   | ✗ |
| West   | ✗ |
| Northwest   | ✗ |
| Level   | ✓ |
Altitude:  243.0m
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 |
On 1st Ed. OS map (1889). CPAT defended enclosures survey 2006.
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1889):   | OS map. |
| Other (2006):   | CPAT defended enclosures survey. |
None
River Wye 0,5km outside fort.
| 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   | ✗ |
No entrance defined.
| 0:   | None |
| 2:   | None |
Guard Chambers:  ✗
Chevaux de Frise:  ✗
Site nearly levelled as a result of past forestry operations, but now survive as scarp up to 1.5m high externally for 40m on NE, E and S sides. On E stretch of bank for 10m on top of the scarp, c. 4m wide and 0.7m high. No evidence for ditches.
| Area 1:   | 0.2ha. |
| Total:   | 0.2ha. |
Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.
None
| ✗   | None |
| ✗   | Survives as scarp only on NE, E and S.. |
| NE Quadrant:   | 1 |
| SE Quadrant:   | 1 |
| SW Quadrant:   | 1 |
| NW Quadrant:   | 1 |
| Total:   | 1 |
| Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
| Univallate   | ✓ |
| Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Unknown   | ✗ |
| Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
| Univallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Multivallate   | ✗ |
None
| 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 |
| ✗   | None visible. Probably destroyed. |
Number of Ditches:  0
| ✗   | None |
Royal Commission on the ancient and historical monuments and constructions in Wales and Monmouthshire 1913. An inventory of the ancient monuments in Wales and Monmouthshire, III, County of Radnor, No. 329, London: HMSO.
Savory, H.N. 1952: List of hill-forts and other earthworks in Wales, IV, Radnorshire, Bull Board Celtic Stud, 16, 77.
Silvester, R.J. and Hankinson, R. 2006. Defended enclosures in Radnorshire. Project report, CPAT Report 781, Welshpool: CPAT,
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