Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

WA2423 Great House Camp, Monmouthshire

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Glamorgan Gwent 00942g (None)

NMR:  SO 40 SW 23 (306492)

SM:  MM105

NGR:  SO4322403341

X:  343224  Y:  203341  (OSGB36)

Summary

Isolated, multivallate, contour hillfort sited at NE end of a ridge above the wide valley of the Olway Brook, a tributary of the River Usk. Commanding position. Surrounding slopes N, S, E and W moderate to strong. Measures c. 140m by 150m internally, 260m by 240m overall with 2.56ha internal area. Four banks and ditches define the site. Damaged and affected by development. S occupied by farm buildings, tracks, orchards and gardens. Outer bank c. 1.0m external to 1.5m internal height with c.16.0m wide. Middle outer bank 2.0m high internal height with ditch c. 14.0m wide. Middle inner bank to 1.10m internal with ditch 13.0m wide. Inner bank 1.8m and 2.0m external and 0.2m and 0.4m internal height. Possible revetment inside inner bank. Earth and stone construction likely. Possible quarrying cut straight through E ramparts to inner bank to give gap 19.0m wide. and stretches from the modern road beyond the outer defences, straight through to, but not breaching the innermost bank. Entrance to N uncertain and site of original entrance possibly destroyed where current tarmac entrance to S. Resistivity survey (Gerrard et al 2006) shows a possible metalled surface from N entrance into interior, and inner revetment continuing where earthworks of a revetment bank have petered out. The status of the N entrance could therefore be uncertain. Also showed much unspecified activity in interior with possible stock control. Bank and ditches overgrown by trees and scrub, impenetrable in parts, particularly on NW. Interior pasture. On 1st Ed. OS map (1882). Undated.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -314303  Y:  6750708  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.8234327686934657  Latitude:  51.72585547613391  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Wales

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Monmouth

Historic County:  Monmouthshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Llangwm

Monument Condition

Damaged and affected by development. S occupied by farm buildings, tracks, orchards and gardens.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✓

Land Use

Bank and ditches overgrown by trees and scrub, impenetrable in parts, particularly on NW. Interior pasture.

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

Isolated, multivallate, contour hillfort sited at NE end of a ridge above the wide valley of the Olway Brook, a tributary of the River Usk. Commanding position. Surrounding slopes N, S, E and W moderate to strong.

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:  Ridge

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

Altitude:  104.0m

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 (1882). GGAT Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan survey 2005. GGAT/ H. Wiggins geophysical survey 2006 (Gerrard et al 2006).

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1881):   OS map.
Other (1991):   Visited by Hillfort Study Group
Other (2005):   GGAT Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan survey.
Geophysical Survey (2006):   GGAT/H. Wiggins, (Gerrard et al 2006).

Interior Features

Resistivity survey showed unspecified internal activity and possible stock control measures.

Water Source

Stream 0.15kn outside fort..

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

Reistivity survey showed unspecified internal activity and possible stock control measures.

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

Entrance to N possibly modern and uncertain and site of original entrance possibly destroyed where current tarmac entrance in S. But resistivity survey (Gerrard et al 2006) shows possible metalled surface from this N entrance into interior, inner revetment continuing where earthworks of a revetment bank peter out. Status of N entrance therefore uncertain.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
2:   Entrance on N uncertain.

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (South):   Entrance probably destroyed on S. Type therefore not determined and simple gap default.
2. Simple Gap (North):   Entrance uncertain.

Enclosing Works

Outer bank c. 1.0m external to 1.5m internal height with c.16.0m wide. Middle outer bank 2.0m high internal height with ditch c. 14.0m wide. Middle inner bank to 1.10m internal with ditch 13.0m wide. Inner bank 1.8m and 2.0m external and 0.2m and 0.4m internal height. Possible revetment inside inner bank. Earth and stone construction likely.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   2.56ha.
Total:   2.56ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   Ramparts and ditches lost through development in S sector.

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   4
SE Quadrant:   0
SW Quadrant:   0
NW Quadrant:   4
Total:   4

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

Earth and stone baks likely. Revetted in parts.

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:
✓   Ditches in S sector lost.

Number of Ditches:  4

Annex:
✗   None

References

Gerrard, C., Wiggins, H., and Evans, E. 2006. Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan with recommendations for fieldwork: Year 3 Report, GGAT Report No. 2006/089, Project No. GGAT78, Swansea: GGAT.

Savory, H.N. 1950. List of hill-fort and other earthworks in Wales, II. Monmouthshire, Bull Board Celtic Stud, 13, 234.



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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