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The best known and most visible remains of the Iron Age are hill forts. Over 4,000 examples are known from across the British Isles, ranging in size from small enclosures of less than one hectare, to massive, multi-ditched sites like Maiden Castle in Dorset and Old Oswestry in Shropshire. See if you can locate Burledge on the Atlas of Hillforts (ox.ac.uk).

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The function and form of these monuments varied greatly over time. The earliest examples, possibly like Burledge, date from the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age (800-600 BC) and rarely show evidence of permanent settlement. It is thought that hillforts were first built at a time of great change in society. The arrival of new technology in the form of Iron working led to conflicts over resources and new boundaries and large scale  defended sites may reflect this. Many hillforts often appear to have also been used for seasonal gatherings, perhaps for trade, exchange and religious activities, with a further function as a storage centre for the broader community.

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By 450 BC, many of these early hill forts were going out of use and we think this is the case at Burledge. 

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Burledge is one of several hillforts on the northern edge of the Mendips. One possiblity is that these hillforts were orinally built to control the trade of minerals such as Iron and Lead from mines within the area.  It is very likely that Burledge hillfort was also assocaited with an Iron Age farming settlement ithat was excavated before Chew Reservoir was constructed in the 1950's (Rahtz et al 1977). Pottery from the Chew Park excavations and some limited test pitting at Burledge (ApSimon, 1955) was noted to be similar in appearance and likely to date form c. 800 BC.

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Who Built the Hillfort?

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The construction of a hillfort required a huge amount of labour over several years. Ditches were dug with antler picks. Stone and earth were carried in baskets and dumped to form the ramparts. Entrances are often complex and can include double gates and restricted  corridors as a defence mechanism. This took a great deal of time, effort and careful planning.  One possibility is that people joined together to build the hillfort and this provided the 'social glue' that identified the community. It is difficult to say if there was a leader or chieftain but we can be sure that it was a time of conflict between tribes and communities and people had to form groups to protect themselves and their resources.

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The 1955 Test pit excavation provides limited evidence to suggest an early date for the hillfort and domestic settlement.  Our recent geophysical survey provides exciting new evidence that Burledge Hillfort contained a small settlement comprising several circular buildings, possibly houses. 

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We  aim to investigate the area of settlement with small scale archaeological excavation. This will provide information to help us answer some key questions. The work will be important in contributing to the understanding of hillforts on a national scale. 

 

  

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https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk/

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