The Iron Age of the British Isles covers the period from about 800 BC to the Roman invasion of 43 AD, and follows on from the Bronze Age.

​

As the name implies, the Iron Age saw the gradual introduction of iron working technology, although the general adoption of iron artefacts did not become widespread until after 500-400 BC.

 

During the Early Iron Age,  Celtic peoples spread out across Europe and many settled in Britain. It is likely that the resident Bronze Age communites quickly adopted a Celtic way of life. The production and trading of Iron provided the mechanism for rapid change in societies. 

​

Life in Iron Age Europe was primarily rural and agricultural. They lived in small communities or clans and shared a similar language, religious beliefs, traditions and culture. It’s believed that Celtic culture started to evolve in Briton as early as 900 BC. Their legacy remains prominent in Ireland and Great Britain, where traces of their language are still recognisable today.

​

The population of Britain grew substantially during the Iron Age to perhaps one million. The introduction of new farming techniques including the iron-tipped ploughshare made the cultivation of heavy clay soils possible and crops, such as barley and wheat, and increased farming of peas, beans, flax and other crops meant that farming became more productive.

​

Iron Age Britain was a violent place. People lived in clans within tribes led by warrior kings. In the later Iron Age, Burledge was located close to the boundaries of three different tribes, the Belgae, the Atrebates and and the Dobonii. Many people lived in hill forts like Burledge to keep safe from attacks.  

​

The nature of the Iron Age has long been studied and is still heavily debated. There are many excellent books on the subject targeted at all ages. 

​

 

​