Scheduled MonumentsEnglandAlfred's Castle univallate hillfort

Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort

England
List entry 1015551
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1015551
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
1.73 hectares
Grid reference
SU 27734 82236
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic England (NHLE)

Overview

History & significance

Alfred's Castle is a univallate Iron Age hillfort situated near Ashbury in Berkshire, England. The monument comprises a single defensive bank and ditch enclosing an approximately circular area, typical of univallate hillfort design from the Iron Age period. The site has traditionally been associated with Alfred the Great in local tradition, though this attribution lacks archaeological foundation and the hillfort dates to the prehistoric Iron Age, considerably earlier than the Anglo-Saxon period. The earthwork remains a significant example of Iron Age defensive settlement in the Berkshire chalk downlands.

Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1015551. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort?

Alfred's Castle is a univallate Iron Age hillfort situated near Ashbury in Berkshire, England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1015551.

Who is responsible for protecting Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort?

Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1015551.

What other scheduled monuments are near Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Barrow cemetery 200m south of Whitecomb Plantation (5.7 km), Two bowl barrows 400m south of Whitecomb Plantation (6 km), Village cross (6.6 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort

Alfred's Castle univallate hillfort stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.