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Areas of Saxon 'burh' within the town walls is a defensive settlement of late ninth-century date located in Wiltshire. The monument comprises the remains of a fortified settlement or burh, a type of fortification established under the military reorganisation of Wessex during the reign of Alfred the Great and his successors. The defences utilise the existing medieval town walls, which overlie and incorporate the earlier Saxon fortifications, demonstrating the continuity of settlement and defence at this location over several centuries. The archaeological significance of the site lies in its representation of the burh system, which formed a strategic network of fortified towns designed to provide defence against Viking incursions and establish administrative control across the kingdom.
Areas of Saxon 'burh' within the town walls is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1004679. View the official record →
Areas of Saxon 'burh' within the town walls is a defensive settlement of late ninth-century date located in Wiltshire. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1004679.
Areas of Saxon 'burh' within the town walls 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 1004679.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cross in St Sampson's churchyard (0.2 km), Romano-British villa at Kingshill Farm (2.1 km), Moated site and surrounding earthwork enclosure, 100m south of Chelworth Farm (2.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Areas of Saxon 'burh' within the town walls's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Areas of Saxon 'burh' within the town walls stands on Kellaways Formation And Oxford Clay Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Oxfordian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.