Scheduled Monuments›England›Bicton Ditches

Bicton Ditches

England
List entry 1003017
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1003017
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
1.09 hectares
Grid reference
SO 29134 81887
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Bicton Ditches is a Neolithic causewayed enclosure located near Bicton, Shropshire, dating to approximately 3500 to 3000 BCE. The monument consists of multiple concentric ditches with banks, which would have served defensive, ceremonial, or administrative functions typical of causewayed enclosures of the early Neolithic period. The site's archaeological significance lies in its evidence for early farming communities and their settlement patterns in the English Midlands during the transition from Mesolithic to Neolithic lifeways. The ditches remain visible as earthwork features in the landscape, providing important archaeological and topographical evidence for understanding Neolithic land use and territorial organization in Shropshire.

Bicton Ditches is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1003017. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Bicton Ditches?

Bicton Ditches is a Neolithic causewayed enclosure located near Bicton, Shropshire, dating to approximately 3500 to 3000 BCE. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1003017.

Who is responsible for protecting Bicton Ditches?

Bicton Ditches 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 1003017.

What other scheduled monuments are near Bicton Ditches?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Offa's Dyke: section 400m north and 170m east of Selley Hall (5.8 km), Offa's Dyke: section 90m south of Brynorgan (6.1 km), Caer Caradoc: a small multivallate hillfort (6.4 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Bicton Ditches

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Bicton Ditches'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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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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Nearby

Other scheduled monuments within 10 km

Offa's Dyke: section 400m north and 170m east of Selley Hall
5.8 km
Offa's Dyke: section 90m south of Brynorgan
6.1 km
Caer Caradoc: a small multivallate hillfort
6.4 km
Offa's Dyke: section 650m east of Cwm-sanaham
6.7 km
Offa's Dyke: section 475m north east of Nether Skyborry
7.9 km
Bowl barrow 300m south of Skyborry
8.1 km
Cnwclas Castle
Medieval · Castle8.4 km
Offa's Dyke: Section extending 202m from River Teme to West Street
Early Medieval · Linear Earthwork9.4 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Bicton Ditches

Bicton Ditches stands on Pridoli Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Pridoli. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.

The wider landscape

Around Bicton Ditches

Offa's DykeArchaeological site · ~4.8 milesWroxeterRoman town · ~23.8 miles
Domesday entry for Clun, Shropshire →
All Scheduled Monuments