Scheduled MonumentsEnglandBuckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove

Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove

England
List entry 1021199
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1021199
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
3.98 hectares
Grid reference
SP 89640 06833
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch is a linear earthwork monument consisting of a bank and ditch formation extending approximately 1500 metres between Great Widmoor Wood and Oaken Grove in Buckinghamshire. The monument represents a section of a larger defensive or territorial boundary system, typical of Iron Age earthwork construction in southern England, though the precise dating and original extent of this particular segment remain subjects of archaeological study. The surviving remains comprise an upcast bank with an accompanying ditch, characteristic of prehistoric land demarcation features that were maintained and reinforced over extended periods. This section is designated as a scheduled ancient monument under the Heritage List for England reference 1021199, recognising its archaeological significance as evidence of Iron Age settlement patterns and land organisation in the Chilterns region.

Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1021199. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove?

Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch is a linear earthwork monument consisting of a bank and ditch formation extending approximately 1500 metres between Great Widmoor Wood and Oaken Grove in Buckinghamshire. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1021199.

Who is responsible for protecting Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove?

Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove 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 1021199.

What other scheduled monuments are near Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Moated site and associated earthworks in Bray's Wood (2.7 km), Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 350m long section extending north east from Cottage Farm (3.1 km), Moated site immediately north west of Little Pednor Farm (4.9 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove'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 Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove

Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.

The wider landscape

Around Buckinghamshire Grim's Ditch: 1500m long section from Great Widmoor Wood to Oaken Grove

St AlbansRoman town · ~14.9 milesDorchester-on-ThamesRoman town · ~21.1 milesAlchesterRoman town · ~21.7 milesBattle of Chalgrove 1643Battle (1643) · ~16.2 miles