Scheduled Monuments›England›Codford Circle hilltop enclosure

Codford Circle hilltop enclosure

England
List entry 1016558
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1016558
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
4.93 hectares
Grid reference
ST 98247 40558
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Codford Circle is a Neolithic causewayed enclosure located near Codford in Wiltshire, England. The monument consists of concentric rings of ditches interrupted by causeways, a characteristic defensive and ceremonial design typical of causewayed enclosures dating to the early Neolithic period, approximately 3700–3100 BCE. The site occupies a prominent hilltop position and would have served functions related to gathering, exchange, and communal activity, though the precise nature of its use remains subject to archaeological interpretation. Like other enclosures of its type across southern Britain, Codford Circle represents an important phase in early agricultural settlement and community organisation during the transition to farming economies in prehistoric Britain.

Codford Circle hilltop enclosure is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1016558. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Codford Circle hilltop enclosure?

Codford Circle is a Neolithic causewayed enclosure located near Codford in Wiltshire, England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1016558.

Who is responsible for protecting Codford Circle hilltop enclosure?

Codford Circle hilltop enclosure 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 1016558.

What other scheduled monuments are near Codford Circle hilltop enclosure?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Romano-British village N of Stockton Wood (4.6 km), Field system on Wylye Down (5 km), Ditch, 343yds (310m) ENE of East Farm Cottages to 800yds (730m) NW of St Martin's Chapel (5.5 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Codford Circle hilltop enclosure

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Codford Circle hilltop enclosure'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

Romano-British village N of Stockton Wood
4.6 km
Field system on Wylye Down
5 km
Ditch, 343yds (310m) ENE of East Farm Cottages to 800yds (730m) NW of St Martin's Chapel
5.5 km
Hanging Langford camp and Church-end Ring
6 km
The Bake and Wylye Down milestones
6 km
Bowl barrow 540m north of Woodbine Barn
6.2 km
Little Langford round barrow, N of Upper Farm Down
6.8 km
Bowl barrow in High Park on south facing slope of Fonthill Down
6.9 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Codford Circle hilltop enclosure

Codford Circle hilltop enclosure stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.

The wider landscape

Around Codford Circle hilltop enclosure

StonehengeArchaeological site · ~8.7 milesOld SarumArchaeological site · ~10.6 milesWest Kennet Long BarrowArchaeological site · ~18.2 milesSilbury HillArchaeological site · ~18.8 milesBattle of Roundway Down 1643Battle (1643) · ~15.4 milesBattle of Lansdown (Hill) 1643Battle (1643) · ~24.3 milesBattle of LansdowneBattle (1643) · ~24.5 miles
Domesday entry for Sherrington, Wiltshire →
All Scheduled Monuments