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Coed Cefn hillfort is a prehistoric fortified settlement situated in Wales on bedrock of Lower Devonian sandstone and conglomerate. The underlying geology of interbedded stone provided both a naturally stable foundation and raw material that would have been available to the hillfort's inhabitants. Hillforts of this type typically date to the Iron Age, serving as defended settlements, territorial markers, or refuges during periods of conflict or social stress across Britain.
The site's position exploits the local topography of the Devonian landscape, a region of upland terrain characterised by resistant stone formations. The fortification would have comprised defensive earthworks, likely banks and ditches following the contours of the hilltop, with timber or stone structures within. Such settlements functioned as centres of power, economy and community life for their Iron Age populations.
Coed Cefn hillfort is now scheduled and protected by Cadw, the Welsh Historic Monuments agency, under reference BR061. This designation ensures the preservation of the archaeological evidence preserved within and around the hillfort, protecting it as a significant record of prehistoric Welsh settlement and society.
Coed Cefn hillfort is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference BR061. View the official record →
Coed Cefn hillfort is a prehistoric fortified settlement situated in Wales on bedrock of Lower Devonian sandstone and conglomerate. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference BR061.
Coed Cefn hillfort dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a hillfort. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Coed Cefn hillfort is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is BR061.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Coal and Iron Ore Workings West of Abergavenny Road, Blaenavon (8.7 km), Iron and coal patching at Pen-ffordd-goch (8.8 km), Brake Engine on Hill Pits Tramroad Incline (8.8 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Coed Cefn hillfort'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.
Coed Cefn hillfort stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.