Scheduled MonumentsEnglandMaiden Bower hillfort

Maiden Bower hillfort

England
List entry 1015593
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1015593
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
5.92 hectares
Grid reference
SP 99670 22462
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Maiden Bower is a Iron Age hillfort located near Maulden in Bedfordshire, England. The site comprises a single rampart with an external ditch enclosing an area of approximately three hectares, with the entrance positioned on the eastern side. Archaeological investigation and finds suggest occupation during the Iron Age, likely the later Iron Age period, though the precise chronology remains subject to scholarly debate. The hillfort represents a significant defensive settlement of the pre-Roman Iron Age in the East Midlands region.

Maiden Bower hillfort is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1015593. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Maiden Bower hillfort?

Maiden Bower is a Iron Age hillfort located near Maulden in Bedfordshire, England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1015593.

Who is responsible for protecting Maiden Bower hillfort?

Maiden Bower hillfort 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 1015593.

What other scheduled monuments are near Maiden Bower hillfort?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Bowl barrow on Ivinghoe Beacon Hill, 230m east of Ivinghoe Beacon trig pillar: part of the Beacon Hill round barrow cemetery (6.6 km), A slight univallate hillfort and bowl barrow on Ivinghoe Beacon Hill (6.7 km), Bowl barrow on Ivinghoe Hills, 240m south of Ivinghoe Beacon trig pillar: part of the Beacon Hill round barrow cemetery (6.9 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Maiden Bower hillfort

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Maiden Bower hillfort'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 Maiden Bower hillfort

Maiden Bower hillfort stands on Grey Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Cenomanian. The rock here is chalk.