Medieval ringwork with bailey and approach causeway, incorporating a bowl barrow on Castle Hill

Scheduled area

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History & significance

Castle Hill is a medieval ringwork with bailey and approach causeway located in Kent, England. The site comprises a roughly circular defensive earthwork with an internal bailey, accessed by a formal causeway approach, representing a characteristic form of early Norman fortification dating to the twelfth century or later. The monument incorporates a prehistoric bowl barrow within its structure, indicating that the medieval builders selected an already prominent landscape feature as the foundation for their defensive work, a common practice in the Norman period. The combination of these archaeological elements demonstrates both the strategic importance of elevated positions in medieval Kent and the continuity of significant sites across multiple periods of human settlement.

Medieval ringwork with bailey and approach causeway, incorporating a bowl barrow on Castle Hill is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1014864. View the official record →

Questions & answers

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