Scheduled Monuments›England›Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown

Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown

England
List entry 1005553
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1005553
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
0.35 hectares
Grid reference
TQ 32305 60571
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Newe Ditch, Riddlesdown is an Iron Age linear earthwork located on the North Downs in Surrey. The monument consists of a substantial ditch with accompanying bank, which served a defensive or territorial function during the Iron Age period. The earthwork runs across the downland landscape and represents evidence of settlement organisation and land division in prehistoric Surrey. Its precise dating and the community responsible for its construction remain subjects of archaeological study, though the monument is consistent with other Iron Age linear features found across southern England.

Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1005553. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown?

Newe Ditch, Riddlesdown is an Iron Age linear earthwork located on the North Downs in Surrey. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1005553.

Who is responsible for protecting Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown?

Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown 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 1005553.

What other scheduled monuments are near Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Alderstead Fort: a London mobilisation centre at Merstham (6.6 km), Large multivallate hillfort at War Coppice Camp (7.4 km), Fosterdown or Pilgrim Fort: a London mobilisation centre (7.5 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown'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

Alderstead Fort: a London mobilisation centre at Merstham
6.6 km
Large multivallate hillfort at War Coppice Camp
7.4 km
Fosterdown or Pilgrim Fort: a London mobilisation centre
7.5 km
Woldingham Fort: a London mobilisation centre 500m south of Whistlers Wood Farm
8.1 km
Medieval moated site, Albury Farm, Merstham
8.4 km
Medieval moated site with associated fishponds, Flower Lane
8.7 km
Bowl barrow at the north end of Hilly Field
9.1 km
Bowl barrow in south end of Hilly Field
9.2 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown

Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.

The wider landscape

Around Newe (or Wide) Ditch, Riddlesdown

LondonRoman town · ~12.7 milesBattle of Barnet 1471Battle (1471) · ~23.3 miles
Domesday entry for Waddington, Surrey →
All Scheduled Monuments