Highbury Hill, Clutton
Encyclopedia
Highbury Hill in Clutton
, Somerset
, England is the site of the earthwork remains of an Iron Age
univallate hillfort. It occupies an area of woodland at the end of a narrow ridge. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument
.
The 3 hectares (7.4 acre) site lies in an area of woodland at the south eastern end of a narrow ridge with steep slopes around it. There is a 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) outer bank which is 8 metres (26.2 ft) long with a shallow 8 metres (26.2 ft) wide ditch.
Some Roman silver coins were found at the site in the late 18th century.
. The reason for their emergence in Britain, and their purpose, has been a subject of debate. It has been argued that they could have been military sites constructed in response to invasion from continental Europe, sites built by invaders, or a military reaction to social tensions caused by an increasing population and consequent pressure on agriculture. The dominant view since the 1960s has been that the increasing use of iron led to social changes in Britain. Deposits of iron ore were located in different places to the tin and copper ore necessary to make bronze, and as a result trading patterns shifted and the old elites lost their economic and social status. Power passed into the hands of a new group of people. Archaeologist Barry Cunliffe
believes that population increase still played a role and has stated "[the forts] provided defensive possibilities for the community at those times when the stress [of an increasing population] burst out into open warfare. But I wouldn't see them as having been built because there was a state of war. They would be functional as defensive strongholds when there were tensions and undoubtedly some of them were attacked and destroyed, but this was not the only, or even the most significant, factor in their construction".
Clutton, Somerset
Clutton is a village and civil parish within the Chew Valley in Somerset in the Bath and North East Somerset Council area on the A37 road. It is located 10 miles from Bristol and Bath, very near Temple Cloud. The nearest town is Midsomer Norton...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England is the site of the earthwork remains of an Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
univallate hillfort. It occupies an area of woodland at the end of a narrow ridge. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorized change. The various pieces of legislation used for legally protecting heritage assets from damage and destruction are grouped under the term...
.
The 3 hectares (7.4 acre) site lies in an area of woodland at the south eastern end of a narrow ridge with steep slopes around it. There is a 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) outer bank which is 8 metres (26.2 ft) long with a shallow 8 metres (26.2 ft) wide ditch.
Some Roman silver coins were found at the site in the late 18th century.
Background
Hill forts developed in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age, roughly the start of the first millennium BC1st millennium BC
The 1st millennium BC encompasses the Iron Age and sees the rise of many successive empires, and spanned from 1000 BC to 1 BC.The Neo-Assyrian Empire, followed by the Achaemenids. In Greece, Classical Antiquity begins with the colonization of Magna Graecia and peaks with the rise of Hellenism. The...
. The reason for their emergence in Britain, and their purpose, has been a subject of debate. It has been argued that they could have been military sites constructed in response to invasion from continental Europe, sites built by invaders, or a military reaction to social tensions caused by an increasing population and consequent pressure on agriculture. The dominant view since the 1960s has been that the increasing use of iron led to social changes in Britain. Deposits of iron ore were located in different places to the tin and copper ore necessary to make bronze, and as a result trading patterns shifted and the old elites lost their economic and social status. Power passed into the hands of a new group of people. Archaeologist Barry Cunliffe
Barry Cunliffe
Sir Barrington Windsor Cunliffe, CBE, known professionally as Barry Cunliffe is a former Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford, a position held from 1972 to 2007...
believes that population increase still played a role and has stated "[the forts] provided defensive possibilities for the community at those times when the stress [of an increasing population] burst out into open warfare. But I wouldn't see them as having been built because there was a state of war. They would be functional as defensive strongholds when there were tensions and undoubtedly some of them were attacked and destroyed, but this was not the only, or even the most significant, factor in their construction".