Promontory fort
Encyclopedia
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus utilizing the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to date to the 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...
. They are mainly found in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, the Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
, the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
and Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
.
Ireland
Only a few Irish promontory forts have been excavated and most date to the Iron AgeIron 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...
, though some, like Dunbeg (County Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
) might have originated in the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
. Others, like Dalkey Island
Dalkey Island
Dalkey Island is an uninhabited island about 16 km south of Dublin, near the village of Dalkey, 3 km south of Dún Laoghaire harbour...
(County Dublin
County Dublin
County Dublin is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Dublin Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Dublin which is the capital of Ireland. County Dublin was one of the first of the parts of Ireland to be shired by King John of England following the...
) contain imported Eastern Mediterranean pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
and have been reoccupied and changed in the early medieval period. Dunbeg contains an early medieval corbel
Corbel
In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger". The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or...
led stone hut (clochan
Clochan
A Clochán is a dry-stone hut with a corbelled roof, dating from the early Middle Ages or earlier. Most archaeologists think these structures were built on the southwestern coast of Ireland since the Bronze Age. They are most commonly round beehive huts, but rectangular plans are known as well....
).
Isle of Man
On the Isle of Man promontory forts are found particularly on the rocky slate headlands of the south. Four out of more than 20 have been excavated and several, especially in SantonSanton (parish)
Santon is a parish of the Isle of Man. It has an area of approximately eight square miles and is the island's smallest parish, located in the sheading of Middle which is composed of the parishes of Braddan, Marown and Santon. Currently the Captain of the Parish is Donald Gelling.The parish church...
, can be visited using the Raad ny Foillan
Raad ny Foillan
is a long distance footpath in the Isle of Man.-Route and history:The starts and finishes at the Millennium Bridge over Douglas Harbour...
coastal footpath. All have a rampart
Defensive wall
A defensive wall is a fortification used to protect a city or settlement from potential aggressors. In ancient to modern times, they were used to enclose settlements...
on their vulnerable landward side, and excavations at Cronk ny Merriu
Cronk ny Merriu
Cronk ny Merriu is one of the remains of promontory forts in the Isle of Man. Close to Port Grenaugh, this site dates back almost 2,000 years. The bank and ditch of Iron Age date created a defensive promontory fort at Cronk ny Merriu...
have shown that access to the fort was via a strongly built gate.
The Scandinavians
Scandinavians
Scandinavians are a group of Germanic peoples, inhabiting Scandinavia and to a lesser extent countries associated with Scandinavia, and speaking Scandinavian languages. The group includes Danes, Norwegians and Swedes, and additionally the descendants of Scandinavian settlers such as the Icelandic...
who arrived in Mann in the eighth and ninth centuries AD sometimes re-used these Iron Age promontory forts, often obliterating the old domestic quarters with their characteristic rectangular houses; the fine example at Cronk ny Merriu has been used as the basis of the reconstruction in the House of Manannan museum in Peel.
Cornwall
Promontory forts can be found all along the coast of PenwithPenwith
Penwith was a local government district in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, whose council was based in Penzance. The district covered all of the Penwith peninsula, the toe-like promontory of land at the western end of Cornwall and which included an area of land to the east that fell outside the...
. Maen Castle
Maen Castle
Maen Castle is an Iron Age promontory fort or 'cliff castle' close to Land's End in Cornwall. It is one of only two fortified sites in Cornwall where Early Iron Age pottery has been found...
, near to Land's End
Land's End
Land's End is a headland and small settlement in west Cornwall, England, within the United Kingdom. It is located on the Penwith peninsula approximately eight miles west-southwest of Penzance....
is one of the oldest, having been dated to around 500 BC. They are also found in other districts, e.g. The Rumps
The Rumps
The Rumps is a twin-headland promontory at the north-east corner of Pentire Head in north Cornwall, United Kingdom.The promontory is formed from hard basaltic rock and projects north into the Atlantic Ocean. Its headlands lie east-to-west...
near Padstow and Dodman Point
Dodman Point
Dodman Point is a high headland near Mevagissey, Cornwall. It was once an Iron Age promontory fort. At its seaward end is a large granite cross, erected to help protect shipping from this headland...
.