<< Our Photo Pages >> Warbstow Bury - Hillfort in England in Cornwall

Submitted by TheCaptain on Thursday, 26 June 2014  Page Views: 12149

Iron Age and Later PrehistorySite Name: Warbstow Bury Alternative Name: Warbstow Barrow
Country: England County: Cornwall Type: Hillfort
Nearest Town: Launceston  Nearest Village: Warbstow
Map Ref: SX20149075
Latitude: 50.688528N  Longitude: 4.547663W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
 5 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
 4 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
 5 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
 5

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lucasn visited on 3rd Apr 2018 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5

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Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : Part of the inner ring bank and ditch. (Vote or comment on this photo)
A large double ringed hillfort on the slopes of a hill in north Cornwall, the second largest in Cornwall and perhaps the best preserved.

The fort consists of two complete rings of massive ditch and banks, the outer walls of which are almost covered with gorse and bracken, with deep ditches at the bottom of each rampart. There is also an incomplete third ring around approximately half of the fort in between the outer and inner ramparts.

There are two entrances opposite each other at the northwest and southeast through both rings, while a thrid entrance at the southwest is only through the outer defences.

At the centre of the fort is a large mound, 22 metres long known as the Giant's Grave or King Arthur's Tomb, which is possibly the remains of a neolithic long barrow, or perhaps a medieval rabbit warren.

There is a small carpark beside the southeastern entrance, and a signboard which gives much information about the place. Access to the fort is open to all.

Note: Warbstow Bury: Recent survey results in report, see the comment
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Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Horatio : A bit lower down angle to get those banks and ditches in relief, really is in good shape for its age (Vote or comment on this photo)

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : view along the inner face of the inner ring of this large and impressive hillfort. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : View northish from the inner ring. The dark bushes show the outside of the outer ring, the northwestern entrance which can be seen mid photo. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : The northwestern entrance to the inner ring. foggy view looking northwards. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Horatio : One to put it in its larger environment (Vote or comment on this photo)

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Horatio : according to the information board at the entrance Warbstow Bury is the second largest and the best preserved hillfort in Cornwall and sure looks it from this angle

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Bladup : Warbstow Bury fort, The second biggest fort in Cornwall [after Castle Canyke - near Bodmin].

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Bladup : Warbstow Bury fort.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Bladup : The entrance at Warbstow Bury fort.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Bladup : A bank at Warbstow Bury fort.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Bladup : A big ditch at Warbstow Bury fort.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by Bladup : Warbstow Bury fort, Strange all these "Bury"s down here in Cornwall, seeing as it's the Saxon world for hill, Maybe the fort is so big and impressive because the people living in them weren't to welcome.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : view of the inner ring bank and ditch near to the southern entrance of this large and impressive hillfort.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : view across the inner part of this large and impressive hillfort.

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : the fort consists of two complete rings of massive ditch and banks. There is also an incomplete third ring around approximately half of the fort in between the outer and inner ramparts. Sorry for the horrid wet and foggy weather this day in November 2008

Warbstow Bury
Warbstow Bury submitted by TheCaptain : At the centre of the fort is a large mound, 22 metres long known as the Giant's Grave or King Arthur's Tomb, which is possibly the remains of a neolithic long barrow, or perhaps a medieval rabbit warren. Sorry for the horrid wet and foggy weather this day in November 2008

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"Warbstow Bury" | Login/Create an Account | 2 News and Comments
  
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Re: Warbstow Bury: re-writing the story of a Cornish hillfort by lucasn on Tuesday, 10 April 2018
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr1Wwy8g5Gg&t=4s
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Warbstow Bury: re-writing the story of a Cornish hillfort by bat400 on Tuesday, 24 June 2014
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May 23, 2014 - English Heritage

Warbstow Bury, a multivallate hillfort in north Cornwall, is one of the largest and best preserved hillforts in the county. Perhaps not the most well known of Cornwall’s ancient monuments, being ’off the beaten track’ in a countryside parish, but it remains popular and is easily accessible to passing visitors. In an effort to improve the understanding of Warbstow Bury, we conducted a detailed analytical earthwork survey in October 2013, followed by intensive desk based research, and discovered some intriguing results.

The hillfort has three ramparts which are accessible through entrances to the north-west and south-east. These are thought to have been original features of the hillfort but with later modifications; some in prehistory and others relating to more recent agricultural activity. The south-east entrance of the central rampart has an unusual inturned bank within the fort, which guides you towards the east as if to control and observe the movements of those entering the central area. The middle rampart is only present on the western side, a topic of speculation in previous research which suggested that this was a final, unfinished phase of construction. However, the results of our survey show that this rampart was in fact most likely to have been the first phase of construction at Warbstow Bury. This rampart was lost in the east as it is overlain by the most recent (and most impressive) inner rampart.

We also found that the large inner rampart may have been adorned with blocks of glistening white quartz, a feature which is rare but certainly not unheard of. The best view from the hillfort leads the eye to the north-east towards Canworthy Water. The rivers and streams in the area serve as boundaries to a number of modern parishes, and probably bounded prehistoric territories in a similar way. As the eye passes Canworthy Water, Ash Bury hillfort becomes visible 7km to the north. If the ramparts of Warbstow Bury were indeed faced with quartz, it would have certainly been visible from Ash Bury, and from numerous other contemporary sites for a great distance.

While we could not find any earthwork remains of prehistoric activity within the hillfort, medieval and later features survived. After the abandonment of the hillfort (late Iron Age,) the site is unlikely to have been used frequently for anything more than the summertime grazing of sheep in the early medieval period, which would have been lead to the uplands from Warbstow village via the hollow way originating at the Church of St Werburgh.

Later in the medieval period the interior of the hillfort was ploughed, leaving slight traces of ridge-and-furrow. This was possibly just for a few seasons to grow crops, or to prepare the land for the placement of a pillow mound (artificial rabbit warren) ... Folklore would suggest otherwise – the mound has been named ‘King Arthur’s Grave’, or alternatively ‘Giant’s Grave.’

In the 19th and 20th centuries, the outer ramparts were used as field boundaries, which ... perhaps gives a purpose for stone walling on the rampart tops visible in places on the eastern side. It is also possible that these were added during the prehistoric life of the hillfort, and taken advantage of later.

The full survey report is available to download as a PDF and there are interesting and detailed findings on the internal features, including notable similarities with other earthworks. ... Although there are still questions, we were pleased by the results as they allow us to understand the hillfort in more detail, which will contribute to the ongoing efforts to care for, and protect the monument for the enjoyment of future generations of walkers and curious passers-by.

Thanks to coldrum for the link. For more, see heritagecallin

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