<< Our Photo Pages >> Beeston Castle - Hillfort in England in Cheshire

Submitted by Andy B on Friday, 09 May 2025  Page Views: 18666

Iron Age and Later PrehistorySite Name: Beeston Castle
Country: England County: Cheshire Type: Hillfort
Nearest Town: Nantwich  Nearest Village: Beeston
Map Ref: SJ538592  Landranger Map Number: 117
Latitude: 53.127952N  Longitude: 2.691899W
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
 3 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.
 3 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
 4

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I have visited· I would like to visit

drolaf visited on 7th May 2025 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 5 Access: 3 you have to be a tourist for this one-National trust. some deep ditches/high banks. models in the visitor centre show the development of the site from Bronze age -Iron age to medieval. a proper good palimpset. they sell fruit wines and spirits in the shop very yummy. very long distance views from the top.

peter56 visited on 1st Jan 1999 - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 4 Access: 4

SumDoood visited - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 2 Access: 3

Modern-Neolithic saw from a distance - their rating: Amb: 4 Access: 3

TimPrevett have visited here

Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 2.33 Ambience: 3.75 Access: 3.25

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by drolaf : replica of the Bronze age roundhouse. modelled on house 6 but slightly larger diameter 8m instead of 7.5m. feels very roomy inside. it's built in a quarry where they knew there was not any archaeology. (Vote or comment on this photo)
The 13th century ruins of Beeston Castle and hillfort stand on a rocky summit close to the mid-Cheshire Ridge, 500ft above the Cheshire plain. In 2019 a Bronze Age style round-house was constructed to show it was an important defended settlement and metalworking centre even then.

Offering stunning views from the Pennines in the east to the mountains of Wales in the west, the hilltop was occupied as early as 800BC in the Late Bronze Age and was later crowned by an Iron Age hillfort.

The site is protected to the north, west and south-west by steep slopes and was approached to the south-east where the entrance of the later castle still survives today. Evidence for prehistoric activity first came to light in 1978 when a socketed axe of Later Bronze Age date was discovered on the hill itself. This prompted an archaeological excavation in which several important finds, including evidence for bronze casting discussed previously came to light. In addition to the metal finds, numerous fragments of prehistoric pottery and post-holes were uncovered showing the site had a long history of occupation.

In the care of English Heritage, Previous update below: Hillfort Glow was a successful test of possible Iron Age communication. Page originally by Vicky M.
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Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by drolaf : model of the very large bronze age enclosure. later fortifications were built over these. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Antonine : The caves, 2016 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Antonine : The caves below the hill (Vote or comment on this photo)

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Antonine : The castle well, 2016 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Modern-Neolithic : Beeston Castle taken from the Shropshire Union Canal.

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Modern-Neolithic

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Postman : From the roadside south of the castle

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by Postman : From Peckforton mere

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by TimPrevett : The remains of the prehistoric hillfort are very hard to detect; the place they are most in evidence are either side of the gatehouse to the outer bailey. This is either side of the main route to the top of the mediaeval castle. Some of the medieaval walls were actually built using existing earthworks from the earlier fortification to aid defence. These earthworks are most in evidence when the ...

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by TimPrevett

Beeston Castle
Beeston Castle submitted by vicky : The entrance to Beeston Castle in Cheshire where a 13th Century Castle was built on top of an Iron Age hillfort (GR: SJ538592 ). Excavations in 1978 revealed that the Medieval wall of this outer gateway was constructed on top of a prehistoric rampart with external ditch and counterscarp bank. Prehistoric artefacts including bronze axes and implements, clay moulds and crucibles for casting bron...

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"Beeston Castle" | Login/Create an Account | 6 News and Comments
  
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Re: Beeston Castle - STREET VIEW of gatehouse by Sunny100 on Monday, 27 May 2019
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A Bronze Age round-house is currently under construction here at Beeston Castle, Cheshire. It should be completed by October.

The volunteers are using authentic tools and archaeological evidence to recreate the house and based the reconstruction on recent discoveries at the Bronze Age settlement at Must Farm in Cambridgeshire. They've also drawn on earlier evidence found at Beeston Castle itself.

People lived on the rocky Cheshire crag long before the existing medieval castle was built, and in the late Bronze Age it was an important defended settlement and metalworking centre.

Although little visible evidence remains of this early activity, in the 1970s and 80s archaeologists discovered traces of post-holes for what was called House Six. This was a thatched Bronze Age roundhouse with walls of wattle-and-daub – a mixture of twigs, earth and clay. Bronze Age objects such as axes and knives were also uncovered during this time.

Here's the EH Link: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/about-us/search-news/beeston-bronze-age-house-recreated/
[ Reply to This ]
    Making Beeston Castle Bronze Age by Andy B on Tuesday, 25 June 2019
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    Prof Howard Williams visits the almost ready roundhouse: I live just over half-an-hour’s drive from one of England’s most spectacularly located castles: Beeston. The outer and inner ruined stone walls, notably its inner gatehouse, make this is one of the most striking medieval castles to visit.

    What I want to discuss here, however, is the new initiative by English Heritage to bring a dimension of prehistory to the heritage interpretation of the site. For while the visitor centre’s exhibition charts the long story of Beeston from Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Age occupation to the medieval and early modern use of the site, there remains a demonstrable absence of clear signs or explanation of the site’s prehistoric occupation. So I’m very excited that, in a post-medieval quarry so as not to disturb the ground surface of the older archaeological dimensions of the site, a roundhouse is being built this summer.

    https://howardwilliamsblog.wordpress.com/2019/06/16/making-beeston-castle-bronze-age/
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Hillfort Glow will be on Radio 4 Making History on Tuesday 29th Mar by Andy B on Monday, 28 March 2011
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15:00 on BBC Radio 4

Tom Holland and the team explore recent historical research and follow up listener's questions and comments.

In this episode we visit the Cheshire/North Wales borders to hear how iron-age people might have communicated with one another.

Fiona Watson is on the banks of the Forth in Edinburgh learning about a sixteenth century Scottish warship that was never used by them in anger but changed the face of naval strategy.

Tom Holland hears about the life - and death - of a forgotten pioneer of early cinema Louis Le Prince.

Finally, in Yorkshire, we find out how the local community are adding to the history of Britain's bloodiest battle in 1461 and protecting the site of it at Towton near York.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00zsdss
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North Wales hillfort test of Iron Age communication by Andy B on Sunday, 20 March 2011
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An experiment has shed light on how Iron Age people communicated from their hilltop homes 2,500 years ago.

About 200 volunteers stood on the summit of 10 hillforts in north Wales, the Wirral and Cheshire, and signalled to each other with torches.

Their aim was to learn if communities used the summits to warn each other.

"It was a success," said archaeologist Erin Robinson. "It captured the public's imagination and we made extra links we did not think were possible."

Saturday night's Hilltop Glow event was rescheduled after December's severe weather.

The ancient sites used were on the Clwydian Range; Halkyn Mountain, near Holywell, Flintshire; a lowland site at Wirral; and the Sandstone Ridge, Cheshire.
Summit of Penycloddiau The view towards Moel Arthur and Moel Famau from Penycloddiau which is the location of one of the fires

Beacon fires have previously used on hilltops around the UK to mark the Queen's golden and silver jubilees.

"Most of the hill forts across the surrounding landscape can be seen from each other," explained Ms Robinson from Denbighshire's Heather and Hillforts project.

"The experiment was aiming to see if the glowing fires could have been seen across the hills and acted as a communication or warning system."

Ms Robinson, who climbed to the Moel y Gaer hillfort, near Mold, Flintshire, said she was able to see signals from high-powered torches from all but one hill top.

"It was fantastic," she said. "We saw all the way to a hilltop in Cheshire, which we weren't sure we'd be able to do."

Ms Robinson said the furthest link was made between hills at Burton Point on the Wirral and Maiden Castle, at Bickerton Hill in Cheshire, a distance of approximately 25km (15.5 miles).

"It was a hard thing to organise but it seems to have captured the imagination of the communities involved. We brought the hills alive."

Source: BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-east-wales-11832323
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Hillfort Glow across ten sites in Wales and Cheshire, Saturday 19th March by Andy B on Friday, 14 January 2011
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A very special historical experiment takes place on Saturday 19th March, when communication is attempted between ten ancient hillforts.

On that day, north east Wales’ Heather and Hillforts Project and Cheshire West and Chester’s Habitats and Hillforts Project will be heading for the hills. The experiment will involve local people close to ten hillforts on the Sandstone Ridge, the Clwydian Range, Halkyn Mountain and the Wirral, trying to communicate between the hillforts using torch light.

Flares will be launched from the hillforts followed by torch light at Maiden Castle, Beeston Castle, Kelsborrow, Helsby, Burton Point, Moel y Gaer Rhosesmor, Penycloddiau, Moel Arthur, Moel Fenlli and Caer Drewyn.

Iron Age settlements can be found on many of the summits of the Sandstone Ridge, Clwydian Range and surrounding hills, dating back around 2,500 years. Most of the hillforts across the surrounding landscape can be seen from each other. The experiment is aiming to see if the glowing fires could have been seen across the hills and acted as a communication or warning system.

Flares will be fired from the hillforts and volunteers will be invited to help with this mass experiment by manning each of the ten hilltops by signalling with torches in an attempt to make contact across the landscape. Places are strictly limited, so to register to help as a volunteer for your local hillfort, visit http://www.heatherandhillforts.co.uk/
Once registered, volunteers will be sent information packs with exact timings to meet and what to bring.

Further details about the Hillfort Glow can also be found at the newly launched Habitats and Hillforts website - http://www.habitatsandhillforts.co.uk

Event has been postponed from December 2010 due to the bad weather

http://www.heatherandhillforts.co.uk/index.php/en/latest-news/275-hillfort-glow

http://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/microsites/habitats_and_hillforts/whats_on.aspx

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Re: Beeston Castle - STREET VIEW of gatehouse by Judy6 on Tuesday, 20 April 2010
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