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<< Our Photo Pages >> Carman Hill Fort - Hillfort in Scotland in West Dunbartonshire

Submitted by AstroGeologist on Friday, 26 April 2019  Page Views: 5626

Iron Age and Later PrehistorySite Name: Carman Hill Fort Alternative Name: Carman Hillfort, Carman Fort
Country: Scotland County: West Dunbartonshire Type: Hillfort
Nearest Town: Dumbarton  Nearest Village: Renton / Alexandria
Map Ref: NS37207944
Latitude: 55.980245N  Longitude: 4.610828W
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
2 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.
2 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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I have visited· I would like to visit

AstroGeologist visited on 22nd Apr 2019 - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 4 Access: 2 Carman Hill Fort: A strategically well positioned Iron Age Hillfort with amazing 300° views (The view to the North is blocked by Overton Muir -288m) I have had an interest in this site ever since l read about the possible 'King Arthur' connection after reading "William Scobie"s convincing article on the subject (Robert de Brus settled in the area 600+ years later, so perhaps the area has always been inhabited by leaders, chieftains or kings) The Vale of Leven is a prime location, Carman Hillfort along with The Dumbarton Rock Settlement are thought to have been occupied by the Damnonii before Roman occupation, with their descendants later reclaiming Dumbarton Rock and making it the capital of their Kingdom ~ Alt Clut. There is impressive stonework remaining on the HillFort, with several large Menhir sized stones lying on their side and partially covered by soil and grass. Were any of these ever erect as Standing Stones l wonder? Some of the large stones in the wall are an impressive size, especially on the lower Southern sections. A field wall dividing the Fort in two seem to be the same type and age of stone found in the Fort, suggesting they have been taken at some time in the past to make fields on the hillside. In 1863 the boulders suffered some damage, as recorded in the 1927 book 'The Old Vale and Its Memories' by "J.G.Temple" and "James Ferguson". Local youths from the Vale carried coals, wood and tar, and had a great bonfire which could be seen in many counties. The fire cracked the big rocks badly and the damage can still be seen today. In "Iain.C. Lees" 1933 book 'The Campsies and the Land of Lennox' - it states that local traditions consider the stones on the summit to be the supposed site of a 'Druid temple'. Due to time constraints l didn't have time to investigate the numerous Hut Circle remains, l will do that next time l visit. l would definitely recommend a visit to this site, it has never been excavated, so who knows what historical artefacts or remains lie under the surface.

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing SE (22.04.19) : Section of the remaining large defensive walls on the Southern lower end of the Fort (Dumbowie Dun & Dumbarton Rock are both visible in the distance). (Vote or comment on this photo)
Hillfort in West Dunbartonshire

This impressive Iron Age Hillfort is situated on Carman Hill.
Halfway down the slopes are the remains of a Neolithic Chambered Cairn.

Sitting 230m above sea level, the summit covers an area of nearly 4 acres and overlooks the River Clyde to the South and Vale of Leven to the East, it sits in front of Overton Muir (288m) to it's North and has stunning views down the Firth of Clyde to the Cowal Peninsula & Arrochar Alps in the West

It was a double walled fortification, with a smaller inner enclosure on the Northern edge of the summit surrounded by a large outer enclosure, that contained 12~15 Hut Circles. There are ditch remains on the steeper, sheltered Northern side.
The inner enclosure had an oval plan, measuring approx 55m from E to W by 40m, and was protected by 3m thick walls, now mostly removed.
The outer enclosure measures about 180m from NW to SE by 140m, and was encircled with a large stone wall roughly 2.5m thick.

From the summit of the Hillfort looking SE, Alt Clut is easy to see on the banks of the Clyde 5.7km away, and Dumbowie Dun is also visible 6.5km away.
Carman Hill Cairn is roughly 1.55km away on the Southern slope as you descend towards the River Clyde. Travelling North you have Cameron Farm Cairns roughly 2.65km away, or Loch Lomond at about 3km (Distance's are as the crow flies)

While locals have known about the massive shaped Granite boulders on top of Carman Hill for centuries, it wasn't until 1954 it was recognized as an ancient Hillfort, when Dr. K.A.Steer took photograph's of the site from the air. No excavation or full investigation of the Fort has ever been carried out.

Some Archaeologists link the Hillfort to 'Artair MacAedan', the 6th century Brittonic Chieftain who inspired the King Arthur stories hundreds of years later. They think he took control of the Fort and made it a military or possibly religious stronghold ~ his Camelot : http://valeofleven.org.uk/contributions/carmancamelot.html
With this family claiming direct lineage to the Legendary King : http://clannarthur.com/home_index.htm

For more information : Canmore ID 42357.
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Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing N (22.04.19) : Large cube cut block on the 'outer enclosure' ~ roughly a metre on each side & makes a great seat ; this is next to the Southern entrance, making it a possible guard/sentry point (I wonder how many people have sat on this rock over the last 2,000 years, looking out onto the Clyde or looking downriver to watch the Sunset over the Mountains on the Cowal Peninsula) (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing SE (22.04.19) : View of Dumbuie Dun (Far left next to quarry - 6.5km away) and Dumbarton Rock (Far right on the banks of the Clyde - 5.7km away) from Carman HillFort (Carman Reservoir in the foreground is 100m lower down the hill than the Hillfort, and is 750m away) (Vote or comment on this photo)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing N (22.04.19) : The large cube rock situated at the Eastern side of the lower 'outer enclosure' (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing W (22.04.19) : Surface detail of the large Monolithic blocks used to create the defensive walls of the HillFort (Now home to various Lichen species & Moss) (Vote or comment on this photo)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing E (22.04.19) : Stonework Structure on the 'outer enclosure' showing how large some of the rectangular cut blocks were (Vote or comment on this photo)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing NE (22.04.19) : Stonework Structure on the 'outer enclosure' ~ The Southern entrance/pathway is to the left

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing E (22.04.19) : Stonework Structure on the 'outer enclosure' ~ A pathway and possible entrance to the Fort from the South side is visible here

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing SE (22.04.19) : Stonework Structure on the 'outer enclosure' (Alt Clut being visible to the left of the large stones)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing E (22.04.19) : View of the drystone wall that runs the length of the hill, and divides the HillFort into an Upper & Lower part. The stone looks like it is the same type of stone used in the defensive walls of the Fort (Reused over a Thousand years later to build this wall)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing N (22.04.19) : View of the Eastern end, of the upper 'inner enclosure' from the drystone wall that now divides the site in Two

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing S (22.04.19) : Large Stoneworks on the lower 'outer enclosure' with the Renfrewshire Hills beyond the River Clyde visible in the background. Notice the wall running east to West that now creates field's and divides the site in Two

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing E (22.04.19) : Small part of the remaining ditchworks on the Northern slope of the HillFort

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing N (22.04.19) : Modern Cairn that now sits on the summit of Carman Hill (In the centre of the 'inner enclosure') with the Heather covered slopes of Overton Muir (288m) in the background. The Cairn is built on a foundation of the original stonework belonging to the HillFort

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing N (22.04.19) : Large Stone that was part of the 'inner enclosure' protruding from the grass

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing NE (22.04.19) : Some of the remaining ramparts of the 'inner enclosure' now almost totally covered in grass

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing S (22.04.19) : Large Stone on the North side of the 'inner enclosure' protruding from the grass

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing E (22.04.19) : Silhouette of Carman Hill just before Sunrise (Photo taken from 10km away)

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing NE (22.04.19) : View of Carman Hillfort from Carman Hill Neolithic Cairn (Approx 100m below and 1.55km away).

Carman Hill Fort
Carman Hill Fort submitted by AstroGeologist : Facing S (22.04.19) : View of Carman Hillfort from Overton Muir (From here you can see a couple of paths leading to the summit of the Fort).

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