Buckland Rings
Encyclopedia
Buckland Rings is the site of an Iron Age
hill fort
in the town of Lymington, Hampshire
. Today, the mounds and dykes around the outside which once constituted its defences are still clearly visible, although the outer bank lies under the road on the west side, and on the south-east it is nearly ploughed-out. Excavations of the inner and middle ramparts in 1935 revealed that they were of wall-and-fill construction, retained at the front by upright timber beams and walls of cut and laid turf. The entrance, which lies on the east side, was also excavated revealing a long entrance passage and the posthole
s for a pair of stout gatepost
s. The site was bought by Hampshire County Council
in 1989 to ensure its preservation, and it is open to the public from the A337 road onto which part of it faces.
. Although this type of enclosure is commonly referred to as a hillfort
, Buckland Rings is in fact only 27 metres above sea-level. This type of site is rare in lowland areas and as such it is the best preserved and most important in the Hampshire/Dorset basin
. It stands on a spur of gravel and encloses 2.8 hectare
s. The innermost bank stands 2.4 metres high whilst the middle one is lower but unusually wide. Buckland Rings has well preserved triple banks and double ditches, although the outer bank lies under the road on the west side, and the east side which contained the entrance was partly ploughed up in the mid 18th century.
s, upon the Top of Hill, three Ways guarded by a natural Ascent." Wright drew a plan of the fort, which is especially valuable as some of the eastern ramparts were flattened by a farmer around 1750. Wright also noticed the presence of a lower camp nearby (Ampress Camp) together with a farm called Ampress Farm, which he understood to be "Ambrose Farm", and he thought that it was "not improbable" that the site was "a principal station" belonging to the 5th century Romano-British war-leader Ambrosius Aurelianus
.
This thought was elaborated on by Richard Warner
in 1793 who fancifully described how Ambrosius "unable to support the furious attacks of the invaders, was probably driven, ... till he reached the neighbourhood of Lymington." Warner describes how "an earthwork, a rude sample of British castra
metation, may still be discerned at this place."
Others simply thought that Buckland Rings was a Roman
camp, but in 1887 the newly-formed Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society examined the site and resolved that the word "Roman" should be omitted from future Ordnance Survey
maps.
and ditches on the east side where the ramparts had been almost totally removed around 1750.
s for upright beams were found at the front of the inner rampart. These posts would have held horizontal timbers forming a wooden revetment
to the front of the rampart. The rampart was composed of sand and gravel dug from the ditches, together with a wall of cut and laid turf
into which the posts had been recessed. Additional postholes were discovered 5.8 metres behind the front postholes. These presumably held anchor timbers for the front wall, although the 5.8 metre distance between the rows is thought somewhat excessive for simple cross-bracing.
yoke
s. Hawkes himself believed that the fort was built in the first century BC and was demolished in about 43 AD, possibly by the Romans
. Advances in Iron-Age archaeology since the 1930's have now led modern archaeologists to adopt a longer chronology for the site. The site may date from the Early to Middle Iron-Age (c. 5th century BC) and may have started out with a single bank and ditch system. Later the ramparts may have been refurbished, and the outer ramparts were added to the original construction. Many hillforts in southern England had been abandoned well before the Roman conquest
, and Buckland Rings may have fallen out use by the 1st century BC. The finds from excavation are in the Winchester
Museum.
. However, geological conditions at the site for magnetic detection of archaeology were discovered to be poor and features such as posthole structures were undetectable. The survey was able to trace the course of the missing defences, locate the position of Hawkes's excavations, and partially define the entrance features. Evidence of settlement activity, however, was inconclusive.
inside Buckland Rings. These plans were rejected in a public inquiry
in 1988. Since 1989 Buckland Rings has been in the care and ownership of Hampshire County Council
and it is now open to visitors on foot. Buckland Rings is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument
. There is also a mountain bike
trail adjacent to Buckland rings situated in a disused gravel pit
.
. It had been noted by Thomas Wright in 1744, who described it as "upon a lower Ground, close by a River (which defends it on one Side), with a Ditch and Vallum half round, and a kind of Morass
on the other." The outer rampart depicted by Wright has long since been flattened, and the ditches have been filled in. Much of the interior still survives, although waterworks
occupy some of the site. There have been only limited excavations, but a few scraps of pottery found at the site may date from the Iron-Age. If the camp does date from the Iron Age, then it is unusual to have two Iron Age camps so close together, and Ampress Camp may perhaps have formed a beachhead for the inhabitants of Buckland Rings.
British Iron Age
The British Iron Age is a conventional name used in the archaeology of Great Britain, referring to the prehistoric and protohistoric phases of the Iron-Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding prehistoric Ireland, and which had an independent Iron Age culture of...
hill fort
Hillforts in Britain
Hillforts in Britain refers to the various hillforts within the island of Great Britain. Although the earliest such constructs fitting this description come from the Neolithic period, with a few also dating to the later Bronze Age, British hill forts were primarily constructed during the Iron Age...
in the town of Lymington, Hampshire
Lymington
Lymington is a port on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest district of Hampshire, England. It is to the east of the South East Dorset conurbation, and faces Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight which is connected to it by a car ferry, operated by Wightlink. The town...
. Today, the mounds and dykes around the outside which once constituted its defences are still clearly visible, although the outer bank lies under the road on the west side, and on the south-east it is nearly ploughed-out. Excavations of the inner and middle ramparts in 1935 revealed that they were of wall-and-fill construction, retained at the front by upright timber beams and walls of cut and laid turf. The entrance, which lies on the east side, was also excavated revealing a long entrance passage and the posthole
Posthole
In archaeology a posthole is a cut feature used to hold a surface timber or stone. They are usually much deeper than they are wide although truncation may not make this apparent....
s for a pair of stout gatepost
Gatepost
A gatepost is a structure used to support gates or crossbars which control entry to an area, such as a field or driveway.- Purpose :If the gatepost is utilitarian in purpose then gateposts will be made as strictly functional structures; however as part of the 'advertisement' of the status of the...
s. The site was bought by Hampshire County Council
Hampshire County Council
Hampshire County Council is the county council that governs the majority of the county of Hampshire in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are district councils, and town and parish councils...
in 1989 to ensure its preservation, and it is open to the public from the A337 road onto which part of it faces.
Overview
Buckland Rings is a triple-banked, rectangular encampment dating from the Iron AgeBritish Iron Age
The British Iron Age is a conventional name used in the archaeology of Great Britain, referring to the prehistoric and protohistoric phases of the Iron-Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding prehistoric Ireland, and which had an independent Iron Age culture of...
. Although this type of enclosure is commonly referred to as a hillfort
Hillforts in Britain
Hillforts in Britain refers to the various hillforts within the island of Great Britain. Although the earliest such constructs fitting this description come from the Neolithic period, with a few also dating to the later Bronze Age, British hill forts were primarily constructed during the Iron Age...
, Buckland Rings is in fact only 27 metres above sea-level. This type of site is rare in lowland areas and as such it is the best preserved and most important in the Hampshire/Dorset basin
Hampshire Basin
The Hampshire Basin is a geological basin of Paleogene age in southern England, underlying parts of Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Dorset, and Sussex...
. It stands on a spur of gravel and encloses 2.8 hectare
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
s. The innermost bank stands 2.4 metres high whilst the middle one is lower but unusually wide. Buckland Rings has well preserved triple banks and double ditches, although the outer bank lies under the road on the west side, and the east side which contained the entrance was partly ploughed up in the mid 18th century.
Early reports
The earliest report of Buckland Rings was by Thomas Wright who visited the site in the summer of 1743. He described Buckland Rings as "very strong, with double ditches, and triple VallumVallum
Vallum is a term applied either to the whole or a portion of the fortifications of a Roman camp. The vallum usually comprised an earthen or turf rampart with a wooden palisade on top, with a deep outer ditch...
s, upon the Top of Hill, three Ways guarded by a natural Ascent." Wright drew a plan of the fort, which is especially valuable as some of the eastern ramparts were flattened by a farmer around 1750. Wright also noticed the presence of a lower camp nearby (Ampress Camp) together with a farm called Ampress Farm, which he understood to be "Ambrose Farm", and he thought that it was "not improbable" that the site was "a principal station" belonging to the 5th century Romano-British war-leader Ambrosius Aurelianus
Ambrosius Aurelianus
Ambrosius Aurelianus, ; called Aurelius Ambrosius in the Historia Regum Britanniae and elsewhere, was a war leader of the Romano-British who won an important battle against the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th century, according to Gildas...
.
This thought was elaborated on by Richard Warner
Richard Warner (antiquary)
Rev. Richard Warner was an English clergyman and writer of a considerable number of topographical books based on his walks and his interest in antiquarianism.-Biography:...
in 1793 who fancifully described how Ambrosius "unable to support the furious attacks of the invaders, was probably driven, ... till he reached the neighbourhood of Lymington." Warner describes how "an earthwork, a rude sample of British castra
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
metation, may still be discerned at this place."
Others simply thought that Buckland Rings was a Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
camp, but in 1887 the newly-formed Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society examined the site and resolved that the word "Roman" should be omitted from future Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
maps.
1935 Excavations
To date the only excavation of the site was that conducted over a three week period in 1935 under the supervision of Christopher Hawkes, following some preparatory work in 1934. Hawkes limited his excavations to areas around the entrance, and especially to the inner and middle rampartsDefensive 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...
and ditches on the east side where the ramparts had been almost totally removed around 1750.
Inner ditch and rampart
The inner ditch was of V-section, 3.5 metres deep and 8.8 metres wide. PostholePosthole
In archaeology a posthole is a cut feature used to hold a surface timber or stone. They are usually much deeper than they are wide although truncation may not make this apparent....
s for upright beams were found at the front of the inner rampart. These posts would have held horizontal timbers forming a wooden revetment
Revetment
Revetments, or revêtements , have a variety of meanings in architecture, engineering and art history. In stream restoration, river engineering or coastal management, they are sloping structures placed on banks or cliffs in such a way as to absorb the energy of incoming water...
to the front of the rampart. The rampart was composed of sand and gravel dug from the ditches, together with a wall of cut and laid turf
Sod
Sod or turf is grass and the part of the soil beneath it held together by the roots, or a piece of thin material.The term sod may be used to mean turf grown and cut specifically for the establishment of lawns...
into which the posts had been recessed. Additional postholes were discovered 5.8 metres behind the front postholes. These presumably held anchor timbers for the front wall, although the 5.8 metre distance between the rows is thought somewhat excessive for simple cross-bracing.
Middle rampart
The middle rampart was apparently rather lower than the inner rampart, since the middle ditch was rather smaller than the inner ditch. Only one posthole was found, but it is thought that this rampart also had a wall-and-fill structure with upright beams and a facing wall of cut and laid turf.Entrance
The entrance was a narrow passage extending some 60 metres in length from the outer edge of the second ditch to gates at the inmost end. The width of the passage varied between 8 to 12 metres along most of its length before narrowing to some 3 to 3.5 metres at the gates. The gates were supported on timbers in two massive holes, 90 centimetres in diameter.Evaluation
The finds from the excavation were very few, and of limited help in dating the site. A small iron chain was found, consisting of a circular ring and remains of five oval links. There were also a few scraps of Iron-Age pottery, and a fragment of a bronze tube believed to be a "horn-cap," a type of object which it is believed was mounted on the ends of the chariotChariot
The chariot is a type of horse carriage used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples. Ox carts, proto-chariots, were built by the Proto-Indo-Europeans and also built in Mesopotamia as early as 3000 BC. The original horse chariot was a fast, light, open, two wheeled...
yoke
Yoke
A yoke is a wooden beam, normally used between a pair of oxen or other animals to enable them to pull together on a load when working in pairs, as oxen usually do; some yokes are fitted to individual animals. There are several types of yoke, used in different cultures, and for different types of oxen...
s. Hawkes himself believed that the fort was built in the first century BC and was demolished in about 43 AD, possibly by the Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. Advances in Iron-Age archaeology since the 1930's have now led modern archaeologists to adopt a longer chronology for the site. The site may date from the Early to Middle Iron-Age (c. 5th century BC) and may have started out with a single bank and ditch system. Later the ramparts may have been refurbished, and the outer ramparts were added to the original construction. Many hillforts in southern England had been abandoned well before the Roman conquest
Roman conquest of Britain
The Roman conquest of Britain was a gradual process, beginning effectively in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, whose general Aulus Plautius served as first governor of Britannia. Great Britain had already frequently been the target of invasions, planned and actual, by forces of the Roman Republic and...
, and Buckland Rings may have fallen out use by the 1st century BC. The finds from excavation are in the Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
Museum.
1993 survey
A geophysical survey was conducted in the interior of Buckland Rings in 1993 using magnetometryMagnetic survey (archaeology)
Magnetic survey is one of a number of methods used in archaeological geophysics. Magnetic surveys record spatial variation in the Earth's magnetic field. In archaeology, magnetic surveys are used to detect and map archaeological artifacts and features...
. However, geological conditions at the site for magnetic detection of archaeology were discovered to be poor and features such as posthole structures were undetectable. The survey was able to trace the course of the missing defences, locate the position of Hawkes's excavations, and partially define the entrance features. Evidence of settlement activity, however, was inconclusive.
The site today
Today the site is well-preserved, and the only obvious damage is where parts of the eastern ramparts were flattened in the 18th century, and where the outer rampart on the western side has been encroached upon by the road. In addition, two houses were built inside the west end of the fort in the early twentieth century. In 1986, a property developer announced plans to build a leisure centreLeisure centre
A leisure centre in the UK and Canada is a purpose built building or site, usually owned and operated by the city, borough council or municipal district council, where people go to keep fit or relax through using the facilities.- Typical Facilities :...
inside Buckland Rings. These plans were rejected in a public inquiry
Public inquiry
A Tribunal of Inquiry is an official review of events or actions ordered by a government body in Common Law countries such as the United Kingdom, Ireland or Canada. Such a public inquiry differs from a Royal Commission in that a public inquiry accepts evidence and conducts its hearings in a more...
in 1988. Since 1989 Buckland Rings has been in the care and ownership of Hampshire County Council
Hampshire County Council
Hampshire County Council is the county council that governs the majority of the county of Hampshire in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are district councils, and town and parish councils...
and it is now open to visitors on foot. Buckland Rings is now 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...
. There is also a mountain bike
Mountain bike
A mountain bike or mountain bicycle is a bicycle created for off-road cycling. This activity includes traversing of rocks and washouts, and steep declines,...
trail adjacent to Buckland rings situated in a disused gravel pit
Gravel pit
Gravel pit is the term for an open cast working for extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may fill naturally with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either as nature reserves, or as amenity areas...
.
Ampress Camp
Close to Buckland Rings is another earthwork enclosure known as Ampress Camp. It lies 360 metres east of Buckland Rings alongside Lymington RiverLymington River
----The Lymington River is a small river in the south of england, flowing through the New Forest into the Solent at the town of Lymington. The river has a total length of 30 km, although above the point where it leaves the Crown lands of the New Forest at Brockenhurst it is known as the Highland...
. It had been noted by Thomas Wright in 1744, who described it as "upon a lower Ground, close by a River (which defends it on one Side), with a Ditch and Vallum half round, and a kind of Morass
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
on the other." The outer rampart depicted by Wright has long since been flattened, and the ditches have been filled in. Much of the interior still survives, although waterworks
WaterWorks
WaterWorks is a water park owned by Cedar Fair, located at the back of Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. When it debuted in 1992, it was originally named Hurricane Reef...
occupy some of the site. There have been only limited excavations, but a few scraps of pottery found at the site may date from the Iron-Age. If the camp does date from the Iron Age, then it is unusual to have two Iron Age camps so close together, and Ampress Camp may perhaps have formed a beachhead for the inhabitants of Buckland Rings.
Further reading
- C. F. C. Hawkes, (1936), The Excavations at Buckland Rings, Lymington, 1935. Proc. Hants. Field Club XIII, Pt. 2, 124-64
- Michael Avery, (1993), Hillfort defences of Southern Britain: Volume 2, pages 53-4. Tempus Reparatum
- Joanna Close-Brooks, (2000), Buckland Rings and Ampress Camp, St Barbe Museum and Art Gallery