Cadbury Hill, Congresbury
| Cadbury Hill | |
| Somerset | |
|---|---|
 The view from the Yatton side of Cadbury Hill | |
| Summit: | 266 feet ST442649 51°22’51"N, 2°48’11"W |
Cadbury Hill is a small hill in Somerset, reaching just 266 feet above sea level in the the north of the county overlooking the villages of Yatton at the foot of its western slope and Congresbury its southern. The flat coastal plain extends down to the Bristol Channel just four miles to the north-west.
On the summit of the hill stands an Iron Age hill fort, which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[1]
Archaeology
The hill fort is known, in archaeological circles, as Cadbury-Congresbury in order to differentiate it from the more famous Cadbury Castle hillfort by South Cadbury.
The fort appears to have been constructed in the Iron Age when one or more ramparts, with walls and ditches, were built on the steep slopes of the hill to defend an area covering some eight and a half acres. The remains of Iron Age round houses may still be seen inside. The hill fort was refortified around 400 and occupation extended into the sub-Roman period, from which much imported pottery has been recovered. It has been suggested that this was the monastery of Saint Congar after whom Congresbury was named.[2]
Excavation took place between 1968 and 1973, and was published in 1992 [3] Mediterranean imports were found with 173 A-ware and 547 B-ware sherds and around 48 glass vessels. These suggest that the hill was the site of an elite settlement.
Wildlife
Cadbury Hill is a designated Local Nature Reserve.[4][5] In 2009, a 19th-century agricultural stock pond – previously hidden by undergrowth – was restored by the Yatton & Congresbury Wildlife Action Group (YACWAG). The Local Nature Reserve comprises ancient semi-natural woodland, scrub and unimproved grassland. Species of interest include marsh tit, noctule bat, slow worm, wood anemone, bluebell, betony, small scabious, rock rose, small leaved lime. On the northern limestone slope grow hundreds of common spotted orchids. The hill fort itself has many ant hills, which are visited by green woodpeckers.[6]
The grassy plateau of the hill fort is owned and managed by Yatton and Congresbury Parish Councils and the rest, including a car park and former landfilled quarry, by the district council.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Cadbury Hill, Congresbury) |
- Megalithic Portal: Cadbury Hill
- Circular walk of Cadbury Hill published by Bristol City Council (PDF)
- Information page from Natural England
References
- ↑ National Monuments Record: No. 195114 – Cadbury Hill Camp
- ↑ Alcock, Leslie (1971). Arthur's Britain. London: Allen Lane: The Penguin Press. ISBN 0-7139-0245-0.
- ↑ Rahtz, P (1992). Cadbury Congresbury 1968-73: a late Roman/Post-Roman Hilltop settlement in Somerset. BAR/BS 223
- ↑ "Cadbury Hill/Henley Quarry". Natural England. http://www.lnr.naturalengland.org.uk/Special/lnr/lnr_details.asp?C=0&N=cadbury%20hill&ID=1245.
- ↑ "Map of Cadbury Hill". Natural England. http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=lnrIndex&query=REF_CODE%3D%271009638%27.
- ↑ "Grassland on Cadbury Hill". Yatton and Congresbury Wildlife Action Group. http://yacwag.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Grassland-on-Cadbury-Hill1.pdf. Retrieved 4 March 2015.