Hardwell Castle

Hardwell Castle
Hardwell Camp
Type	Hillfort
Location	Compton Beauchamp, Oxfordshire
Coordinates	51°34′42″N1°35′14″W / 51.57844°N 1.58723°W / 51.57844; -1.58723
Scheduled monument
Official name	Hardwell Camp promontory fort
Designated	18 August 1958
Reference no.	1017820 [1]
Location of Hardwell Castle in Oxfordshire

Hardwell Castle or Hardwell Camp is an Iron Age valley fort in the civil parish of Compton Beauchamp in Oxfordshire (previously Berkshire). ^[2]

Position

Like nearby Cherbury Camp, Hardwell Castle is not clearly in a strategic or easily defended position. It lies halfway down the scarp slope of the White Horse Hills and is tucked away in a curve, invisible from most angles. This particular positioning suggests its builders had a specialist purpose in mind, although exactly what that may have been remains a mystery.

Description

The site is surrounded by a double vallum 140 by 180 feet (40 by 50 m) in dimension. ^[3] It is 'multi-vallate', like Cherbury Camp.

Status

The site is unexcavated and therefore very little is known about it. It is described as a promontory fort by Historic England, and has been a Scheduled Monument since 1958. ^[1]

Location

The site is at grid reference SU287867 in the Vale of White Horse, very close to the small settlements of both Compton Beauchamp and Knighton, 2 miles (3.2 km) from Uffington and 1 mile (1.6 km) from the hilltop Uffington Castle.

References

1. Historic England. "Hardwell Camp promontory fort (1017820)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 13 April 2018.
2. "Hardwell Camp [Hardwell Castle] Hillfort". The Megalithic Portal. 11 March 2011. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
3. A Handbook for Travellers in Berks, Bucks, and Oxfordshire: Including a Particular Description of the University and City of Oxford and the Descent of the Thames to Maidenhead and Windsor. London: J. Murray. 1872. p. 52.