A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roman period. The fortification usually follows the contours of a hill and consists of one or more lines of earthworks, with stockades or defensive walls, and external ditches. Hillforts developed in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age, roughly the start of the first millennium BC, and were used in many Celtic areas of central and western Europe until the Roman conquest.
Pen Dinas is the name of a large hill within the boundary of the village of Penparcau, on the coast of Ceredigion, Wales, upon which an extensive Iron Age, Celtic hillfort of international significance is situated. The site can easily be reached on foot from Aberystwyth town center and is accessible via a series of well marked trails. Boasting a commanding position at the confluence of the River Ystwyth and Afon Rheidol, it has been described as "the pre-eminent hillfort on the Cardigan Bay coast".
Sarn Helen refers to several stretches of Roman road in Wales. The 160-mile (260 km) route, which follows a meandering course through central Wales, connects Aberconwy in the north with Carmarthen in the west. Despite its length, academic debate continues as to the precise course of the Roman road. Many sections are now used by the modern road network while other parts are still traceable. However, there are sizeable stretches that have been lost and are unidentifiable.
Mynydd Illtud is an extensive area of common land near Libanus, Powys, Wales, located in the Brecon Beacons National Park and some three miles south-west of Brecon. The common is an undulating plateau lying between 330 and 370 metres above sea level. Its highest points are 381 metres (1,250 ft) at Allt Lom and 367 metres (1,204 ft) at Twyn y Gaer trig point overlooking the valley of the River Usk. Twyn y Gaer is the site of an Iron Age hill fort.
Y Garn Goch is a hill in the Brecon Beacons National Park in the east of Carmarthenshire, Wales. The name means the 'red cairn'. It lies near the village of Bethlehem, three miles southwest of Llangadog and four miles east of Llandeilo on the southern side of the broad Towy Valley. It is also commonly known as either Garn Goch or Carn Goch. Current owners and land managers are the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority.
Pen y Gaer is the location of a Bronze Age and Iron Age hillfort near the village of Llanbedr-y-Cennin in the Conwy valley, Wales.
Moel y Gaer is an Iron Age hillfort located on a summit at the southern end of Halkyn Mountain, overlooking the village of Rhosesmor, Flintshire, Wales. It is a well-preserved hillfort overlooking the Dee Estuary. Excavations in the early 1970s revealed a sequence of defensive structures made of timber and several phases of building work inside the ramparts.
Moel y Gaer, also known as Moel-y-Gaer Camp or Moel y Gaer Hillfort, is an Iron Age hillfort located on a western spur of the Clwydian Range, near the village of Llanbedr, Denbighshire, Wales. The site is a scheduled monument, classified as a prehistoric defensive hillfort.
Caer y Twr is an Iron Age hillfort atop the summit of the Holyhead Mountain in Anglesey, Wales.
Gaer Penrhôs, in Ceredigion, Wales, was a ringwork castle at the summit of a steep hill near the village of Llanrhystud; now all that remains are the outlines of its ringworks. Through the years it has variously been referred to as Llanrhystud Castle and Castell Cadwaladr and has likely been the site of more than one structure.
The Gaer House is an estate house located in the community of Gaer, Newport, South Wales. It is situated about 2 miles (3.2 km) from the Newport to Cardiff road, near a Roman fort, which gave the name to the estate. The Gaer Hillfort, a large circular site, is a huge fort situated in a defensive position overlooking the Ebbw River. It contains many enclosures, a large bank and a ditch. In the 17th century, the hillfort was included in the ornamental landscaping plan of nearby Tredegar House.
Caer Caradoc is an Iron Age hill fort and Scheduled Monument in the south-west of the English county of Shropshire, near the town of Clun. It overlooks the village of Chapel Lawn. It is located within an area of Open Access land and can be reached via a public footpath between the farms of Wax Hall to the west and Bryncambric to the east.
Caer Bach is a Welsh hillfort of indeterminate age, on a rounded hillock situated near the village of Rowen; in Conwy County, Wales. Its name in English translates as 'Small Fort'; or alternatively 'Little Fortress'. It is situated on the Eastern slopes of Tal-y-Fan, an outlying peak of the Carneddau mountain range in northeast Snowdonia; at an altitude of approximately 413 metres. Little information is known about the history of the fort, as to date, the site has undergone minimal investigation. The fort is classed as a scheduled ancient monument and is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of prehistoric settlement. It is said to retain significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits.
Castell Caer Seion is an Iron Age hillfort situated at the top of Conwy Mountain, in Conwy County, North Wales. It is unusual for the fact that the main fort contains a smaller, more heavily defended fort, complete with its own distinct defences and entrance, with no obvious means of access between the two. The construction date of the original fort is still unknown, but recent excavations have revealed evidence of occupation as early as the 6th century BC, whilst the smaller fort can be dated with reasonable certainty to around the 4th century BC. Whilst the forts were constructed in different periods, archaeologists have uncovered evidence of concurrent occupation, seemingly up until around the 2nd century BC. The larger fort contained around 50 roundhouses during its lifetime, whereas examinations of the smaller fort have turned up no more than six. The site was traditionally associated with Maelgwyn Gwynedd, but there is no evidence pointing to a 6th-century occupation. The fort and wider area beyond its boundaries have been said to retain significant archaeological potential, and are protected by law as a scheduled ancient monument.
Hen Gaer is an Iron Age hillfort, on a hill adjacent to and east of Bow Street, Ceredigion, Wales.
South Weald Camp was a hillfort based in South Weald, Brentwood, Essex, England. Roughly circular in plan, the fort covered 2.8 hectares, with a suggested construction date in the late Iron Age, from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD. The location is associated in this period with the Catuvellauni and the Trinovantes.
