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What is Maiden Castle?

Maiden Castle is one of the largest Iron Age hill forts in Britain. It is in Dorset in the south of England. Historians believe it was built almost 3,000 years ago. Over 4,000 possible hill forts have been found across Britain and Ireland.

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An aerial view reconstruction drawing of Maiden Castle in the Iron Age.Image source, 漏 Historic England (illustration by Paul Birbeck)
Image caption,
An aerial view reconstruction drawing of Maiden Castle in the Iron Age.
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Why did people build Maiden Castle?

  • The fort is on top of a large hill which is 914 metres long. That's about as long as 10 football pitches.
  • In the Iron Age, hundreds of people lived there.
  • They built the fort to protect themselves. They could see attackers better from high up.
  • In Roman times, these people were called the Durotriges tribe, meaning 鈥榟ill fort-dwellers鈥.
An aerial photograph of Maiden Castle.Image source, 漏 Historic England
Image caption,
An aerial photograph of Maiden Castle.
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How was Maiden Castle built?

Before Maiden Castle was built, people in the early Neolithic period (Stone Age) made circular ditches in the land. People used the space in the centre to hold feasts and make flint axes.

A reconstruction drawing showing people digging ditches at Maiden Castle in the early Neolithic period.Image source, 漏 Historic England (Illustration by Miranda Schofield)
Image caption,
A reconstruction drawing showing people digging ditches at Maiden Castle in the early Neolithic period.

The Iron Age people built the hill fort on top of the earlier Neolithic structure. They made it bigger and added ramparts.

They made the entrances more complicated so it was harder to get into the hill fort. For example, the western entrance had a 200 metre long winding corridor. This also made the hill fort look impressive to show off the power of the people who built it.

A reconstruction drawing of the western entrances to Maiden Castle during the Iron Age.Image source, 漏 Historic England (illustration by Peter Urmston)
Image caption,
A reconstruction drawing of the western entrances to Maiden Castle during the Iron Age.
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What was life like at Maiden Castle?

People lived in roundhouses in Maiden Castle. These had thatched roofs made of wood. Roundhouses had central hearths where people could light fires. They also had large pits for storing grain. Later on roadways were built in between houses.

A reconstruction drawing of roundhouses at Maiden Castle in the Iron Age.Image source, 漏 Historic England (Illustration by Peter Urmston)
Image caption,
A reconstruction drawing of roundhouses at Maiden Castle in the Iron Age.

Not everyone in the Iron Age lived in hill forts. People may have lived in hill forts for part of the year, or when they were expecting an attack. Many other Iron Age settlements were undefended, with roundhouses set within fields and enclosures.

A reconstruction drawing of the interior of a roundhouse at Maiden Castle in the Iron Age, showing family life.Image source, 漏 Historic England (illustration by Paul Birkbeck)
Image caption,
A reconstruction drawing of the interior of a roundhouse at Maiden Castle in the Iron Age, showing family life.
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What has been found at Maiden Castle?

  • Most of the bank and ditches that you can see today were made in the 1st century BC, over 2000 years ago.
  • Over 20,000 sling stones (small rounded pebbles from Chesil Beach nearby) have been found near an entrance.
  • They were stored in large pits ready to be thrown or slung at attackers.
  • Most of the pottery used by people at Maiden Castle was made near Poole Harbour on the south coast, which is more than 56 km (35 miles) away.
  • This could mean that people traded things outside of their local area.
A black and white photograph of Iron Age pebbles stored in a pit near the entrance to Maiden Castle.Image source, 漏 The Society of Antiquaries
Image caption,
Pebbles stored in a pit near the entrance to Maiden Castle, ready to be used as sling stones against enemy attacks.

You can find out more about Maiden Castle and life in the Iron Age in this 成人快手 Bitesize Primary History page.

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Activities

Activity 1: Old Oswestry hill fort

Old Oswestry is another Iron Age hill fort. It is in Shropshire, in the west of England. Its entrance passage was over 100 metres long. Two roundhouses have been found on the site.

Look at the drawing of Old Oswestry below. What similarities and differences can you spot between this hill fort and Maiden Castle?

You might want to look at:

  • Size of entrances
  • Location
  • Houses or settlement
Old Oswestry is a hill fort at Oswestry near the English/Welsh border.Image source, 漏 Historic England
Image caption,
Old Oswestry is a hill fort at Oswestry near the English/Welsh border.
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Activity 2: Quiz 鈥 Maiden Castle

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