Maiden Castle, North Yorkshire

Building in North Yorkshire, England

54°22′42″N 1°58′04″W / 54.37826°N 1.967872°W / 54.37826; -1.967872Technical detailsSize7,000 m² (1.7 acres)

Maiden Castle is a settlement in Grinton, North Yorkshire (grid reference SE02189808) which probably dates from the Iron Age. It is listed as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.^[1]^[2] The name Maiden Castle is not unique to the site and occurs in several other places in Britain and probably means a "fortification that looks impregnable" or one that has never been taken in battle.^[3]

The site measures 108 by 88 m (354 by 289 ft), covering about 7,000 m² (1.7 acres), and is pear-shaped. An avenue leading to the entrance of the settlement is a unique feature. Maiden Castle has been described as a banjo enclosure due to its shape, however this description has been disputed.^[1] If it is a banjo enclosure, it would be one of just two in northern England, the other being Fremington Dykes.^[1]

The only dating evidence recovered from Maiden Castle is a "post-and-panel building" which is typologically similar to a structure discovered in Healaugh that has been dated to the late Iron Age or Romano-British periods.^[1]

References

Notes

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Historic England. "Maiden Castle (48766)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 1 August 2009.
^ Historic England. "Maiden Castle prehistoric defended settlement and adjacent round barrow (1012609)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
^ Mills (1977), p. 377.

Bibliography

Mills, A. D. (1977). The Place-names of Dorset: Part I the Isle of Purbeck, the Hundreds of Rowbarrow, Hasler, Winfrith, Culliford Tree, Bere Regis, Barrow, Puddletown, St George. Vol. 52. English Place-name Society. p. 377. ISBN 0-904889-02-5.

Iron Age hillforts in England

Bedfordshire