Warbstow Bury

Iron Age hillfort in Cornwall, England

50°41′22″N 4°32′51″W / 50.68944°N 4.54750°W / 50.68944; -4.54750OS grid referenceSX 201 908TypeHillfortArea7.5 hectares (19 acres)HistoryPeriodsIron Age

Scheduled monument

Designated26 November 1928Reference no.1006710

Warbstow Bury is an Iron Age hillfort about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) west of the village of Warbstow, in Cornwall, England. It is a scheduled monument.^[1]

Location and description

The site is 807 feet (246 m) above sea level, on a hill at the heads of two tributaries of the River Ottery.^[1]^[2] There are views to Lundy Island and Dartmoor.

The fort is one of the largest earthworks in Cornwall. It is an oval enclosure, area about 7.5 hectares (19 acres). There are two concentric ramparts and ditches; the ramparts are up to 5.8 metres (19 ft) high, with ditches up to 2.7 metres (8.9 ft) deep. Between these, in the southern part, are the remains of an earlier rampart.^[1]^[3]

The inner rampart has two original entrances, inturned and facing each other, on the north-west and south-east, and there are corresponding simple entrances in the outer rampart.^[1]^[3]

Pillow mound

In the centre of the fort is a medieval rabbit warren: a rectangular mound, or pillow mound, about 22 metres (72 ft) long, 10 metres (33 ft) wide and 0.6 metres (2.0 ft) high. It is known as "The Giant's Grave" or "King Arthur's Grave".^[1]^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Historic England. "Large multivallate hillfort called Warbstow Bury and a pillow mound known as the Giant's Grave (1006710)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
^ ^a ^b Warbstow Bury Warbstow & District Community Online, accessed 17 April 2017.
^ ^a ^b Cornwall's Archaeological Heritage. The Historic Environment Unit, Cornwall County Council, 2003. Page 49.