Slight univallate hillfort on Allen Knott

Reasons for Designation

Slight univallate hillforts are defined as enclosures of various shapes, generally between 1ha and 10ha in size, situated on or close to hilltops and defined by a single line of earthworks, the scale of which is relatively small. They date to between the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age (eighth - fifth centuries BC), the majority being used for 150 to 200 years prior to their abandonment or reconstruction. Slight univallate hillforts have generally been interpreted as stock enclosures, redistribution centres, places of refuge and permanent settlements. The earthworks generally include a rampart, narrow level berm, external ditch and counterscarp bank, while access to the interior is usually provided by two entrances comprising either simple gaps in the earthwork or an inturned rampart. Postholes revealed by excavation indicate the occasional presence of portal gateways while more elaborate features like overlapping ramparts and outworks are limited to only a few examples. Internal features included timber or stone round houses; large storage pits and hearths; scattered postholes, stakeholes and gullies; and square or rectangular buildings supported by four to six posts, often represented by postholes, and interpreted as raised granaries. Slight univallate hillforts are rare with around 150 examples recorded nationally. Although on a national scale the number is low, in Devon they comprise one of the major classes of hillfort. In other areas where the distribution is relatively dense, for example, Wessex, Sussex, the Cotswolds and the Chilterns, hillforts belonging to a number of different classes occur within the same region. Examples are also recorded in eastern England, the Welsh Marches, central and southern England. In view of the rarity of slight univallate hillforts and their importance in understanding the transition between Bronze Age and Iron Age communities, all examples which survive comparatively well and have potential for the recovery of further archaeological remains are believed to be of national importance.

Despite destruction of much of the southern and eastern extents of the site, the remainder of the slight univallate hillfort on Allen Knott survives reasonably well. Limited excavation in 1964 confirmed the survival of part of the stone revetted bank, and the monument will retain further evidence of both the building methods employed in the construction of the bank and the arrangement of the settlement within the hillfort's interior.

Details

The monument is a slight univallate hillfort located on the summit of Allen Knott. It includes the northern part of a sub-rectangular enclosure with rounded corners. The southern and eastern extents of the site have been largely obliterated by a combination of agriculture and quarrying. The surviving portion of the enclosure measures a maximum of 135m by 76m internally and is defended on its north and west sides by a stone revetted bank measuring up to 2.7m wide and 0.2m high. Limited excavation of this bank in 1964 found it to be constructed with an earth and rubble core retained on one side by a dry-built stone wall still surviving up to four courses high. A modern drystone wall field boundary and an iron fence around the quarry are excluded from the scheduling, the ground beneath the wall and fence, however, is included.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

23683

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Collingwood, R G, Trans Cumb And West Antiq And Arch Soc. New Ser. in The Earthwork on Allen Knott, Vol. XIII, (1913), 142-6
Lowndes, R A C, Trans Cumb and West Antiq and Arch Soc. New Ser. in Allen Knott Earthwork, Vol. LVIV, (1964), 94-7

Other
Raymond,F., MPP Single Mon Class Description - Slight Univallate Hillforts, (1988)
FMW Report, Crow, J., AM107, (1985)
To Robinson,K.D. (MPPFW), Clarris, P, (1993)
SMR No. 1904, Cumbria SMR, Settlement on Allen Knott, (1987)

End of official list entry

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