Monument record MDO4360 - Weatherby Castle, Milborne St Andrew

An Iron Age hillfort on the southern end of a spur, and formed by taking advantage of the lie of the land, with steep slopes on three sides. The earthworks enclose an area of about 5½ acres and consist of two banks and ditches. In 1970 the inner rampart was described as standing 3 feet above the interior and 23 feet above the surrounding ditch, around 40 feet across. The outer rampart was described as 5 feet high on the inside and up to 32 feet high on the outside, and much reduced by ploughing on the inside. An entrance on the western side of the enclosure appears to be original, though mutilated by later use, while a gap in the rampart to the north is thought to be relatively modern.

OS 1:2500 Revised. <1> Weatherby Castle (name confirmed) is generally as described by RCHM <3>, and in a good state of preservation. Resurveyed at 1:2500 on M.S.D. utilising the RCHM plan. <4> As <3>. A low bank, 2.5 metres wide and 0.4 metres high, runs around the inside of the hillfort, adjacent to the rampart. The date of this feature is unknown, and it may be a plantation enclosure. There is also a brick-built obelisk within the enclosure, with a stone inscribed 'EMP 1761', which probably refers to the then owner, Edmund Morton Pleydell. (This obelisk is listed and excluded from the scheduling). <5>

Record last edited

Mar 3 2023 4:58PM