Devil's Dyke or Devil's Ditch is a linear earthen barrier, thought to be of Anglo-Saxon origin, in eastern

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...

and Suffolk. It runs for in an almost straight line from Reach to Woodditton, with a ditch and bank system facing southwestwards, blocking the open chalkland between the marshy

fens A fen is a type of wetland. Fen, Fenn, Fens, Fenns, may also refer to: People * Fen (name), a Chinese given name and surname * Fen Cresswell (1915–1966), New Zealand cricketer * Fen McDonald (1891–1915), Australian rules footballer * Kees ...

to the north and the formerly wooded hills to the south. It is a

Scheduled Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

, a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and a

Special Area of Conservation A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and a ...

Description

The name ''Devil's Ditch'' or ''Dyke'' is a post-

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

one. In medieval times it was simply called the ''dic'' ("the ditch"), or ''le Micheldyche'' or ''magnum fossatum'' ("great ditch"). Devil's Dyke is over long and is the largest of a series of ancient dykes in

. In some places the bank measures high and across. The highest point along the Devil's Dyke is at Gallows Hill, where it measures from the bottom of the ditch to the top of the earth wall. Since the 19th century, a railway line and roads have been cut through the dyke, including the combined A14 and A11 roads, and a branch line of the Ipswich to Ely rail line. From Reach, the dyke crosses farmland, before running along the edge of the July Course at

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of British horserac ...

and then through the woods of a private estate near the village of Woodditton. The Rowley Mile course is unusual in that it can have races which start in one county, Cambridgeshire, and finish in another, Suffolk. It crosses the Devil's Dyke where it has been previously levelled.

History

There have been a number of

excavations In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

and investigations of the dyke in modern times, notably in 1923, 1988 and 1991. Excavations in 1923/24 of a stretch of dyke close to a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

house yielded Roman artefacts under the dyke, indicating a post-Roman construction date. The results of a 1988

electrical resistance survey Electrical resistance surveys (also called earth resistance or resistivity survey) are one of a number of methods used in archaeological geophysics, as well as in engineering geological investigations. In this type of survey electrical resistance ...

of the point where the ancient Street Way cuts through the dyke were inconclusive. In 1991, little was found when a small part of the dyke (measuring ) was excavated prior to the construction of a new aqueduct. The Dyke is thought most likely to be Anglo-Saxon, by analogy to the similar

Fleam Dyke Fleam Dyke is a linear earthwork between Fulbourn and Balsham in Cambridgeshire, initiated at some timepoint between AD 330 and AD 510. It is three miles long and seven metres high from ditch to bank, and its ditch faces westwards, implying inv ...

for which radiocarbon dating was performed in the 1990s, with Fleam Dyke's earliest construction phase dated within the uncertainty range of 330510. The site is a

Early commentators

The earthwork has been described by various different commentators since Anglo-Saxon times. The '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' may refer to the Devil's Dyke in its annal for 905, when

Edward the Elder Edward the Elder (17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alfred the Great and his wife Ealhswith. When Edward succeeded to the throne, he had to defeat a challenge from his cousin ...

is recorded as fighting and defeating the Danes of East Anglia, after first laying waste to the countryside: 'and he laid waste their land between the Dyke and the Ouse as far northward as the Fens'—' ' .

Abbo of Fleury Abbo or Abbon of Fleury ( la, Abbo Floriacensis; – 13 November 1004), also known as Saint Abbo or Abbon, was a monk and abbot of Fleury Abbey in present-day Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire near Orléans, France. Life Abbo was born near Orléans ...

, writing in the late 10th century, described East Anglia as "fortified in the front with a bank or rampier like unto a huge wall, and with a trench or ditch below in the ground". The mediaeval ''

Flores Historiarum The ''Flores Historiarum'' (Flowers of History) is the name of two different (though related) Latin chronicles by medieval English historians that were created in the 13th century, associated originally with the Abbey of St Albans. Wendover's '' ...

'', referred to '' "...duo fossata sancti Eadmundi..." '' – the two fortifications of St Edmund – when describing the battle between Edward and his adversaries.

Context

Devil's Dyke is the largest of several earthworks in south Cambridgeshire that were either boundary markers or designed to control movement along the ancient trackways of Street Way (Ashwell Street) and

Icknield Way The Icknield Way is an ancient trackway in southern and eastern England that runs from Norfolk to Wiltshire. It follows the chalk escarpment that includes the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills. Background It is generally said to be, wi ...

. When it was created, it completely blocked a narrow land corridor between the southern edge of a region of water-logged

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found a ...

(now known as

The Fens The Fens, also known as the , in eastern England are a naturally marshy region supporting a rich ecology and numerous species. Most of the fens were drained centuries ago, resulting in a flat, dry, low-lying agricultural region supported by a ...

) in the north-west and dense woodlands in the south, so making circumvention difficult and forming an effective defensive barrier for the lands to the east. The dyke may have served as a way of controlling trade and movement in and out of the area. Findings such as the small quantity of silt in the ditch fills suggest that the dyke fell into disuse soon after it was built. The other Cambridgeshire dykes include Fleam Dyke,

Brent Ditch Brent Ditch is generally assumed to be an Anglo-Saxon earthwork in Southern Cambridgeshire, England, built around the 6th and 7th Centuries . However most of its structure has been lost over time. The site is scheduled as an ancient monument by ...

and Bran Ditch. In Suffolk, to the north west of Bury St Edmunds, a fifth earthwork,

Black Ditches, Cavenham Black Ditches is an earthwork close to the village of Cavenham of Suffolk, and part of it is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The earthwork is 4.5 miles long between the River Lark at Lackford and the Icknield Way. It is d ...

, guards the Icknield Way.

Ecology

The site has extensive chalk grassland with diverse species, and areas of woodland and chalk scrub. Rare plants, such as

purple milk-vetch Purple milkvetch or purple milk-vetch is a common name for several plants and may refer to: *'' Astragalus agrestis'', native to North America *''Astragalus danicus ''Astragalus danicus'', known as purple milk-vetch, is a species of flowering p ...

, bastard toadflax and pasque flowers, have been recorded. The site is a 98-acre (39.8 hectare) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and a

In popular culture

The American–British author

Bill Bryson William McGuire Bryson (; born 8 December 1951) is an American–British journalist and author. Bryson has written a number of nonfiction books on topics including travel, the English language, and science. Born in the United States, he has b ...

describes a walk along Devil's Dyke '' Notes From a Small Island'' (1995), describing the dyke to be only 1300 years old, which was the scholarly consensus prior to radiocarbon dating of the similar Fleam Dyke, published in 1997.

References

Sources

* * * * *

External links

Devil's Dyke Restoration Project`s archived page
{{SSSIs Cambridgeshire, state=collapsed Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cambridgeshire Special Areas of Conservation in England Scheduled monuments in Cambridgeshire Anglo-Saxon sites in England Archaeology of the kingdom of East Anglia Fortifications in England Ruins in Cambridgeshire Ancient dikes Archaeological sites in Cambridgeshire Linear earthworks Archaeological sites in Suffolk