Selworthy Beacon is a hill and Marilyn of

Exmoor Exmoor is loosely defined as an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England. It is named after the River Exe, the source of which is situated in the centre of the area, two miles north-west of Simonsbath ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It lies within the boundaries of

Exmoor National Park Exmoor is loosely defined as an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England. It is named after the River Exe, the source of which is situated in the centre of the area, two miles north-west of Simonsbath. ...

, to the north of the village of

Selworthy Selworthy is a small village and civil parish from Minehead in Somerset, England. It is located in the National Trust's Holnicote Estate on the northern fringes of Exmoor. The parish includes the hamlets of Bossington, Tivington, Lynch, Brandish ...

and northwest of Minehead. A road leads to the top, where there is a

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

plaque and a view of the south coast of

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

across the Bristol Channel. The South West Coast Path also climbs the hill and ends slightly shy of the summit.

Geography

Selworthy Beacon is located in northern Somerset in southwestern England, about northwest of Minehead, north of the village of

. Selworthy Beacon is one of three peaks in Somerset, the other two being

Dunkery Beacon Dunkery Beacon at the summit of Dunkery Hill is the highest point on Exmoor and in Somerset, England. It is also the highest point in southern England outside of Dartmoor. The sandstone hill rises to and provides views over the surrounding mo ...

and Periton Hill. Its elevation is . Behind the hill, there are precipitous cliffs. Selworthy Beacon is situated within the National Trust-owned

Holnicote Estate Holnicote (pronounced "Hunnicutt") in the parish of Selworthy, West Somerset, England, is a historic estate consisting of 12,420 acres (5,026 hectares) of land, much situated within the Exmoor National Park. There have been several hous ...

. Nearby are the

Macmillan Way The Macmillan Way is a long-distance footpath in England that links Boston, Lincolnshire to Abbotsbury in Dorset. The route's distance is . It is promoted to raise money for the charity Macmillan Cancer Relief. The fully waymarked route foll ...

Coleridge Way The Coleridge Way is a long-distance trail in Somerset and Devon, England. It was opened in April 2005, and the route links several sites associated with the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge starting from Coleridge Cottage at Nether Stowey. Or ...

, and a fourteenth-century

tithe barn A tithe barn was a type of barn used in much of northern Europe in the Middle Ages for storing rents and tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious orga ...

. A signposted walking route to the hill goes through a wooded area of

Allerford Allerford is a village in the county of Somerset, England, located within Exmoor National Park, and is part of the parish of Selworthy in the district of Somerset West and Taunton. It appears in Domesday Book as "Alresford – forda Ralph d ...

and Holnicote Plantations, and is northeast of

Porlock Porlock is a coastal village in Somerset, England, west of Minehead. At the 2011 census, the village had a population of 1,440. In 2017, Porlock had the highest percentage of elderly population in Britain, with over 40% being of pensionable ag ...

History

Geograph 1698017 Memorial cross in Allerford Plantation

Near the summit are a series of cairns, thought to be the remains of round barrows, and the British Iron Age Bury Castle. The round cairns have been scheduled as an

ancient monument In British law, an ancient monument is an early historical structure or monument (e.g. an archaeological site) worthy of preservation and study due to archaeological or heritage interest. The ''Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 ...

. In the sixteenth century, Selworthy Beacon was (as its name implies) the site of a beacon to warn of impending invasions. The mausoleum of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland is located about from Selworthy Beacon.

Wildlife

Typical coastal plants are present, such as Sea Campion and Thrift (''

Armeria maritima ''Armeria maritima'', the thrift, sea thrift or sea pink, is a species of flowering plant in the family Plumbaginaceae. It is a compact evergreen perennial which grows in low clumps and sends up long stems that support globes of bright pink flow ...

''), as well as gorse and heather ('' Calluna vulgaris'').

References

{{Reflist

External links

360 degree video from Selworthy Beacon on the South West Coastal Path
Exmoor Marilyns of England Scheduled monuments in West Somerset