Chisbury is a
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...
and prehistoric
hill fort
A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post- ...
in the
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...
of
Little Bedwyn
Little Bedwyn (also spelt Little Bedwin, and sometimes called Bedwyn Parva) is a village and civil parish on the River Dun in Wiltshire, England, about south-west of the market town of Hungerford in neighbouring Berkshire. The parish inclu ...
in
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershir ...
, England. Chisbury is about west of
Hungerford
Hungerford is a historic market town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, west of Newbury, east of Marlborough, northeast of Salisbury and 60 miles (97 km) west of London. The Kennet and Avon Canal passes through the town alongside t ...
and about south-east of
Marlborough.
History
At above sea level, Chisbury
hillfort
A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post- Rom ...
is the highest point in Little Bedwyn parish
[Crowley, 1999, pages 50-69] and encloses an area of about .
[Pevsner & Cherry, 1975, page 174] Palaeolithic,
Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several part ...
and
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
artefacts have been found in the area, but the hillfort was most probably built in the late
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
in the 1st century AD.
[ The hillfort was re-used in the Anglo-Saxon times as a burh, cited in the ]Burghal Hidage
The Burghal Hidage () is an Anglo-Saxon document providing a list of over thirty fortified places (burhs), the majority being in the ancient Kingdom of Wessex, and the taxes (recorded as numbers of hides) assigned for their maintenance.Hill/ Rumbl ...
document which lists the fortifications of Wessex from that time.
St. Martin's chapel, on the eastern edge of the hillfort, seems to have been built in the early part of the 13th century.[ There are written records of it from 1246 onwards and its surviving architecture is contemporary with that period.][ The windows have the remains of good-quality tracery in a style that suggests they were made in the latter part of the 13th century.][ Between 1496 and 1518 St. Martin's lacked a priest, but it was served again from 1518 until 1547.][ Thereafter St. Martin's lapsed from use for worship and was turned into a barn.][ It was re-roofed in the 19th century but in 1998 its condition was semi-ruinous.][ The hillfort and chapel were designated as a ]scheduled ancient 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 ...
in 1925.
Chisbury Manor farmhouse, also within the hillfort site, is a two-storey brick building from the mid 18th century.[ which is now an outbuilding of the farmhouse.][ A blocked ]ogee
An ogee ( ) is the name given to objects, elements, and curves—often seen in architecture and building trades—that have been variously described as serpentine-, extended S-, or sigmoid-shaped. Ogees consist of a "double curve", the combinati ...
-headed north window and the surround of the east window are the only surviving features.[Pevsner & Cherry, 1975, page 463] The farmhouse is a brick-built Georgian house of five bays
A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a na ...
dated 1735.[
]
References
Sources and further reading
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External links
Hamlets in Wiltshire
Hill forts in Wiltshire
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