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Combs Moss is a plateau-topped hill between
Chapel-en-le-Frith Chapel-en-le-Frith () is a town and civil parish in the Borough of High Peak in Derbyshire, England. It has been dubbed the "Capital of the Peak", in reference to the Peak District, historically the upperland areas between the Saxon lands (bel ...
and
Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the no ...
, in the
Peak District The Peak District is an upland area in England at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire, it extends into Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. It includes the Dark Peak, where moorl ...
. The summit, Combs Head, is above sea level. The moorland plateau is flanked by Combs Edge and the Goyt Valley to the west, the village of Combs to the north,
Black Edge Black Edge is a summit, high, on a sharp ridgeline above the village of Dove Holes in the Dark Peak area of the Peak District in the county of Derbyshire in England. Geography Location The summit of Black Edge is marked by a trig point w ...
and
Dove Holes Dove Holes is a village in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, England. It has a population of about 1,200 (2001), shown in the 2011 Census as being included in the population of Chapel-en-le-Frith. It straddles the A6 road approximately t ...
to the east and
Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Midshires Way The Midshires Way is a long-distance footpath and bridleway that runs for from the Chiltern Hills from near Bledlow in Buckinghamshire, through the Midlands counties of Northamptonshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, to Sto ...
long-distance footpath follows a
Roman Road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman R ...
across the southwestern end of Combs Moss. Much of Combs Moss is a privately owned grouse moor, with a shooting hut and grouse butts. Following the
Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (c. 37), known informally as the CRoW Act or "Right to Roam" Act is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament affecting England and Wales which came into force on 30 November 2000. Right to roam The Act imp ...
, this area became "Open Access" land for the public. Castle Naze is the site of a
prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...
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 ...
at the northwest edge of Combs Moss, overlooking Combs Reservoir (a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest). The fort is over in extent with a triangular layout. There is a substantial defensive double rampant on the southeast side and protective rock edges on the other sides. The is a clear causeway up the hillside to the former entrance to the fort. In 1873 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 lett ...
coin of Emperor Constantine the Great and
Romano-British The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a ...
pottery were found. Nottingham University students conducted a survey of the site in 1957 and concluded that the fort had been built during the
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 ...
period and was reconstructed in
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 a ...
times. Buried remains were uncovered of pits, hearths, workshops and the postholes and foundations of buildings. Castle Naze hillfort is a protected
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 ...
. The place-name "Naze" derives from Old English ''næss'' " ness,
promontory A promontory is a raised mass of land that projects into a lowland or a body of water (in which case it is a peninsula). Most promontories either are formed from a hard ridge of rock that has resisted the erosive forces that have removed the soft ...
, headland". The
gritstone Gritstone or grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that are quarried for building material. British gritstone was used for millstones to mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for ...
escarpment An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations. The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''esca ...
at Castle Naze is a popular location for crag climbers.


References

Mountains and hills of the Peak District Mountains and hills of Derbyshire Peak District {{Derbyshire-geo-stub Moorlands of England