Maiden Castle is an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

promontory fort A promontory fort is a fortification, defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the Rampart (fortification), ramparts needed. The oldest kno ...

in Durham,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It is listed as 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, visu ...

Location

The Victoria County History describes the location of the fort as follows: An earlier description gives more detail: Although the river Wear now touches the site only on one side, the local topography suggests that the site may have been chosen because, at that time, the river enclosed it on three sides, the river having since adopted a more easterly course across its floodplain.

Structure

Although the entire site has been overgrown with trees for over a century, there are remains of earthworks at the western end. Here, where the land is level, a bank and outer ditch were constructed, enclosing a wedge-shaped area which is 120 metres wide at the western end, narrowing to 50 m at the eastern end, and extending 145 m from east to west. The bank is about 6 m wide and 5 m high. The ditch, which is located rather more than 20 m west of the bank, has a maximum depth of about 2 m. It is not certain where the entrance to the fort was located. It may have been at the northern end, where there is a gap in the ditch, or at the extreme southern end, but the area has been disturbed by landscaping, making interpretation difficult. Only limited excavation has been carried out on the site, but there is some evidence that the interior of the bank was strengthened with a stone wall; the excavation unearthed at least one stone bearing a

stonemason Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. Stonemasonry is the craft of shaping and arranging stones, often together with mortar and even the ancient lime mortar ...

's mark, which dates the work to the

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

Origin of the name

The name "maiden" probably means a "fortification that looks impregnable" or one that has never been taken in battle. Alternatively, Maiden Castle comes from the Brythonic ''*moe din'' meaning 'grassy plain'.

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures in Durham, England Scheduled monuments in County Durham Buildings and structures of Durham University