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Dowsborough Camp (or Danesborough or Dawesbury) is an Iron Age
Iron Age

In archaeology, the Iron Age was the stage in the development of any people in which tools and weapons whose main ingredient was iron were prominent....
 hill fort
Hill fort

A hill fort is type of fortification refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age and Iron Ages....
 on the Quantock Hills
Quantock Hills

The Quantock Hills are a range of hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England. The highest point on the Quantocks is Wills Neck, at . The hills are officially designated as the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty....
 near Nether Stowey
Nether Stowey

Nether Stowey is a small village in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, South West England. It sits in the foothills of the Quantock Hills , just below Over Stowey....
 in Somerset
Somerset

Somerset is a Counties of England in South West England. The county town is Taunton, which is in the south of the county. The Ceremonial counties of England of Somerset borders the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
.

The site is at a height of 340 m on an easterly spur from the main Quantock ridge, with views north to the Bristol Channel
Bristol Channel

The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England, and extending from the lower Severn Estuary of the River Severn to that part of the North Atlantic Ocean known as the Celtic Sea ....
, and east over the valley of the River Parrett
River Parrett

The River Parrett is a river flowing through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England. It has its source in the Thorney Mills spring s in the hills around Chedington in Dorset, and flows north west through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to its mouth at Burnham-on-Sea where it flows into the Bridgwater Bay National Nature R...
.

The fort has an oval shape, with a single rampart and ditch (univallate) following the contours of the hill top, enclosing an area of 2.7 ha
Hectare

A hectare is a unit of area equal to , or one square hectometre , and commonly used for surveying.The hectare is used in most countries around the world, especially in domains concerned with land ownership, land planning, and land management, including law , agriculture, forestry, and town planning....
. The main entrance is to the east, towards Nether Stowey
Nether Stowey

Nether Stowey is a small village in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, South West England. It sits in the foothills of the Quantock Hills , just below Over Stowey....
, with a simpler opening to the north-west, aligned with a ridgeway leading down to Holford. The Lady's Fountain springs are in the combe
Combe

A combe is the uppermost part of a valley, or a short valley or hollow on a hill or coastline. The term may form part of a place name, such as Ilfracombe, Woolacombe, etc....
 to the west.






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Dowsborough Camp (or Danesborough or Dawesbury) is an Iron Age
Iron Age

In archaeology, the Iron Age was the stage in the development of any people in which tools and weapons whose main ingredient was iron were prominent....
 hill fort
Hill fort

A hill fort is type of fortification refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age and Iron Ages....
 on the Quantock Hills
Quantock Hills

The Quantock Hills are a range of hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England. The highest point on the Quantocks is Wills Neck, at . The hills are officially designated as the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty....
 near Nether Stowey
Nether Stowey

Nether Stowey is a small village in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, South West England. It sits in the foothills of the Quantock Hills , just below Over Stowey....
 in Somerset
Somerset

Somerset is a Counties of England in South West England. The county town is Taunton, which is in the south of the county. The Ceremonial counties of England of Somerset borders the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
.

The site is at a height of 340 m on an easterly spur from the main Quantock ridge, with views north to the Bristol Channel
Bristol Channel

The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England, and extending from the lower Severn Estuary of the River Severn to that part of the North Atlantic Ocean known as the Celtic Sea ....
, and east over the valley of the River Parrett
River Parrett

The River Parrett is a river flowing through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England. It has its source in the Thorney Mills spring s in the hills around Chedington in Dorset, and flows north west through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to its mouth at Burnham-on-Sea where it flows into the Bridgwater Bay National Nature R...
.

The fort has an oval shape, with a single rampart and ditch (univallate) following the contours of the hill top, enclosing an area of 2.7 ha
Hectare

A hectare is a unit of area equal to , or one square hectometre , and commonly used for surveying.The hectare is used in most countries around the world, especially in domains concerned with land ownership, land planning, and land management, including law , agriculture, forestry, and town planning....
. The main entrance is to the east, towards Nether Stowey
Nether Stowey

Nether Stowey is a small village in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, South West England. It sits in the foothills of the Quantock Hills , just below Over Stowey....
, with a simpler opening to the north-west, aligned with a ridgeway leading down to Holford. The Lady's Fountain springs are in the combe
Combe

A combe is the uppermost part of a valley, or a short valley or hollow on a hill or coastline. The term may form part of a place name, such as Ilfracombe, Woolacombe, etc....
 to the west. A col
COL

COL can be used as:* Colorado* Cost of Living* City of license in broadcasting* ISO 3166-1 3-letter country code for Colombia* Colonel* In the list of Amtrak station codes, the code for Columbus, Ohio...
 to the south connects the hill to the main Stowey ridge, where a linear earthwork known as Dead Woman's Ditch cuts across the spur. This additional rampart would have provided an extra line of defence against attack from the main Quantock ridge to the west, and it could have been a tribal boundary.

In Saxon times, King Alfred's military road, the Herepath
Herepath

A Herepath is a military road in England, typically dating from the ninth century Common Era.This was a time of war between the Anglo-Saxons kingdoms of southern England and Viking invaders from Denmark....
, ran up from Combwich
Combwich

Combwich is a village in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, between Bridgwater and the Steart Peninsula.The village lies on Combwich Reach as the River Parrett flows to the sea and was the site of an ancient ferry crossing....
, Cannington
Cannington, Somerset

Cannington is a village and civil parish north-west of Bridgwater in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England. It lies on the west bank of the River Parret, and contains the hamlet of Edstock....
 (a possible site of the Battle of Cynwit) and Over Stowey
Over Stowey

Over Stowey is a small village and civil parish in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, South West England. It sits in the foothills of the Quantock Hills, just below Nether Stowey and north-west of Bridgwater....
, along the present course of the Stowey road, across Dead Woman's Ditch to Crowcombe Park Gate, south along the main ridge of the Quantocks to Triscombe Stone, then west across the valley to the Brendon Hills
Brendon Hills

The Brendon Hills are composed of a lofty ridge of hills in the west of Somerset, England. The terrain is broken by a series of deeply incised streams and rivers running roughly southwards to meet the River Haddeo, a tributary of the River Exe....
 and Exmoor
Exmoor

Exmoor is a National Parks of England and Wales situated on the Bristol Channel coast of South West England England. The park straddles two counties, with 71% of the park located in Somerset and 29% located in Devon....
. The road connected a series of forts and lookout posts, which allowed Alfred's armies to move along the coast to cover Viking
Viking

A Viking is one of the Norsemen explorers, warriors, merchants, and Piracy who raided and colonized wide areas of Europe from the late eighth to the early eleventh century....
 movements at sea and forestall any raids ashore. The path from Dowsborough to the Herepath is called Great Bear Path, and this is taken to be a corruption of Great Herepath, which suggests that Dowsborough could have been a Saxon lookout over the Bristol Channel
Bristol Channel

The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England, and extending from the lower Severn Estuary of the River Severn to that part of the North Atlantic Ocean known as the Celtic Sea ....
.

External links



See also


  • Ruborough
  • Trendle Ring
    Trendle Ring

    Trendle Ring is an Iron Age earthwork on the Quantock Hills near Bicknoller in Somerset, England.The word trendle means circle, so it is a List of tautological place names....
  • Plainsfield Camp
    Plainsfield Camp

    Plainsfield Camp is an Iron Age earthwork on the Quantock Hills near Aisholt in Somerset, England.The so-called hill fort has several features that make it more likely to be an animal enclosure, than a defended settlement:...
  • Herepath
    Herepath

    A Herepath is a military road in England, typically dating from the ninth century Common Era.This was a time of war between the Anglo-Saxons kingdoms of southern England and Viking invaders from Denmark....