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Hill fort
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A hill fort is a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for military advantage. The fortification usually follows the contours of the hill, consisting of one or more lines of earthworks, with stockades or defensive walls, and external ditches.
Contents
- 1 European Bronze Age and Iron Age Hill Forts
- 1.1 Scandinavia and Russia
- 1.2 Lithuania
- 1.2.1 Examples
- 1.2.2 See also
- 1.2.3 External links
- 1.3 Britain
- 1.3.1 Examples
- 1.3.2 References
- 1.4 Ireland
- 1.4.1 Examples
- 1.4.2 References
- 1.5 Spain and Portugal
- 1.5.1 Examples
- 1.5.2 See also
- 1.6 France
- 1.7 Central Europe
- 1.8 See also
- 1.9 References
- 2 New Zealand Māori Hill Forts
- 3 Indian Hill Forts
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European Bronze Age and Iron Age Hill Forts
Some European hill forts originate in the late Neolithic period, but they are most common during later periods:
Hill forts were in use in many
Celtic areas of central and western Europe until the
Roman conquest.
Julius Caesar described the large late
Iron Age hill forts he encountered during his campaigns in
Gaul as
oppida. By this time the larger ones had become more like cities than fortresses and many were assimilated as Roman towns.
Beyond the simple definition of hill fort, there is a wide variation in types and periods from the Bronze Age to the Middle Ages.
Here are some considerations of general appearance and topology, which can be assessed without archaeological excavation:
- Location
- Hilltop Contour: the classic hill fort; an inland location with a hilltop defensive position surrounded by artificial ramparts or steep natural slopes. Examples: Brent Knoll, Mount Ipf.
- Inland Promontory: an inland defensive position on a ridge or spur with steep slopes on 2 or 3 sides, and artificial ramparts on the level approaches. Example: Lambert's Castle.
- Interfluvial: a promontory above the confluence of two rivers, or in the bend of a meander. Example: Kelheim.
- Lowland: an inland location without special defensive advantages (except perhaps marshes), but surrounded by artificial ramparts; typical of later settled oppida. Examples: Maiden Castle, Stonea Camp.
- Sea Cliff: a semi-circular crescent of ramparts backing on to a straight sea cliff; common on rocky Atlantic coasts, such as Ireland. Examples: Daw's Castle, Dinas Dinlle, Dún Aengusa.
- Sea Promontory: a linear earthwork across a narrow neck of land leading to a peninsula with steep cliffs to the sea on three sides; common on indented Atlantic coasts, such as Ireland, Cornwall, Brittany and west Wales. Examples: The Rumps, Huelgoat.
- Sloping Enclosure: smaller earthworks on gently sloping hillsides; not significant defensive positions. Examples: Trendle Ring, Plainsfield Camp.
- Area
- > 20 ha: very large enclosures, too diffuse to defend, probably used for domesticated animals.
- 1 - 20 ha: defended areas large enough to support permanent tribal settlement.
- < 1 ha: small enclosures, more likely to be individual farmsteads or animal pens.
- Ramparts, walls and ditches
- Univallate: a single circuit of ramparts for enclosure and defence.
- Multivallate: more than one layer of defensive earthworks, outer works might not be complete circuits, but defend the weakest approaches; typically the inner circuit is original, with outer circuits added later.
- Entrances
- Simple opening: might indicate an enclosure, rather than a defended position; sometimes the main ramparts may turn inward or outward, and be widened and heightened to control the entrance.
- Linear holloway: straight parallel pair of ramparts dominating the entrance; projecting either inward, outward, or occasionally overlapped along the main rampart.
- Complex: multiple overlapping outer works; staggered or interleaved multivallate ramparts; zig-zag entrance way, sling platforms and well planned lines of fire.
Some forts were also settlements, while others were only occupied seasonally, or in times of strife.
Archaeological excavation reveals more about the dates of occupation and modes of use. Typical features for excavation include:
- Ramparts and ditches
- Settlement and occupation
- Temples and peacetime burials
- Platforms and temple foundations.
- Graves and offerings
- Warfare
- Weapons: sling-shot, shields, armour, swords, axes, spears, arrows.
- Sieges and conquest: ballista bolts, ash layers, vitrified stones, burnt post holes.
- Wartime burials: typically outside the ramparts:
- Contemporary individual burials by local inhabitants.
- Massed grave pits dug by a conquering army.
Hill forts were frequently occupied by conquering armies, but on other occasions the forts were destroyed, the local people forcibly evicted, and the forts left derelict. For example, Solsbury Hill was sacked and deserted during the Belgic invasions of southern Britain in the 1st century BC. Abandoned forts were sometimes reoccupied and refortified under renewed threat of foreign invasion, such as the Dukes' Wars in Lithuania, and the successive invasions of Britain by Romans, Saxons and Vikings.
Scandinavia and Russia
In
Scandinavia and northern
Russia,
hill forts are fortifications from the
Iron Age which may have had several functions. They are usually located on the crests of hills and mountains making use of precipices and
marshes which worked as natural defenses. The crests' more accessible parts were defended with walls of stone and outer walls in the slopes beneath are common. Round and closed, so called,
ring forts are common even on flat ground. The walls often have remaining parts of stone, which were probably the support of pales. They often have well delineated gateways, the gates of which were probably of wood. Hill forts with strong walls are often located beside old
trading routes and have an offensive character, whereas others are reclusive and were weakly fortified, probably only for hiding during raids.
Many forts, located centrally in densely populated areas, were permanently settled strongholds and can show traces of settlements both inside and outside. Older place names containing the element sten/stein were usually hill forts.
In Sweden, there are 1100 known hill forts with a strong concentration on the northern west coast and in eastern Svealand. Only in Södermanland, there are 300, in Uppland 150, Östergötland 130 and Bohuslän and Gotland 90-100 each.
In Gotland, ring forts can be from the Pre-Roman Iron Age, but findings from the period 200 AD- 600 AD dominate. Many were still in use during the Middle Ages.
The Finnish word for hill fort is linnavuori (plural linnavuoret), from linna (English: castle) and vuori (English: mountain). Finnish castles were usually constructed of wood.
Examples
Lithuania
The Lithuanian word for hill fort is piliakalnis (plural piliakalniai), from pilis (English: castle) and kalnas (English: mountain, hill).
Lithuania has hill forts dating from the Bronze Age in the 1st millennium BC. The earliest examples in present day Lithuania are found in the east of the country. Most forts were built or refortified in the 5-15th centuries, when they were used in the Dukes' Wars for power, and against the invasion of Teutonic Knights from the west. Most forts were located on the banks of a river, or where two rivers met.
The fortifications were typically wooden, although some had stone or brick walls. The hill was often sculpted for defence, with tops flattened for occupation, and natural slopes made steeper for defence.
During the early years of Grand Duchy of Lithuania piliakalnis played a major role in fights with the Livonian Order and Teutonic Knights. During that time the number of piliakalnis decreased, but their fortifications became stronger. Two main defense lines developed: one along the Neman River (against the Teutonic Order) and another along the border with Livonia. Two other lines started to form, but did not fully develop. One was protecting Vilnius, the capital, and another one at Samogitia, a major target for both orders since only this slice of land separated them.
Most of the castles were wooden and were quite easy to burn. As firearms and cannons developed, piliakalnis and their castles became ineffective. Also, the Livonian Order was defeated in 1236 in the Battle of the Sun. The Teutonic Knights suffered a major defeat in 1410 in the Battle of Grunwald and did not pose any further major threat.
There are 826 piliakalnis in Lithuania today, as described in the Lietuvos piliakalnių atlasas (English: Atlas of Piliakalnis in Lithuania). Most piliakalnis are located near rivers and are endangered by erosion: many have partly collapsed as the flooded river has washed out the base of the hill.
Examples
See also
- Pilėnai, a heroic story of piliakalnis defense
- Kernavė, a World Heritage Site
- Hill of Crosses, former piliakalnis which now houses thousands of crosses
