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Bat's Castle
Bats Castle is an Iron Age hillfort at the top of a high hill in the parish of Carhampton south south west of Dunster in Somerset, England. The site was identified in 1983 after some schoolboys found eight silver-plated coins dating from 102BC to AD350. It is on the highest point of Gallox Hill. Previously it was known as Caesar's Camp and is possibly associated with Black Ball Camp. Bat's Castle has two stone ramparts and two ditches. The ramparts are damaged in places and the hill fort is partly covered in scrub. Bat's Castle may once have been known as the legendary fortress Din Draithou, a place also associated with a fortress built or used by the legendary Irish king and raider Crimthann mac Fidaig. The site is designated as a scheduled monument. Background Hill forts developed in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age, roughly the start of the first millennium BC. The reason for their emergence in Britain, and their purpose, has been a subject of debate. It has bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carhampton, Somerset
Carhampton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, to the east of Minehead. Carhampton civil parish stretches from the Bristol Channel coast inland to Exmoor. The parish has a population of 865 (2011 census). History Iron Age occupation of the parish is evident from the remains of Bat's Castle hillfort and associated earthworks. Archaeological excavation in the mid-1990s suggested the existence of early Christian settlement and burial to the east of the village, which had previously been the site of a metalworking settlement. Carhampton is thought to have been the centre for a Saxon royal estate. The king and his court would locate temporarily to Carhampton as part of a visiting circuit. One function was that officials of the royal court operated from Carhampton to collect taxes from surrounding estates. The village was subjected to Viking raids. The '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' state that, in 836, King Egbert fought the crews of 35 ships at Carhampton. With the D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
