Roundway Down and Covert () is an area of sloping chalk grassland close to the hamlet of Roundway, near

Devizes Devizes () is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It developed around Devizes Castle, an 11th-century Norman architecture, Norman castle, and received a charter in 1141. The castle was besieged during the Anarchy, a 12th-cent ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, England. It is part of the

North Wessex Downs The North Wessex Downs are an area of chalk downland landscapes located in the English counties of Berkshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire. The North Wessex Downs has been designated as a National Landscape (formerly known as Area of ...

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is one of 46 areas of countryside in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Since 2023, the areas in England an ...

. At the summit of the slope are ancient earthworks, evidence of a

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

human settlement and

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 ...

hillfort A hillfort is a type of fortification, fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late Bronze Age Europe, European Bronze Age and Iron Age Europe, Iron Age. So ...

. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, the Battle of Roundway Down was fought here in 1643, and today the hillfort is known locally as "Oliver's Castle" or "Oliver's Camp". In 1971 the site was notified as a

biological Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

Hillfort

Archaeological remains of a

univallate hillfort A hillfort is a type of fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late European Bronze Age and Iron Age. Some were used in the post- Roman period. The fortif ...

exist at the top of Roundway Hill, a

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...

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. Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...

. The fortifications are thought to date from between the

Late Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

and

Early 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 progr ...

(between the eighth and fifth century BC). The site consists of a triangular central area of approximately enclosed by a single

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department ** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...

ditch A ditch is a small to moderate trench created to channel water. A ditch can be used for drainage, to drain water from low-lying areas, alongside roadways or fields, or to channel water from a more distant source for plant irrigation. Ditches ...

and counterscarp bank. The north and south sides have steep natural slopes, and so the remains of the main defences are found on the eastern side. Also situated on the summit are two

bowl barrow A bowl barrow is a type of burial mound or tumulus. A barrow is a mound of earth used to cover a tomb. The bowl barrow gets its name from its resemblance to an upturned bowl. Related terms include ''cairn circle'', ''cairn ring'', ''howe'', ''ker ...

s (types of

tumuli A tumulus (: tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, mounds, howes, or in Siberia and Central Asia as ''kurgans'', and may be found through ...

). In 1907, the archaeologists Maud Cunnington and Ben Cunnington excavated the site. They found evidence of an older Bronze Age settlement below the hillfort, and artefacts such as

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, ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

antler Antlers are extensions of an animal's skull found in members of the Cervidae (deer) Family (biology), family. Antlers are a single structure composed of bone, cartilage, fibrous tissue, skin, nerves, and blood vessels. They are generally fo ...

and animal bone suggested that the site had been a centre of human activity for a prolonged period. Excavations in the bowl barrows revealed evidence of a cremation, along with an incense cup, perforated conical buttons and secondary urn burials,

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

s, and Bronze Age and Romano-British pottery. Further excavations in 1977 revealed more artefacts, along with evidence that the barrows were at one time incorporated into the hillfort's outer ramparts. The hillfort was designated 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 ...

in 1964.

Civil War

During the

First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. An estimated 15% to 20% of adult males in England and Wales served in the military at some point b ...

, Roundway Down became the site of a noted battle. On 13 July 1643, a

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

cavalry force under Lord Wilmot fought the Parliamentarian Army of the West under Sir William Waller in the Battle of Roundway Down. The Parliamentarian forces were defeated and at the end of the battle, a large number of their fleeing cavalry rode over the cliff to their deaths. The ditch at the bottom was given the name "Bloody Ditch" as a result of this rout, while the hillfort is now known as "Oliver’s Camp" or "Oliver’s Castle" (after

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

Site of Special Scientific Interest

The site was notified as a

in 1971. The escarpment is noted as a habitat for rare wildflower species such as bastard toadflax,

early gentian ''Gentianella anglica'', the early gentian, is a species of flowering plant in the genus '' Gentianella'', native to Great Britain. ''Gentianella anglica'' is endemic to Great Britain and its centre of distribution is in Dorset Dorset ( ; ...

, field fleawort and round-headed rampion, as well as a range of insects, including over 30 types of butterfly.

Watershed

Roundway Down contains the hydrological triple divide of Great Britain, where rainfall drains into the English Channel (via the Salisbury Avon), the Atlantic Ocean (via the Bristol Avon and Severn Estuary) and the North Sea (via the Kennet and Thames). The precise point of this principal watershed of southern England is within Leipzig Plantation.

Devizes White Horse

To the south-east of Roundway Down on Bank Field is the Devizes Millennium White Horse, a chalk

hill figure A hill figure is a large visual representation created by cutting into a steep hillside and revealing the underlying geology. It is a type of geoglyph usually designed to be seen from afar rather than above. In some cases trenches are dug and ...

of a horse which was carved into the hillside in 1999.

Landscape features

Cows at Netherstreet Farm - geograph.org.uk - 186283.jpg, View of the hill fort Beacon Hill, near Heddington - geograph.org.uk - 1535586.jpg, Beacon Hill, to the north Access land west of the Mid Wilts Way near Heddington - geograph.org.uk - 1535578.jpg, The chalk escarpment 'Bloody Ditch', Beacon Hill, near Heddington - geograph.org.uk - 1537986.jpg, "Bloody Ditch" File:Devizes White Horse (geograph 4250140).jpg, The Devizes White Horse

Sources

Natural England citation sheet for the site
(accessed 25 May 2023)

References

{{Iron Age hillforts in England Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Wiltshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1971 Hill forts in Wiltshire