Maiden Castle, Dorset

Dorset is considered to be one of the most historic of all English counties, and there is evidence of inhabitants dating back to thousands of years before the Roman conquest. One piece of evidence that can not be overlooked is the hill fort of Maiden Castle, situated just two miles outside of the Roman town of Dorchester.

Maiden Castle from the Air - Major George Allen (1891–1940) - PD-life-70

Dorset and the wider area of Wessex is full of hill forts, but Maiden Castle is by far and away the largest to be found anywhere in England. For those thinking that there is a castle on the site in the more traditional use of the term will be disappointed. Maiden Castle was constructed many thousands of years before the Normans started on their construction of large stone castles, instead the term hill fort is more apt, as defence is produce through the manipulation of the earth. There is evidence to suggest that the title of Maiden Castle comes about from the Celtic term, “Mai Dun” which means “great hill”.

Construction of Maiden Castle is though to have begun somewhere around 4000BC, with a Neolithic enclosure. Over the next thousand years banks, ditches and ramparts were constructed, as well as five hundred metre barrow, a barrow being a mound covering graves.

Maiden Castle as it looks today was thought to have been constructed around 600BC when the existing defensive positions were extended to form three rings of defensive points and offset entrances. The ramparts would have been made even more impressive by the addition of wooden palisades on the tops of the most strategic of points.

Maiden Castle Defensive Ditches - Ray Beer - CC-BY-SA-2.0

Maiden Castle is known to have been a stronghold of the Celtic Durotriges tribe by the time that the Romans arrived in Britain. Maiden Castle though was more than just a defensive encampment and during times of peace acted more as a town would, with a population of several hundred, as well as cattle and livestock.

In AD43 the invading Roman army reached Maiden Castle, it has long been proposed that there was a bloody battle that took place on the site. During the 1930s excavations undertaken by Mortimer Wheeler suggested that the 2nd and 8th Legions under the leadership of Verspasian took on the Iron Age army encamped in the hill fort. There is contradicting evidence about whether a battle took place or not, although I personally believe that the uncovering of up to forty bodies of Durotriges soldiers does indicate a bloody fight for Maiden Castle. Despite the years of erosion of the banks, and the infilling of the trenches, it is still easy to visualise just how difficult any attack against the fortifications must have been.

After the Roman conquest of Dorset, the Romans briefly made use of the site, even building their own temple inside the fortifications of Maiden Castle. The temple was used as a point of worship to Minerva and Diana, but the main focus of Roman attention was focused on Poundbury Hill as well as Durnovaria (Dorchester). After the fourth century AD Maiden Castle seems to have been abandoned for good, and even Saxons made sparse use of the fortifications.

Other than the banks of the hill fort, there is little to see at Maiden Castle, with most artefacts having been removed during the excavations of the 1930s. For those interested in seeing some of the Roman and Iron Age remains then a trip to the Dorset County Museum in Dorchester is well worth a visit.

Rings of Maiden Castle -Slideshow Bob - CC-BY-SA-2.0

In a time when there seems to be a cost associated with everything it is perhaps refreshing to know that although maintained by English Heritage there is no direct cost involved in visiting Maiden Castle. Open to the public every day of the year, including Christmas Day, once you have parked in the large free car park, situated at the end of Maiden Castle Road, you are free to wander all over the hill fort.

It is also a good idea to take a few minutes to read through the information boards that are positioned around the car park as they do provide a useful insight into the whole history of the site.

There is not a huge amount to do at Maiden Castle, and as a result a lot of the visitors to the hill fort are mostly those who like to ramble. It is though a relaxing place to visit and as long as you don’t mind a lot of walking it is well worth at least one visit.

Copyright - First Published 20th November 2011