Maesbury Castle

rdf:langString Maesbury Castle

rdf:langString Maesbury Castle

rdf:langString Maesbury Castle

rdf:langString Plan of earthworks at Maesbury Castle

rdf:langString Scheduled Ancient Monument

rdf:langString Croscombe, Somerset, England

rdf:langString Somerset

rdf:langString Maesbury Castle is an Iron Age hill fort within the parish of Croscombe on the Mendip Hills, just north of Shepton Mallet, Somerset, England. It has been listed as a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The name is derived from maes, meaning field or plain in Brythonic Welsh,and burh, meaning fort in Old English. There is also a record of the name Merksburi in 705 AD, meaning boundary fort. The area was a boundary between the Romano-British Celts and West Saxons during the period 577-652 AD, when the nearby Wansdyke fortification comprised part of the border. The enclosure has an area of 2.5 hectares (6.2 acres), and lies at a height of 292 m (950 ft), with views in many directions. This includes the Somerset Levels to Glastonbury Tor and Brent Knoll which are the closest and probably the most easily identifiable landmarks from the site. The fort has a single rampart up to 6 m high, with an outer ditch (univallate). Entrances are to the south-east and north-east (with possible outworks). The Fort and surrounding grounds are now owned by the Stevens' family who have been farming in Somerset for over 60 years.