Old Ashburton

P F S Amery: 1874. 'Had this subject been undertaken by one of our members versed in archaeology.... we might expect that his experience and learning would throw some ray of light through the darkness which obscures the origin and use of the many hill forts, castles, rings, or by whatever name the earthworks may be called, which crown so many of our hills in the South Hams and other parts of the county. But in the absence of such a paper, I can simply place on record in the Transactions of our Association the existence and present state of five such remains, fast passing from view, two of which are only remembered by a few seniors of our town, among whom is Mr Robert Tucker; another scarcely traceable, as year by year the plough levels its ramparts and fills its ditches; whilst the others are so hidden in dense woods that few know even of their whereabouts....'

Place Wood, or Tower Hill Castle. 'About a mile north east of Ashburton rises a steep hill knownas Tower Hill, in fact a spur of Ashburton Down... on the highest point of which, and adjoining the road, can still be traced, by the undulations of the ground, the remains of an ancient foss*, in two fields called Castle Parks, surrounded on two sides by Place Wood and Whiddon Cliff Copse. This spot, once a hill fort... '

'A...camp near Ashburton was first recognised by the names of two fields on the site, known as Castle Parks, in which flints are frequently found after ploughing...'

Boro Wood Camp. About a mile and a half north of Ashburton, and separated from Tower Hill by a stream... is Boro Wood... At the highest part of this wood there is [an] enclosure, formed by a ridge of stones from twelve to twenty feet wide... I calculate it to contain four acres.'

Above: Map of Ashburton, 1605. Redrawn by J S Amery from an original.

Holne Chase Castle. ** 'On the peninsula of Holne Chase, surrounded on three sides by the deep valley fo the Dart, and two hundred feet above the river... It consists of a perfect fosse, between thirty and forty feet wide...'

In 1870 about a dozen flat iron bars were found about 50 yards outside the fosse; resembling heavy spear heads, they were about twenty four inches long and two inches broad, tapering at one end. The gamekeeper who found them broke most of them against the rocks where he found them, but he carried two or three back to Sir Bourchier Wrey's house, where they were used as supports under a cucumber frame. When he heard about the find P F S Amery managed to get two specimens, one with a pointed end and one folded over - but they both were a 'brittle mass of rust'. The bars were difficult to date, and were originally thought to be unfinished weapons. However, after consultation with a Reginald A Smith of the British Museum, who had written a paper on the subject, Amery suggested that they may have been examples of ancient British currency.

Circa 54BC,  Caesar commented of the British, 'As money they use either gold or bronze coins or iron bars with a fixed standard of weight.'

Above: Woodencliff Wood (called Whiddon Hill Copse by P S Amery, above)

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'Boro Wood Camp is a mile and a half north of the town, and separated from Tower Hill by a stream called the Yeo, but formerly the Ashburn. The ridge of stones forming the enclosure is from twelve to twenty feet wide, and there is no ditch. A spindle whorl* was once found among the stones of the rampart.'

An enclosure is shown on Ordnance Survey maps.

See the Legendary Dartmoor website http://www.legendarydartmoor.co.uk/hill_forts.htm for a map showing iron age hillforts and settlements in the area: Hembury, Holne Chase Castle, Boro Wood, Mountsland Common, Berry's Wood and Denbury camp. To these can be added the recent discovery of an iron age round house at Ipplepen.

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