What was special about Maiden Castle?
Maiden Castle is one of the largest Iron Age hill forts in Britain. It was a settlement built on top of a hill and surrounded by walls made from wood.
It was built almost 3000 years ago on a large hill in Dorset.
The fort had complex entrances, and many roundhouses This showed how important it was to the people who lived there.
Artefacts found there, such as pottery, were made by people in the past. These discoveries help archaeologists understand what life was like for people in the Iron Age.
Created in partnership with English Heritage
Important words
Important words on Maiden Castle.
| Keyword | Definition |
|---|---|
| Archaeologists | People who study the past. |
| Artefacts | Objects that are made by people in the past. |
| Ditches | A long narrow channel dug into the ground. |
| Hill fort | A settlement built on top of a hill and surrounded by walls made from wood. |
| Iron Age | A time when people began to use tools and weapons made of iron. |
| Neolithic | A time when people started farming. Also known as the New Stone Age. |
| Ramparts | A large wall or raised mound of dirt built around a settlement. |
What is Maiden Castle?
Maiden Castle is one of the largest Iron Age hill forts found in Britain.
Image source, © Historic England (illustration by Paul Birbeck)It is in Dorset in the south of England.
Experts think it was built almost 3,000 years ago.
Why did people build Maiden Castle?
Image source, © Historic EnglandThe fort is on top of a large hill which is 914 metres long.
That's about as long as 10 football pitches.
In the Iron Age, hundreds of people lived there.
They built the fort to protect themselves.
They could see attackers better from high up.
Image source, © Historic EnglandHow was Maiden Castle built?
Image source, © Historic England (Illustration by Miranda Schofield)Before Maiden Castle was built, people in the early Neolithic period (the New Stone Age) made circular ditches in the land. They used the space in the centre of the ditches to hold feasts and make flint axes.
The Iron Age people built the hill fort on top of the earlier Neolithic structure. They made it bigger and added ramparts. A rampart is a large wall or raised mound of dirt built around a settlement.
They made the entrances more complicated so it was harder to get into the hill fort. For example, the Western entrance had a 200 metre long winding corridor.
Image source, © Historic England (Illustration by Miranda Schofield)This also made the hill fort look impressive to show off the power of the people who built it.
Image source, © Historic England (illustration by Peter Urmston)What was life like at Maiden Castle?
Image source, © Historic England (illustration by Paul Birkbeck)People lived in roundhouses in Maiden Castle.
These had thatched roofs.
Inside each roundhouse, there was a fireplace in the centre of the house called a hearth, where people lit fires.
They also had large pits for storing grain.
Later on roadways were built in between houses.
Not everyone in the Iron Age lived in hill forts.
People may have lived in hill forts for part of the year, or when they were expecting an attack.
Many other Iron Age settlements were undefended, with roundhouses set within fields and enclosures.
Image source, © Historic England (illustration by Paul Birkbeck)What has been found at Maiden Castle?
Image source, © The Society of AntiquariesMost of the bank and ditches, long narrow channels dug into the ground, that you can see today were made in the 1st Century BC, over 2000 years ago.
Over 20,000 sling stones have been found near an entrance.
People stored them in large pits ready to be thrown at attackers.
Most of the pottery used by people at Maiden Castle was made near Poole Harbour on the south coast, which is more than 35 miles away.
This could mean that people bought and sold things outside of their local area.
Image source, © The Society of AntiquariesThink like a historian
Have a look at the thinking points below and think about your answer to each question. You could even write them down on a piece of paper or discuss them with somebody else if you want to.
How do you think life in Maiden Castle was similar or different to life in a modern town or city today?
Maiden Castle is a very large hill fort and had complex entrances which made it look impressive. Why do you think it was so important for the fort to look powerful and significant?
Pottery made far from Maiden Castle was found at the site. What might this tell us about the people who lived there?
Neolithic people made circular ditches on the land where Maiden Castle was built. Iron Age people then built their hill fort in the same place many years later. What do you think may have stayed the same or changed between these two very different time periods?
Did you think that people who lived in Maiden Castle would have lived in roundhouses and used the hill for protection, but today, people live in different types of houses and settlements? The Iron Age people would also have a very different way of life to people today. Maybe you thought that one similarity between people living in Maiden Castle and those living in modern towns or villages is that people would be living together in communities. These people would help each other and work together.
Maybe you thought Maiden Castle was designed to show the power and strength of the people who lived there to other tribes. It would also show the importance of the people who lived there to any passing travellers. Did you think that a powerful and well defended fort would also make the people inside feel safer and more secure? It would offer good protection from an attack from other tribes.
You may have thought that the pottery found might show that people from Maiden Castle traded with other Iron Age people, hill forts or settlements across Britain. Perhaps you thought that this shows the people from Maiden Castle may have travelled very long distances to other settlements. This could have been for trade or to attack other settlements.
Did you think that both groups of people saw the land as an important hilltop site where people could gather? Both groups of people might have understood the importance and value of the land. You may have thought that each group used the land quite differently. The Neolithic people used the area as a land for feasting and making flint tools, but the Iron Age people used it to create a large hill fort to protect themselves from attack.
Activities
Activity 1: Old Oswestry hill fort
Old Oswestry is another Iron Age hill fort. It is in Shropshire, in the west of England. Its entrance passage was over 100 metres long. Two roundhouses have been found on the site.
Look at the drawing of Old Oswestry below. What similarities and differences can you spot between this hill fort and Maiden Castle?
You might want to look at:
- size of entrances
- location
- houses or settlements
Image source, © Historic EnglandActivity 2: Maiden Castle quiz
Let's find out what you know about Maiden Castle.
Grown-ups corner
Are you a parent, carer or teacher?
Take a look at some of the links below on KS2 History which are packed full of knowledge, videos, quizzes and activities.
KS1 / KS2 History: Hill forts
BBC Bitesize for Teachers
KS2 History / PSHE and Social Studies: Iron Age forts and tribes
BBC Bitesize for Teachers
KS2 History: Iron Age Britain
BBC Bitesize for Teachers
Horrible Histories: Raid and Trade game! game
Play Horrible Histories: Raid and Trade KS2 History
More on Prehistoric
Find out more by working through a topic
- count19 of 21
- count20 of 21
- count21 of 21
- count1 of 21
