Site Name: Hillfort, S of Knapp Farm, Whitestaunton
Civil Parish: Whitestaunton
Grid Ref: ST 264 106 (ST 21 SE)

Hillfort situated in dense woodland, discovered in 1978. Defences on the W and SW sides are large but some disturbance in S by farm buildings. {1}

Covers 2 hectares, is multivallate with maximum rampart height of 30m. {2}

No change in condition. {4}

Site visit in 2004 cast doubt on the definition as a hilltop enclosure. Earthworks may in fact be a combination of recent field boundaries, wood and coppice banks and the natural topography. {5}


References:

1 Correspondence - R Carter to Somerset County Council April-May 1978 - discovery and site visit
2 Mention - SANHS Parish surveys in Somerset - No 4: Whitestaunton (1981), 10
3 Sketch plan - unknown origin (? R Carter) in HER files
4 Detailed records - Blackdown Hills Survey Record Sheet 1992
5 Personal communication - Chris Norman Note to SCC 03/2005


Data kindly supplied by the Somerset Historic Environment Record.
Record created on 06 December 2001
© Copyright Somerset County Council 2007

Recommended books on hill forts;
Danebury Hillfort ~ Barry Cunliffe
Hillforts of England and Wales ~ James Dyer
Cadbury Castle - The Hillfort and Landscapes ~ Richard Tabor
The Wessex Hillfort Project ~ Andrew Payne, Mark Corney and Barry Cunliffe
Hillforts: Prehistoric Strongholds of Northumberland National Park ~ Stewart Ainsworth and Trevor Pearson
Celtic Fortifications ~ Ian Ralston