Walbury Hillfort, Combe

  

Walbury Hill is the highest chalk down in England, and also the site of the largest hillfort in Berkshire, Walbury Camp. It is designated as a Scheduled Monument in recognition of its national importance. The banks and ditches of this early Iron Age enclosure are best viewed at the north-western entrance by the car park; once inside the camp, its area is so extensive that the ramparts cannot be readily be seen from the bridleway. The south-east gap in the earthworks is probably also original, and there are reports of a dew pond and flint mines within the hillfort. However, a recent geophysical survey of the interior found few archaeological features and it seems that Walbury was not intensively occupied in the past. It is likely that this hill-top enclosure was mainly for the protection of cattle. Other evidence of prehistoric farming around Walbury Hill survives in the lynchets of ancient fields, which can be seen particularly well in low light on slopes to the west and south.

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