Larches Camp

Iron Age Hillfort

Larches Camp is a hillfort located on a ridge top in a dense wood and is roughly circular, measuring about 45m in diameter. It is bounded on the west, south, and east sides by a bank, with the entrance located in the middle of the west side. The bank on the north side is 1.2m high inside the fort, and outside it is a berm that is 3m wide. The entrance is 2.5m wide and is defined by inward-turned banks that extend into the interior for 12m.

To the south of the entrance, the bank is approximately 0.7m high inside the fort and 2.5m high on the outside, where it has steep sides. On the south side, the bank continues as a steep-sided feature that is 1m to 1.5m high inside the fort and 3.5m high on the outside. There is an external ditch that is 2m wide and 0.6m deep.

The bank and ditch continue along the west side of the hillfort, where the ditch deepens to 1.5m, and extends to the edge of the hilltop. On the north side, there is no bank, but a steep scarp that is 2.5m high above a natural slope. The interior of the hillfort is convex in shape. Based on its characteristics, the hillfort is believed to date to the Iron Age period, specifically around 800 BC to AD 74, which is the Roman conquest of Wales era.

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