Ringses multivallate hillfort, Doddington Moor

The Ringses is a well-preserved example of a small multivallate hillfort. The monument will contain archaeological deposits relating to its construction, use and abandonment and environmental information relating to the use of the surrounding landscape. The group of hut circles, thought to represent the use of the hillfort in the Romano-British period, contributes to the importance of the monument by demonstrating the extended use of the site.

This monument includes a multivallate hillfort of Iron Age date, situated towards the summit of a hill on Doddington Moor. The hillfort is sited on a rise at the edge of a steep escarpment to the west with more gradual slopes on the three remaining sides. The monument is an irregular oval-shaped enclosure surrounded by three ramparts with a fourth outer bank on the west and a slight outer ditch with traces of a counterscarp bank to the south. The earthworks enclose an area of approximately 0.3ha.

The innermost bank is between 3m to 5m wide with a maximum height of 0.6m. Within the innermost bank there is a smaller stony bank, which probably represents the foundations of a wall and is of a later date. The middle bank is 6m to 8m wide and with an average height of 1.5m. The outer bank is of similar width and varies in height from 0.6m to 2.5m. Both of the outer banks are at their highest to the west where their height is exaggerated by the natural scarp. The two outer banks are not fully concentric with accommodations for wide spaces to the north and south. These spaces have a series of banks within them and represent areas for stock management. An additional fourth outer rampart exists on the west side and is 5m wide with a height of 0.3m internally and 2.0m externally.

The main entrance to the monument is to the south east where a passage is formed by two transverse banks between the central and outer ramparts.

There are at least five hut circles within the hillfort varying in diameter from 3.5m to 10m, some of which have traces of dividing walls as low earthworks and two of which are linked by a low wall. Comparisons with other sites suggest these hut circles are Romano-British.

A well-preserved, multivallate hillfort lying below the summit of a hill on Doddington Moor. Approximately oval in form, 55m by 48m, enclosed by up to four earth and stone ramparts and a possible ditch with counterscarp bank in the S. It lies at 154m OD at the edge of an escarpment which slopes away steeply in the W but with gradual slopes elsewhere. The enclosed area measures approximately 0.3ha and is surrounded by a bank 3-5m wide with a maximum height of 0.6m. The middle and outer banks measure 6-8m wide and average 1.5m and 0.6-2.5m wide respectively reaching their maximum height in the W where they are exaggerated by the natural scarp. Spaces between the two outer banks are sufficient for embanked divisions in the N and S, which have been interpreted as stock enclosures. A fourth rampart lies on the western side 5m wide and 0.3m high internally and 2m externally. Slight traces of a ditch 8m wide and 0.3m deep and a counterscarp bank, reported by Hogg (1947) on the S side of the hillfort could not be identified during a RCHME field investigation visit in 1964. An entrance lies in the SE facing gently sloping ground where the ramparts are widely spaced. A passage is formed by two transverse banks between the middle and outer ramparts, which is suggested by Hogg (ibid.), to give the effect of a barbican. Four further breaks in the ramparts are probably not original. Internally there is a narrower stony bank, possibly the foundations of a later wall which runs concentrically to the inner enclosure bank. Within this there are at least five hut circles 3.5-10m in diameter, two are linked by a low wall probably representing later Roman-British occupation. A curving length of bank 4-5m wide and 0.3-0.7 high appended externally to the N of the outer rampart is a possible annex. The hillfort survives in reasonably good condition, although the inner rampart is now mutilated. The site is recorded on 1856-65 OS mapping. No known investigations but presumed Iron Age based on morphology. Scheduled.

Source: Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk (CC BY-SA 4.0)