| Summary : A substantial semi-circular Civil War breastwork possibly dating to 1642-1651 with ditch no longer visible, cuts off the 'Old Blockhouse' promontory. An original entrance is indicated by a gap on the south side. Encompassing the blockhouse and the flat top of the knoll, the bank measures, 1.5 metres wide and 0.7 metres high on the inner face, 1.7 metres high and at least 4.0 metres wide on the outer face where it merges into the natural slope. Further down the slope there has been considerable inundation of sand, but under ideal conditions two parallel and vestigal banks or rises can be traced for 60 metres following the contours on the south west side of the knoll. Each is, perhaps, 12 metres wide and 0.1 metres high. |
More information : (SV 897155) A substantial semi-circular earthwork,
with ditch no longer visible, cuts off the 'Old Blockhouse'
(SV 81 NE 28) promontory. An original entrance is indicated by a
gap on the south side.(1-2)
Two other banks may be traced lower down the slope, each with
an entrance gap. (Not visible on air photographs). (3)
The blockhouse knoll forms a small promontory at about 20.0m
OD, with steep slopes on the seaward (north and east) sides
and a moderate slope elsewhere. Encompassing the blockhouse and the flat top of the knoll is a bank, 1.5m wide and 0.7m high on the inner face, 1.7m high and at least 4.0m wide on the
outer face where it merges into the natural slope. An entrance
on the southwest shows slight evidence of inturning but the
small size, 25.0m by 15.0m, of the area enclosed and the
general weakness suggest a Civil War breastwork rather than
an Iron Age fortification.
Further down the slope there has been considerable inundation
of sand, but under ideal conditions two parallel and vestigal
banks or rises can be traced for 60.0m following the contours
on the south west side of the knoll. Each is, perhaps, 12.0m
wide and 0.1m high. There is no evidence of accompanying
ditches or of any continuation round the south east side of
the hill. The banks are 20.0m apart and extend from SV 89651545
to SV 89701540.
A lowering of each occurs where a well beaten path leads to
the blockhouse. Both banks are so ill defined that their
significance, natural or archaeological, is likely to be
determined only by excavation.
Not surveyed at 1:2500. (4)
The slight earthwork bank, less than 0.5m high, surrounding the Blockhouse, is not as smooth as depicted on the Antiquity Model (see SV 81 NE 26) but the general impression is correct. For the other earthworks see also SV 81 NE 114. (5)
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