Burledge Hill facts for kids
| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
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| Area of Search | Avon |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 51°19′33″N 2°35′34″W / 51.32590°N 2.59267°W |
| Interest | Biological |
| Area | 48.7 hectares (0.487 km2; 0.188 sq mi) |
| Notification | 2005 |
Burledge Hill is a special place located near the village of Bishop Sutton in Somerset, England. It's important for two main reasons: it's a home for many rare plants and animals, and it also has the remains of an ancient Iron Age hill fort. This means people lived and built defenses here thousands of years ago!
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A Special Place for Nature
Burledge Hill is a very important area for nature. Three fields here are officially known as Burledge Sidelands and Meadows. Since November 2005, this area has been named a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). This means it's one of the best places in the country for its natural features.
The SSSI covers about 48.7 hectares (that's like 120 football fields!). It's special because it has many different kinds of plants, especially in its flower-rich grasslands. You can find plants like cowslip, lady's mantle (a type of Alchemilla), saw-wort, and devil's bit scabious.
Home for Wildlife
This area is also great for birds! In the bushes and trees, you might hear the songs of birds like the willow warbler, garden warbler, and whitethroat.
Burledge Hill is part of the beautiful Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). From the top of the hill, you can see amazing views of the Chew Valley.
Ancient Hill Fort
Burledge Hill is also home to an ancient Iron Age hill fort. Hill forts were large, fortified settlements built on hills. They were common in Britain during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, starting around 1000 BC.
Why Were Hill Forts Built?
Historians and archaeologists have different ideas about why these hill forts were built. Some think they were military sites, built to defend against invaders. Others believe they were built because more people were living in the area, which caused tensions over land and resources.
One popular idea is that when people started using iron more, it changed how society worked. Iron ore was found in different places than the materials needed for bronze. This meant that old trading routes changed, and new groups of people gained power. Hill forts might have been places where communities could gather for safety when there were conflicts.
Discoveries at Burledge Hill
Archaeologists have explored the Burledge Hill fort several times. They investigated the site in 1955, 1959, and 1966. During their digs, they found exciting clues about the people who lived there.
They discovered:
- Postholes: These are holes in the ground where wooden posts once stood, showing where buildings or fences might have been.
- Ditches and Pits: These were part of the fort's defenses or storage areas.
- Artifacts: They found pieces of an iron pin (called a fibula), animal bones (which tell us about their diet), and pieces of pottery.
- Iron Slag: This is waste material left over from working with iron. Finding it here means that people at Burledge Hill were skilled in metalworking!
These discoveries help us understand what life was like for people living in this ancient hill fort thousands of years ago.
