Whelpley Hill

The monument includes the visible and buried remains of a slight univallate hillfort located on a broad plateau in the Chiltern Hills between the Bulbourne and Chess Valleys, in the village of Whelpley Hill.

Both the bank and the ditch were more pronounced in the early 19th century, during which time the ramparts were lined with beech trees and referred to as “Banks Wood”. The interior was open pasture, known as `Round Field’.

In 1860 the beech trees were removed and the majority of the monument brought under plough. By 1912 the bank had been reduced in height and the earth used to infill the ditch. Episodes of ploughing continued until the end of World War II reducing the bank to its present size, and obscuring the inner edge of the ditch.

Despite the effect of past cultivation, the slight univallate hillfort at Whelpley Hill will still retain valuable archaeological evidence, significant both for the understanding of this monument and for the wider study of the series of defended sites established across the Chiltern Hills in the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age.

Facilities & accessibility

Public Right of Way outside.