BBC animation - How to build a Round house, ©Copyright Mandy Barrow 2013 The photograph below shows both types of houses. But in others, such as Maiden Castle in Dorset and Danebury in Hampshire, there is evidence of an Asterix-style resistance to the Roman invaders. ramps and ditches, which were supposed to delay and confuse attackers. Many can be seen around the countryside today. Harder than bronze, people could make steel by heating iron and carbon together. The Celts were fierce warriors from central Europe. But if there’s one thing they have in common, it’s that they’re all ontop of hills, right? Sometimes groups of houses were built on the top of hills. Please reload the CAPTCHA. They would probably have been abandoned during winter months. The resource includes a detailed lesson plan, Powerpoint and pupil resource sheets. It has identified 4,147 hillforts in Britain and Ireland, where formerly the number was thought to be 2,000. The online atlas has been created following a study by researchers from University College Cork, the University of Edinburgh and the University of Oxford. 54 BC. Roman forts, also known as castra, could be found all over the Roman Empire, to protect it from attack. The picture below is a reconstruction of what another Celtic hill fort in Dorset, Hambledon Hill, might have looked like. Habitable – The hill fort of Old Sarum was lived in up till the 19th Century. })(120000); Caratacus leads the British Celts. Boudicca's Revolt. Pupils will discover what life was like in an Iron Age hill fort in Britain. From the top on a clear day you can see forever, with views across to the chalk cliffs beyond Brighton and as far as the Isle of Wight. The Iron Age Themed Research Map. Iron Age Weapons (KS2): Fun Facts And Activities. }. ‘Maiden’ derives from the Celtic ‘Mai Dun’ which means ‘great hill’. if ( notice ) A hill fort, essentially a defended enclosure, was an elevated site with ramparts (defensive walls) made from earth, wood or stone, and a ditch dug along the site’s perimeter.  −  Some Roman forts could hold up to 6,000 people. What was life like in an Iron Age hill fort? Crickley Hill's Iron Age population within the fort was between 50 and 100: and the fort had a devastating end evidenced by the archaeological recovery of hundreds of arrow points. Usually they followed the contours of a hill, consisting of one or more lines of earthworks, with stockades or defensive walls, and external ditches. Free Online Games about Scotland for Kids They lived in round houses with thatched roofs of straw or heather.The walls of their houses were made from local material. Dùn Deardai in Scotland Throughout the present Celtic lands and in many of those areas once lived in by Celtic tribes, hill forts can be found. Some are small enough that they were of no practical use for more than an individual family, though over time many larger forts were built. var notice = document.getElementById("cptch_time_limit_notice_56"); Make a Celtic Cartoon with the BBC cartoon maker. The archaeological record for these roundhouses is incomplete due to the decomposition of organic materials and the removal and reuse of their contents elsewhere. Defensive – Alfred the Great built a series of hill forts along the coastal hills of Wessex to guard against Viking attack. Celtic Farms . The vast multiple ramparts enclose an area the size of 50 football pitches! Time limit is exhausted. timeout To explore where hill forts are built and why they were built in those locations. 1 ramps and ditches, which were supposed to delay and confuse attackers. Usually they followed the contours of a hill, consisting of one or more lines of earthworks, with stockades or defensive walls, and external ditches. ); Build a Roundhouse (interactive) Build a Hillfort, The War Chariot. Many can be seen around the countryside today. setTimeout( (OS Map 194; ref SY 670885) The largest, and most spectacular, hill fort in Britain is at Maiden Castle in Dorset. Instead, the native Britains and Europeans relied on the natural positioning of the fort to repel invaders. KS2 children label the features of an Iron Age hillfort and explain the purpose of each feature. eight .hide-if-no-js { Many Celts went into battle unprotected by helmets or armour. This map shows where in Britain they lived. These large man-made mounds of rock, wood, earth and dead animals, served as valuable fortifications against any attacking forces and created a series of ridged circular ditched rings that proved difficult to circumvent. In fact, Mam Tor and many others seem to have been peaceful summer shielings, used by Celtic tribes to watch over their flocks. There remains much evidence of Iron Age settlement in Cumbria, with hill forts, such as those at Castle Crag in Borrowdale and Dunmallard Hill, near Pooley Bridge, Ullswater. Julius Caesar leads the Romans in the Gallic Wars Julius Caesar fails in attempt to invade Britain. Their Hill-fort at Worlebury (Weston Super Mare) was most likely destroyed by Vespasian’s Legion II as a result of their rebellion. Classroom Key Stage 2 / KS2 - History Activities & Resources Welcome to the History section of the Key Stage 2 classroom. To role-play a debate in a Celtic settlement about whether or not to go into battle against a neighbouring tribe. Throughout the present Celtic lands and in many of those areas once lived in by Celtic tribes, hill forts can be found. It was surrounded by enclosure of stakes. Most Celts lived in scattered farming communities surrounded by a bank with wooden fencing and a ditch to keep out intruders and wild animals. Teach KS2 children about hill forts, how and why they were built, as well as their limitations. Hill forts (sometimes spelled hillforts) are essentially fortified residences, single households, elite residences, whole villages, or even urban settlements built on the tops of hills and/or with defensive structures such as enclosures, moats, palisades or ramparts--despite the name not all "hill forts" were built on hills. Danebury Hill Fort Information for Teachers Danebury was a defended hilltop enclosure, one of a number across Wessex, known as hill forts where people lived in the Iron Age, protected by the man-made ramparts, ditches and massive gates. Widespread – There are the remains of over 2,000 Iron Age hill forts in Britain today. 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