This site in Somerset, southwest England, is one of the more important secular Dark Age sites in Britain. It is essentially an Iron Age hill fort with a complex history of abandonment and refortification continuing throughout the prehistoric, Roman and medieval periods. The 16th-century antiquarian John Leyland first recognized South Cadbury’s links with the Dark Ages and named it as Camelot, thus initiating its romantic associations with the Arthurian legend (see Arthur). Extensive excavations between 1966 and 1970 examined both the defences and the interior of the settlement. They revealed that the Iron Age fort was reoccupied and refurbished during the Romano-British period, when a small temple was built. The next phase of reoccupation has been dated by well-stratified deposits of Mediterranean imported pottery to around 470, and during this period the whole settlement was drastically remodelled. The Arthurian defences were very substantial indeed, covering most of the hill top, and consisted of a dry-stone wall with revetment and timber breastwork enclosed in an elaborate wooden framework. The two gateways which covered the original Roman entrances were in the form of raised fighting platforms overlying passageways. The interior of the settlement contained a timber hall measuring 19 by 10 metres, divided by a single partition with a pair of doorways in the long sides. This occupation phase lasted until about 557. The fort was used again in 1010 and 1017 by King Aethelred II and his forces when they were under Danish attack. Further additions and alterations were made to the enceinte at that time, and a cruciform church and a mint were also built.
The Macmillan dictionary of archaeology, Ruth D. Whitehouse, 1983Copied