Apromontory fort is adefensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce theramparts needed.
The oldest known promontory fort is Amnya I in Siberia which was established as a fortified site in the late 7th millennium BC.[1] Although their dating is problematic, most seem to date to theIron Age. They are mainly found inIreland,Brittany, theOrkney Islands, theIsle of Man,Devon, theChannel Islands andCornwall.[2]
Only a few Irish promontory forts have been excavated and most date to theIron Age, though some, likeDunbeg Fort (County Kerry) might have originated in theBronze Age. Others, likeDalkey Island (County Dublin) contain imported Eastern Mediterranean pottery and have been reoccupied and changed in the earlymedieval period. Some, likeDoonmore (near Dingle, County Kerry) are associated with the Middle Ages. Dunbeg contains an early medievalcorbelled stone hut (clochán).
On theIsle of Man, promontory forts are found particularly on the rocky slateheadlands of the south. Four out of more than twenty have been excavated and several, especially inSanton, can be visited using theRaad ny Foillan coastal footpath. All have arampart on their vulnerable landward side, and excavations atCronk ny Merriu have shown that access to the fort was via a strongly built gate.
TheScandinavians who arrived in Mann in the eighth and ninth centuries AD sometimes re-used these Iron Age promontory forts, often obliterating the old domestic quarters with their characteristic rectangular houses; the fine example atCronk ny Merriu has been used as the basis of the reconstruction in theHouse of Manannan museum inPeel.
Cornish promontory forts can be found all along the coast ofPenwith.Maen Castle, near toLand's End is one of the oldest, having been dated to around 500 BC. They are also found in other districts, e.g.The Rumps near Padstow andDodman Point on the southern Cornish coast as well asRame Head close to Plymouth. In Devon,Burgh Island andBolt Tail[3] are located on the south coast andEmbury Beacon andHillsborough on the north coast.The famous site atTintagel may be a rare example of promontory fort whose occupation continued into the post Roman and from there into later periods.[4]
Caesar'sCommentarii de bello Gallico describes theVeneti in southernArmorica – a powerful sea-faring people allied with the southern British during the war of 56 BC – as living in clifftopoppida. Their capital was Darioritum, on theGulf of Morbihan, now modernVannes/Gwened.[5] The Veneti had close trade ties with southwestern Britain.[clarification needed] When they were attacked by the Romans inBrittany,Julius Caesar reports that Cornwall sent them military aid.
There are a few examples of promontory forts on the Island of Jersey, which includesLe Pinacle, Le Câtel de Rozel, and Le Câtel de Lecq. All of these were located on headlands on the north and north-east of the Island, given the strong natural defences that exist on those parts of the Island. Remains of an Iron Age fort were located on the site ofMont Orgueil Castle to the east of the island as well as materials from theNeolithic andBronze Age.
