| Unitary authorities of Somerset |
|---|
 |
| 1Somerset Council |
| 2North Somerset |
| 3Bath and North East Somerset |
There are over 670scheduled monuments in theceremonial county ofSomerset inSouth West England.
The area is administered by threeunitary authorities. Two of them were established on 1 April 1996 following the breakup of thecounty of Avon; they areNorth Somerset andBath and North East Somerset. These unitary authorities include areas that were once part of Somerset before the creation of Avon in 1974.[1]
The rest of the county is administered bySomerset Council, which was established on 1 April 2023 to replaceSomerset County Council and four districts –South Somerset,Mendip,Sedgemoor andSomerset West and Taunton.[2]West Somerset andTaunton Deane previously existed until 1 April 2019 when they merged to form Somerset West and Taunton.[3]
Ascheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or monument which is given legal protection by being placed on a list (or "schedule") by theSecretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport; English Heritage takes the leading role in identifying such sites. The current legislation governing this is theAncient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The term "monument" can apply to the whole range of archaeological sites, and they are not always visible above ground. Such sites have to have been deliberately constructed by human activity. They range fromprehistoric standing stones and burial sites, throughRoman remains and medieval structures such as castles and monasteries, to later structures such as industrial sites and buildings constructed for the World Wars or theCold War.[4]
For ease of reference, lists of scheduled monuments in the county are organised by unitary authority and then by former district area.
Bath and North East Somerset (commonly referred to as BANES or B&NES) is aunitary authority created on 1 April 1996, following the abolition of theCounty of Avon.[5] Bath and North East Somerset occupies an area of 220 square miles (570 km2), two-thirds of which isgreen belt.[6] BANES stretches from the outskirts ofBristol, south into theMendip Hills, and east to the southernCotswold Hills and theWiltshire border.[6] The city ofBath is the principal settlement in the district, but BANES also coversKeynsham,Midsomer Norton,Radstock and theChew Valley.[6]
There are 58 scheduled monuments in Bath and North East Somerset.[7] Some of the oldest areNeolithic, including theStanton Drew stone circles and severaltumuli. The Great Circle at Stanton Drew is the second largeststone circle in Britain (afterAvebury); it is considered to be one of the largest Neolithic monuments to have been built. The date of construction is not known but is thought to be between 3000 and 2000BCE which places it in the Late Neolithic to EarlyBronze Age.[8] There are also severalIron Agehill forts such as the one atMaes Knoll,[9] which is connected to theWansdyke medieval defensive earthwork, several sections of which are included in this list.[10] TheRomano-British period is represented with several sites, most notably theRoman Baths[11] andcity walls in Bath.[12] More recent sites include several bridges, with dates ranging from theMiddle Ages to the 18th-centuryPalladian bridge inPrior Park Landscape Garden.[7][13]Dundas Aqueduct, built in 1805[14] to carry theKennet and Avon Canal, is the most recent site in the list.
North Somerset is aunitary authority.[5]
There are 68 scheduled monuments in North Somerset. Some of the oldest are Neolithic includingAveline's Hole, a cave which is the earliest scientifically dated cemetery in Britain,[15] and several tumuli. There are also several Iron Age hill forts such as the one atWorlebury Camp.Dolebury Warren – another Iron Age hill fort – was reused as a medieval rabbit warren. The Romano-British period is represented with several sites, includingvillas.
More recent sites include severalmotte-and-bailey castles, such asLocking Castle; and church crosses which date from the Middle Ages. There are also several deserted medieval settlements.Woodspring Priory is a formerAugustinianpriory founded in the early 13th century.[16] More recent sites date from the industrial revolution and include theElms colliery and glassworks inNailsea. The most recent monuments are twoPalmerstonian gun batteries on the island ofSteep Holm.[17]
Mendip is a formerlocal government district which covers a largely rural area of 285 square miles (738 km2)[18] ranging from the Mendip Hills through on to theSomerset Levels.
There are 233 scheduled monuments in Mendip. These include a large number ofbowl andround barrows and other neolithic, Bronze and Iron Age tumuli such as thePriddy Circles andPriddy Nine Barrows and Ashen Hill Barrow Cemeteries.[19][20][21][22] There are also several Iron Agehill forts on the hilltops, and lake villages on the lowlands such asMeare andGlastonbury Lake Villages.[23][24][25][26] The lake villages were often connected bytimber trackways such as theSweet Track. There are several Roman sites, particularly around theCharterhouse Roman Town and its associated lead mines.[27] Some later coal mining sites are also included in the list.
Two major religious sites in Mendip atGlastonbury Abbey andWells Cathedral, and their precincts and dispersed residences,tithe barns andThe Abbot's Fish House also figure prominently in the list. Prehistoric defensive features such asPonter's Ball Dyke were supplemented in the medieval period bymotte-and-bailey castles such asFarleigh Hungerford,Nunney andFenny Castle. Commercial and industrial development is represented by theOld Iron Works atMells and various market crosses. The most recent monuments are World War II bunkers and bombing decoys onBlack Down, the highest point of the Mendip Hills,[28][29] which also appear on the Sedgemoor list as the site crosses the boundary between the districts.
The former district ofSedgemoor is a low-lying area of land close to sea level between theQuantock and Mendip hills, historically largely marsh (or moor). It contains the bulk of the area also known as theSomerset Levels, including Europe's oldest known engineered roadway, theSweet Track.[30]
There are 79 scheduled monuments in Sedgemoor. Some of the oldest are Neolithic, Bronze Age or Iron Age including hill forts, Bowl barrows and occupied caves including several inCheddar Gorge.Cannington Camp (which is also known as Cynwit Castle) dates from the Bronze Age,[31] whileBrent Knoll Camp between the Somerset Levels andBrean Down is Iron Age (although there are some Bronze Age artefacts and it was reused in the Roman period.[32][33] The Romano-British period is represented with several sites. More recent sites include several motte-and-bailey castles and church or village crosses which date from the Middle Ages. Industrial development, particularly inBridgwater, are represented bybrick and tile kilns and a telescopic railway bridge.[34][35]
TheSouth Somerset former district occupies an area of 370 square miles (958 km2), stretching from its borders withDevon andDorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels.[36]
There are 69 scheduled monuments in South Somerset.[37] Some of the oldest are Neolithic, Bronze Age or Iron Age including hill forts, such asKenwalch's Castle and Bowl barrows. The Romano-British period is represented with several sites including theLow Ham Roman Villa which had an extensivemosaic floor, now on display in theMuseum of Somerset.[38] Religious sites are represented byMuchelney Abbey, which was founded in the 7th or 8th century,[39] andMontacute Priory, aCluniac priory of theBenedictine order, from the 11th.[40]Bruton Abbey was founded by the Benedictines before becoming a house ofAugustinian canons.Stoke sub Hamdon Priory was formed in 1304 as achantry college rather than a priory.[41]
More recent sites include several motte-and-bailey castles such asCary Castle,[42] and church crosses which date from the Middle Ages. Severalpackhorse bridges, such asBow Bridge at Plox also appear in the list. The most recent monuments include the Round House, avillage lock-up inCastle Cary dating from 1779.[43][44][45]
The former district ofTaunton Deane has an area of 462 square kilometres (178 sq mi).[46]
There are 33 scheduled monuments in Taunton Deane. Many of them are Neolithic through to the Bronze and Iron Ages such as bowl barrows,cairns along with hill forts such asNorton Camp.[47]Castle Neroche was an Iron Age hill fort which was reused as aNormanmotte-and-bailey castle.[48]Burrow Mump shows evidence or Roman use but is better known as a Norman motte-and-bailey castle,[49] and later church.[50] It was presented, in 1946, by Major Alexander Gould Barrett, to theNational Trust and serves as a memorial to the 11,281[51] Somerset men who lost their lives during the first and second world wars.[52]
The medieval period is represented by several churchyard and village crosses. The defensive walls and part ofTaunton Castle, which hasAnglo-Saxon origins and was expanded during the Medieval and Tudor eras, are included.[53][54] More recent sites includePoundisford Park,Buckland Priory,Bradford Bridge and a duck decoy from the 17th century. Some of the sites such asBalt Moor Wall are of uncertain date. The most recent are air traffic control buildings,pillboxes and fighter pens fromRAF Culmhead, atChurchstanton on theBlackdown Hills.[55][56]
TheWest Somerset former local government district covers a largely rural area, including parts ofExmoor, and has an area of 740 square kilometres (290 sq mi).[57] The largest centres of population are the coastal towns ofMinehead andWatchet.
There are 202 scheduled monuments in West Somerset. Some of the oldest, particularly onExmoor and theQuantock Hills are Neolithic, Bronze Age or Iron Age including hill forts,cairns, bowl barrows and other tumuli. More recent sites include severalmotte-and-bailey castles.Dunster Castle has been fortified since the lateAnglo-Saxon period. After theNorman conquest of England in the 11th century, William de Mohun constructed a timber castle on the site as part of the pacification of Somerset. A stoneshell keep was built on the motte by the start of the 12th century, and the castle survived a siege during the early years ofthe Anarchy. At the end of the 14th century the de Mohuns sold the castle to theLuttrell family, who expanded it several times during the 17th and 18th centuries. The medieval castle walls were mostly destroyed following the siege of Dunster Castle at the end of theEnglish Civil War. In the 1860s and 1870s, the architectAnthony Salvin was employed to remodel the castle to fit Victorian tastes; this work extensively changed the appearance of Dunster to make it appear moreGothic andPicturesque.[58] In 1976 ColonelWalter Luttrell gave Dunster Castle and most of its contents to theNational Trust, which operates it as atourist attraction.[59]
There are also several church or village crosses which date from theMiddle Ages. Other sites of religious significance includeCleeve Abbey which was founded byWilliam de Roumare, Earl of Lincoln[60][61] in a grant of 1191, on land he had been given by kingÆthelred the Unready.[62] The geography with large numbers of streams is reflected by the number ofpackhorse bridges, such asGallox Bridge andRobber's Bridge, included in the list. The mining history of the area is also represented by several sections of theWest Somerset Mineral Railway and associated ruins of mine buildings which are now scheduled. The most recent monuments are World War II pillboxes. The village ofDunster provides the highest concentration of monuments, ranging from Iron Age forts to the castle, andYarn Market which was built around 1600.[63][64]
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