Chanctonbury Ring

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Chanctonbury Ring
Chanctonbury Ring, December 2004
Elevation	242 m (794 ft)
Location	South Downs, England
Prominence	215 m
Topo map	OS Landranger 198
OS grid reference	TQ139120
Listing	Marilyn

Chanctonbury Ring is a hill fort based ring of trees atop Chanctonbury Hill on the South Downs, on the border of the civil parishes of Washington and Wiston in the English county of West Sussex. A ridgeway, now part of the South Downs Way, runs along the hill.

1 Height
2 Access
3 Dew pond
4 History
5 Legends
6 External links

[edit] Height

A trig point is located about 400 metres west of the Ring, recorded by the Ordnance Survey as 238 metres above sea level. Although this was originally recorded as the top of Chanctonbury Hill and thus the Marilyn summit, recent measurements suggest that the area of the Ring is higher, about 242 metres above sea level.

[edit] Access

There are two car parks at the base of the hill: to the north-east on Chanctonbury Ring Road off the A283 Washington Road, and to the west on Washington Bostal just off the A24 road. It is a very pleasant walk up to the top of the hill, with extensive views, particularly to the north as a result of the steep escarpment.

[edit] Dew pond

Chanctonbury Dew Pond with the Ring behind

Near the trig point is Chanctonbury Dew Pond, a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Constructed about 1870, it was restored by the Sussex Society of Downsmen in 1970, and is maintained by them.

[edit] History

[edit] Hill fort

Chanctonbury Ring was originally a small hill fort in a commanding position looking across the weald to the north. Pottery found and carbon dating on an animal bone suggest the fort was built in the early Iron Age, in the 6th to 5th centuries BC, but some Bronze Age pottery has also been found on the site.

[edit] Roman temples

After the abandonment of the hill fort, the ring was used by the Romans as a religious site (possibly due to similar Iron Age activity there). Two temples were erected, although it is not clear whether they stood at the same time or whether one succeeded the other. One, of Romano-British type with towered central sanctuary and outer ambulatory, certainly dated from the later Roman period. The second temple may have been earlier and was more classical in form and consisted of a polygon of perhaps eleven sides. Human remains approximately 1000 years old have also been found there.

[edit] 18th century copse

However, the fame of the Ring is due not to the hill fort but to the beech trees, which were planted in 1760 by Charles Goring within the earth bank of the fort, which is still prominent today. The trees became a prominent landmark, very thickly wooded; however, the Great Storm of 1987 destroyed most of the trees and the replanted trees are only now beginning to restore the ring to its former glory.

[edit] Legends

Local legend has it that Chanctonbury Ring was created by the Devil and that he can be summoned by running around the clump of trees seven times anti-clockwise. When he appears he will offer you a bowl of soup in exchange for your soul. The Ring is also rumoured to increase fertility in women who sleep underneath the trees for one night.

If you recite Midsummer Nights Dream by Shakespeare at this time of year, magic little people are said to appear in front of you.

The ring is shrouded in folklore and legends. Ghosts and UFO sightings have been rife here over the years and people have camped out under the stars and had ghostly experiences that they have not been able to explain.

In 1974 three members of a Worthing based paranormal research group visited the site and one member of the team was said to have levitated whilst walking amongst the trees which crown the hill. According to the story, he remained suspended in mid air for several seconds and during that time he was crying out 'No More! No More!' and was obviously in some considerable pain. He was then, apparently, thrown to the floor injuring his back^{[citation needed]}.