View source for Wansdyke

{{Short description|Early medieval defensive linear earthworks in the West Country of England}}
{{About|the earthworks}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
[[File:The Wansdyke on Tan Hill.jpg|thumb|The Wansdyke on Tan Hill, Wiltshire]]
'''Wansdyke''' (from ''[[Wōden|Woden]]'s Dyke'') is a series of [[Early Middle Ages|early medieval]] defensive linear [[Earthwork (archaeology)|earthwork]]s in the [[West Country]] of England, consisting of a ditch and a running embankment from the ditch spoil, with the ditching facing north. There are two main parts: an eastern dyke that runs between [[Savernake Forest]], [[West Woods]] and [[Morgan's Hill]] in Wiltshire, and a western dyke that runs from [[Monkton Combe]] to the ancient [[hill fort]] of [[Maes Knoll]] in historic [[Somerset]]. Between these two dykes, there is a middle section formed by the remains of the London-to-Bath [[Roman roads in Britannia|Roman road]].

==Usage==
Wansdyke consists of two sections, {{convert|14|and|19|km|mi}} long with some gaps in between. East Wansdyke is an impressive linear earthwork, consisting of a ditch and bank running approximately east–west, between [[Savernake Forest]] and [[Morgan's Hill]]. West Wansdyke is also a linear earthwork, running from [[Monkton Combe]] south of [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] to [[Maes Knoll]] south of [[Bristol]], but less substantial than its eastern counterpart. The middle section, {{convert|22|km|mi|abbr=off}} long, is sometimes referred to as 'Mid Wansdyke', but is formed by the remains of the London to Bath [[Roman roads in Britannia|Roman road]]. It used to be thought that these sections were all part of one continuous undertaking, especially during the Middle Ages when the pagan name '''Wansdyke''' was applied to all three parts. However, this is not now considered to be certain.

==Defence of an unrecorded border==
Among the largest defensive earthworks in the United Kingdom, Wansdyke may be compared to both [[Offa's Dyke]] (later, and forming a [[Mercia]]n border with Wales) and [[Hadrian's Wall]] (earlier, and forming a border between Britannia and Caledonia). There is some evidence that Wansdyke extended west from Maes Knoll to the coast of the [[Severn Estuary]], but this is uncertain.<ref>{{cite web |last=Gardner |first=Keith S |title=The Wansdyke Diktat?&nbsp;– A Discussion Paper |url=http://www.wansdyke21.org.uk/wansdyke/wanart/gardner1.htm |access-date=1 July 2008 |work=Wansdyke Project 21}}</ref> [[Nennius]], an 8th-century [[Welsh people|Welsh]] [[monk]] who had access to older [[chronicle]]s since lost, describes these western defences and their purpose, and links them to the [[Arthurian legend|legends]] of [[King Arthur]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}}

==Nomenclature and dating==
The earthwork is named after their god ''Woden'' ([[Odin]]), possibly indicating that the incoming Anglo-Saxons had no information about the origins of a structure that was there when they arrived, and which was of no significance to locals at that time.{{sfn|Fowler|2001|pp=195-196}} Its name occurs in charters of the 9th and 10th century AD. Its relationship to the expansion of the West Saxons was considered in 1964 by [[Nowell Myres|J.N.L. Myres]], who maintained that Wansdyke was constructed by [[Sub-Roman Britain|some sub-Roman authority]].<ref>Myres, ''The English Settlements'' (1986:156); H. Trevor-Roper, "Wansdyke and the origins of Wessex" in ''Essays in History''</ref> Fowler speculates that it was a fortification intended for use against invading Saxons in the 490s, and abandoned when the news of British victory at [[Mons Badonicus]] made it redundant.{{sfn|Fowler|2001|p=197}} The name 'Woden's Dyke' eventually became Wansdyke.

==East Wansdyke==
East Wansdyke in [[Wiltshire]], on the south of the [[North Wessex Downs|Marlborough Downs]], has been less disturbed by later agriculture and building, and is more clearly traceable on the ground than the western part. In places, the bank is up to {{convert|4|m|ft|abbr=on}} high and the ditch as much as {{convert|2.5|m|ft|abbr=on}} deep. Since at least the tenth century, there have been gaps, "gates", in the work. The ditch is on the north side, so Wansdyke may have been intended by the [[Romano-British culture|Romano-Britons]] as a defence against [[Wessex|West Saxons]] encroaching from the upper [[Thames Valley]] westward into what is now the [[West Country]]. Fowler suggests that its plan is consistent with those of Roman border fortifications such as [[Hadrian's Wall]]: not just a military defence but intended to control locals and travellers along the [[Wessex Ridgeway]].{{sfn|Fowler|2001|p=193}} He further suggests that the works were never finished, abandoned in the face of a political change that removed their rationale.{{sfn|Fowler|2001|p=197}}

Lieut.-General [[Augustus Pitt Rivers]] carried out excavations at the Wansdyke in Wiltshire in the late 19th century, considering it the remains of a great war in which the south-west was being defended.<ref>Pitt-Rivers, "Excavations in Bokerly and Wansdyke', 1892</ref> In 1958, Fox and Fox attributed its construction to the pagan Saxons, probably in the late sixth century.<ref name=foxandfox>Cyril and Aileen Fox, "Wansdyke reconsidered", ''Archaeological Journal'' (1958)</ref>

==West Wansdyke==
Although the antiquarians like [[John Collinson (historian)|John Collinson]]<ref>Collinson, ''The History and Antiquities of the County of Somerset'', 1791</ref> considered West Wansdyke to stretch from [[Bathampton Down]] south east of Bath, to the west of [[Maes Knoll]],<ref>For example see Major, A "The course of Wansdyke through Somerset", ''Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Society Proceedings'' Vol 70, 22–37 (1924)</ref> a review in 1960 considered that there was no evidence of its existence to the west of Maes Knoll.<ref name=foxandfox /> Keith Gardner refuted this with newly discovered documentary evidence.<ref>Keith Gardner, ""The Wansdyke Diktat? ''Bristol and Avon Archaeology'' (1998).</ref> In 2007, a series of sections were dug across the earthwork which showed that it had existed where there are no longer visible surface remains.<ref>Jonathan Erskine, "The West Wansdyke: an appraisal of the dating, dimensions and construction techniques in the light of excavated evidence", ''Archaeological Journal'' '''164'''.1, June 2007:80–108). https://doi.org/10.1080/00665983.2007.11020707 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00665983.2007.11020707</ref> It was shown that the earthwork had a consistent design, with stone or timber revetment. There was little dating evidence but it was consistent with either a late Roman or post-Roman date. A paper in "The Last of the Britons" conference in 2007 suggests that the West Wansdyke continues from Maes Knoll to the hill forts above the [[Avon Gorge]] and controls the crossings of the river at [[Saltford]] and Bristol as well as at Bath.<ref>Keith Gardner, "The Land of Cyngar the Priest, The Last of the Britons 400–700", published 2009</ref>

As there is little [[Archaeology|archaeological]] evidence to date the whole section, it may have marked a division between [[Britons (historical)|British]] [[Celts|Celtic]] kingdoms or have been a boundary with the Saxons. The evidence for its western extension is earthworks along the north side of [[Dundry Hill]], its mention in a charter and a road name.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wansdyke21.org.uk/wansdyke/wanwesteast/wanwest1.htm|title=Maes Knoll|publisher=Wansdyke Project|access-date=1 January 2012}}</ref>

The area became the border between the [[Romano-British culture|Romano-British]] Celts and the [[Anglo-Saxons|West Saxons]] following the [[Battle of Deorham]] in 577 [[Anno Domini|AD]].<ref name="ASC577">''The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', [http://britannia.com/history/docs/501-97.html 501–97 AD] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061110114415/http://www.britannia.com/history/docs/501-97.html |date=10 November 2006 }}.</ref>
According to the ''[[Anglo-Saxon Chronicle]]'', the Saxon [[Cenwalh of Wessex|Cenwalh]] achieved a breakthrough against the Britons, with victories at [[Bradford on Avon]] (in the ''Avon Gap'' in the Wansdyke) in 652 AD,<ref name="ASC652">''The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', [http://britannia.com/history/docs/645-56.html 645–56 AD] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071212033046/http://www.britannia.com/history/docs/645-56.html |date=12 December 2007 }}</ref>
and further south at the [[Battle of Peonnum]] (at [[Penselwood]]) in 658 AD,<ref name="ASC658">''The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', [http://britannia.com/history/docs/658-75.html 658–75 AD] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071212065210/http://www.britannia.com/history/docs/658-75.html |date=12 December 2007 }}</ref>
followed by an advance west through the [[Polden Hills]] to the [[River Parrett]].<ref name="VCH">''The Victoria History of the County of Somerset'', Vol 1 (1906)</ref> It is however significant to note that the names of the early [[Wessex]] kings appear to have a [[Brythonic languages|Brythonic]] (British) rather than [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] (Saxon) etymology.<ref>Hills, C., (2003) ''Origins of the English,'' Duckworth. p. 105: "Records of the West Saxon dynasties survive in versions which have been subject to later manipulation, which may make it all the more significant that some of the founding 'Saxon' fathers have British names: Cerdic, Ceawlin, '''Cenwalh'''."</ref>

A {{convert|1330|yd|m|adj=on}} section of Wansdyke in [[Odd Down]], which has been designated as an [[Ancient monument]],<ref>{{NHLE|desc=Wansdyke: section {{convert|1230|yd|m|abbr=on}} eastwards from Burnt House Inn|num=1007003|access-date=10 October 2013}}</ref> appears on the [[Heritage at Risk Register]] as being in unsatisfactory condition and vulnerable due to gardening.<ref>{{cite web|title=Wansdyke: section {{convert|1230|yd|m|abbr=off}} eastwards from Burnt House Inn, Southstoke&nbsp;— Bath and North East Somerset (UA)|url=http://risk.english-heritage.org.uk/register.aspx?id=32366|publisher=English Heritage|access-date=10 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022080619/http://risk.english-heritage.org.uk/register.aspx?id=32366|archive-date=22 October 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Modern use of name==
The Western Wansdyke gave its name to the former [[Wansdyke (district)|Wansdyke district]] of the county of [[Avon (county)|Avon]] and the former [[Wansdyke (UK Parliament constituency)|Wansdyke Parliamentary constituency]].

==Route and points of interest==
{{GeoGroup}}
{{PoIgb start}}
{{PoIgb|Maes Knoll hillfort|51.391|-2.576|ST599659|[[Maes Knoll]]}}
{{PoIgb|Stantonbury Camp|51.370|-2.471|ST672636|[[Stantonbury Camp]]}}
{{PoIgb|Joining the River Avon|51.356|-2.327|ST773620|[[Monkton Combe]]}}
{{PoIgb|River Avon to Lacock|51.412|-2.118|ST918681|[[Lacock]]}}
{{PoIgb|Morgan's Hill|51.402|-1.959|SU029670|[[Morgan's Hill]]}}
{{PoIgb|Shepherds' Shore|51.394|-1.933|SU047661}}
{{PoIgb|Milk Hill|51.374|-1.853|SU102639}}
{{PoIgb|Shaw House|51.387|-1.811|SU131654}}
{{PoIgb|Savernake Forest|51.383|-1.68|SU221649|[[Savernake Forest]]}}
{{PoIgb end}}

==See also==
* [[Maes Knoll]]
* [[Bathampton Down]]
* [[Silesian Walls]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin |30em}}
* {{cite book
 | last = Soldat
 | first = Alan
 | title = The Quest for Wansdyke
 | publisher = Hobnob Press
 | year = 2022
 | isbn = 978-1-914407-38-3
 | location = East Knoyle
 | pages = 169
 | url = https://www.hobnobpress.co.uk/books/p/the-quest-for-wansdyke-by-alan-soldat
 | access-date = 8 July 2025
}}
* {{cite book | last=Fowler | first=Peter | editor-last=Ellis | editor-first=Peter | title=Roman Wiltshire and After: Papers in Honour of Ken Annable | chapter=Wansdyke in the Woods: An unfinished Roman military earthwork for a non-event | publisher=[[Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society]] | year=2001 | isbn=978-0-947723-08-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hpa6AAAACAAJ | access-date=12 May 2023}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{subject bar|auto=y|d=y}}
*[http://www.wansdyke21.org.uk/ Wansdyke Project 21] – A project to preserve Wansdyke (the earthwork), last updated 2008
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100811052217/http://www.devizesheritage.org.uk/wansdyke_.html Wansdyke] – Devizes Heritage website, archived in 2010

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wansdyke (Earthwork)}}
[[Category:Ancient trackways in England]]
[[Category:Anglo-Saxon sites in England]]
[[Category:Sub-Roman Britain]]
[[Category:History of Somerset]]
[[Category:Scheduled monuments in Bath and North East Somerset]]
[[Category:Archaeological sites in Somerset]]
[[Category:Archaeological sites in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:Ancient dikes]]
[[Category:Structures on the Heritage at Risk register in Somerset]]
[[Category:Scheduled monuments in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:Linear earthworks]]