Canterbury; The Dane John

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Dungeon Hill, Dungan Hill; Dangon Hill

In the civil parish of Canterbury.
In the historic county of Kent (Modern Authority of Kent, 1974 county of Kent).

Roman barrow cemetery with possible Bronze Age origins. Only one survives as an earthwork, this was enlarged for use as a Medieval motte and bailey and a windmill mound. It was also used as a Civil War gun emplacement and incorporated into a public garden after 1790. Predecessor of Canterbury. Guy writes this mound is a burial mound and was never used as a motte. Most authors agree if it was used it life as a castle was short lived. To quote Armitage "The name Dane John is not so much a corruption [of Dungeon] as a deliberate perversion introduced by the antiquary Somner about 1640, under the idea that the Danes threw up the hill".

This site has been described as a;
Timber Castle.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Possible.
Earthworks remains.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TR14695726

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 464929

• Web site links
  • http://www.thycotic.com/guide/sights/dane.html
    http://www.canterburytrust.co.uk/schools/keysites/castle.htm
• Books
  • Salter, Mike, 2000, The Castles of Kent (Malvern) p21
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p112
    Frere, S.S., Bennett, P., Rady, J., Stow, S., 1987, The Archaeology of Canterbury Vol8 (Canterbury Archaeological Trust) p160-80
    Drage, C., 1987, 'Urban castles' in Schofield, J. and Leech, R. (eds) Urban Archaeology in Britain (CBA Research Report) p117-32
    Andrews, Gillian, 1985, The archaeology of Canterbury: an assessment p124, 137, 184-5
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p228
    Bennett, P. et al, 1982, The Archaeology of Canterbury Vol1, Excavations at Canterbury Castle, (Kent Archaeological Society for the Canterbury Archaeological Trust)
    Guy, John, 1980, Kent Castles (Meresborough Books)
    Newman, John, 1976, The buildings of England: West Kent and the Weald (Harmondsworth) p238
    Page, Wm (ed), 1932, VCH Kent Vol3 p75-6
    Armitage, Ella, 1912, The Early Norman Castles of the British Isles (London: John Murray) p116-7, 121
    Chalkley Gould and Downham, 1908, in Page, Wm (ed), VCH Kent Vol1 p412-13
    Hasted, Edward, 1778-99, A History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent Vol4 p430, plate at 409
    Somner, 1640, Antiquites of Canterbury p75, 144
• Journal Articles
  • Rady, J., 1982, ‘Excavation. 3. Dane John site' Annual Report 1981-82, Canterbury Archaeological Trust p13-15
    Rady, J., 1981, ‘Interim report on excavations in 1981 by the Canterbury Archaeological Trust. 3. Dane John site' Archaeologia Cantiana Vol97 p281-4
    Dunning, G.C., Jessup R.F., 1936, Antiquity p50-51
    Home, G., 1930, Archaeological Journal Vol86 p272-75
    Armitage, E., 1904 April, 'The Early Norman Castles of England' The English Historical Review Vol74 p220-1
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • Speed, John, 1611-12, The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britain [http://faculty.oxy.edu/horowitz/home/johnspeed/Cities6.htm]
    Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p260