Rampton, Giants Hill

In the civil parish of Rampton.
In the historic county of Cambridgeshire (Modern Authority of Cambridgeshire, 1974 county of Cambridgeshire).

The earthwork called Giant's Hill, standing between the village and Rampton bridge, comprises a low rectangular flat-topped mound surrounded by a deep ditch. Its location near the fen edge and some constructional features are similar to those of Burwell castle, which was begun by King Stephen in 1143 when besieging the Isle of Ely and abandoned unfinished the following year. Giant's Hill was later, very probably, the site of Lisles manor house.

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

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TL43096801

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; 371864

Books

Salter, Mike, 2001, The Castles of East Anglia (Malvern) p22
Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p13 [slight]
Wright, A.P.M. and Lewis, C.P. (eds), 1989, VCH Cambridge and the Isle of Ely Vol9 p212 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=15407#p7
Taylor, Alison, 1986, Castles of Cambridgeshire (Cambridge)
King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p40
Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John Baker)
Phillips, 1948, in Salzman, L.F. (ed), VCH Cambridge and the Isle of Ely Vol2 p37

Journal Articles

Brown, A.E. and Taylor, C.C., 1977, Cambridgeshire earthwork surveys: II. Rampton: Giant’s‘Hill’ Proceedings of the Cambridgeshire Antiquarian Society Vol67 p97-9
Antiquity Vol33 p106-7

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This record last updated on Friday, April 6, 2007

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