Caesar's Camp

Caesar’s Camp is an Iron Age hillfort which is located in the coniferous forest to the south of Bracknell Town.

Facilities and key features

Interpretation panels about Iron Age society.
Iron Age hillfort, built between 2500 - 2700 years ago, designated a scheduled ancient monument.
Heathland habitat supporting rare birds.
Historic ride.

History
The hillfort which covers an area of about 17.2 acres (7 hectares) and is surrounded by a mile-long ditch, is a remarkable piece of engineering having been constructed entirely by hand using basic tools.

The obvious use of a hillfort is as a defensive location, but it is possible that Caesar’s Camp could have been a market place or a religious or political centre. Whilst little is known about how the buildings were arranged on the site, work on other similar sites has given us a good idea of what they may have looked like. Iron Age houses consist of a circle of timber posts spaced 1-2m apart which supported rafters for the roof. The walls were made of wattle covered in daub, and were perhaps lime-washed. The roof was probably thatched. Square or rectangular structures built with four posts would have been used as animal pens, granaries and sheds.

There have been no major excavations of the hillfort, but English Heritage did conduct a geophysical survey and small scale sample excavations in 1995 which sadly revealed very little.

How to get there
The closest available parking is at The Look Out Discovery Centre, Nine Mile Ride, where a range of other facilities are available. Caesar’s Camp is then a 20 minute walk away through the forest.

Site Conservation
Over time the remnants of the hillfort, the banks and ditches, have suffered from erosion by natural and human actions. Management work began in 1994 to address this by thinning out the deciduous trees along the banks and ditches and sowing grass seed as this acts as a better barrier to erosion than other vegetation.

The conifer plantation in the interior of the hillfort was removed so that its full extent can be seen, and this was sown with heathland plants, which used to cover the site according to drawings made during military exercises in the late eighteenth century.

The work will not only protect the archaeology of Caesar’s Camp but will also benefit rare heathland wildlife, including birds such as Woodlarks and Nightjars, which are part of the Borough Council’s Biodiversity Action Plan. See our Biodiversity pages.

The Caesar’s Camp project was managed by Bracknell Forest Council and the Crown Estate who own the surrounding woodland. English Heritage and what was then the Countryside Commission provided funding. Please note that the hillfort is legally protected, and it is an offence to use metal detectors upon it or damage it in any way.

Please note that ground nesting birds are particularly sensitive to disturbance by dogs. In order to allow birds to raise their chicks, please stick to the paths and keep dogs on leads during the nesting season shown on the seasonal notices.

For information about visitor access improvements that have taken place at Queen Anne Gully see under downloads to the right of this page.

Other sites you may like

If you like historic sites you may also like Ambarrow Court, Bill Hill, Lily Hill Park and South Hill Park.