Castle Ditches

{{Short description|Iron Age hillfort in Wiltshire, England}}

{{Use British English|date=April 2020}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}

{{Infobox ancient site

|name = Castle Ditches

|native_name =

|alternate_name = Spelsbury

|image = Castle ditches geograph-390993-by-Toby.jpg

|alt =

|caption = Woods around Castle Ditches

|map_type = Wiltshire

|map_alt =

|map_size =

|location = Wiltshire

|region =

|coordinates = {{coord|51.0540|-2.0542|type:landmark_region:GB-WIL|display=inline,title}}

|type =

|part_of =

|length =

|width =

|area = 24 acres

|height =

|builder =

|material =

|built =

|abandoned =

|epochs = Iron Age

|cultures =

|dependency_of =

|occupants =

|event =

|excavations =

|archaeologists =

|condition =

|ownership =

|public_access = no

|website =

|notes =

|designation1 = Scheduled Monument

|nhle = 1005701

}}

Castle Ditches is the site of an Iron Age trivallate hillfort in the south-east of Tisbury parish in Wiltshire, England.

It is probable that its ancient name was Spelsbury; it was referred to as Willburge in Tisbury's charter of 984 A.D.{{cite book |last=Tisbury Local History Society |year=1984 |title=Looking Around Tisbury |location=Castle Cary, Somerset |publisher=Inkwell Design & Print }} Its shape is roughly triangular, and follows the contours of the small hill upon which it sits. The earthworks comprise a triple row of ramparts and ditches, now covered on three sides by woodland. There is a large entrance towards the south-east, where there is the shallowest incline of the hill; but there is also a narrow slit on the opposite side. The area within the site encompasses nearly {{Convert|24|acre||abbr=}}, and the greatest height of the ramparts is about {{Convert|40|ft|m|abbr=}}.The Ancient History of Wiltshire, by Sir Richard Colt Hoare, published 1812, Chapter No. 11 - Station 8: Fovant{{Cite web|url=https://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=5068|title=Castle Ditches (Wiltshire)|website=The Megalithic Portal|access-date=2020-04-13}}

File:Castle Ditches Digital Terrain Model.jpg

Castle Ditches was recorded as a Scheduled Monument in 1932.{{National Heritage List for England|num=1005701|desc=Castle Ditches camp|access-date=13 April 2020}}