Take a Walk on the Wansdyke

This month we take a walk on the Wansdyke.

Stretching for 35 miles the Wansdyke links Savernake Forest near Marlborough with Maes Knoll just south of Bristol. The eastern section in Wiltshire is the best preserved, but in this episode we explore the western section, the piece that starts at the top of Horsecombe Vale and runs through Odd Down, over Stantonbury Hill Fort and on to Maes Knoll.

Many questions surround the construction of the earthwork - who built it? The Romans or the Saxons or someone else? Why was it built? And where exactly did it run as it passed by Bath? The Wansdyke been the subject of debate and misinformation for decades and in this episode we’ll try to make sense of it.

Local historian Mike Williams shows us around a section at Odd Down, just up near the Park and Ride, and then at the end of the show, we head up to a second section at Stantonbury Hill Fort.

Melanie Barge is an Inspector of Ancient Monuments with Historic England and she tells us how they go about protecting ancient sites.

We also meet Robert Vermaat in the Netherlands. Robert is a dutch historian and archivist who became interested in the Wansdyke when he was 17. He set up a website drawing together the many articles associated witht the giant earthwork and one of his aims has been to create a long distance path along it. In 2023, the LDWA (Long Distance Walkers Association) put a 13 mile stretch up on their website. Parts of the Wansdyke are clearly marked on OS maps so why not get out and explore it for yourself?!

Credits

Music: Audionautix

Produced by Pommy Harmar

Links

Historic England

https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/

Search the list to find designated (protected) heritage sites

https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/missing-pieces/

Allows anyone to add their own information or photos to a site on the List

https://historicengland.org.uk/whats-new/features/ghost-signs/

A recent project asking people to identify Ghost Signs - there are quite a few in Bath.

https://historicengland.org.uk/research/heritage-counts/heritage-and-economy/wellbeing/