The hillfort
Segsbury Camp, also called Letcombe Castle, sits on a chalk plateau on the crest of the downs above Letcombe Regis, about 20 metres north of the Ridgeway, with wide views over the Vale. It is a large hillfort with a single main rampart, which still stands about three metres above the interior. Outside it is a ditch around 20 metres wide and up to 7 metres deep, and beyond that a counterscarp bank. There were four gateways.
Excavations
Digging in the 19th century showed that the main rampart had been faced with sarsen stones, as at Uffington Castle and Alfred’s Castle along the Ridgeway. In 1871 Dr Phené found a stone-lined grave, or cist, cut into the south side of the rampart. It contained human bones, a shield boss and fragments of a pot, and is usually interpreted as an Anglo-Saxon burial placed in the old fort. The Victoria County History also mentions British and Roman coins and the remains of a Roman villa found nearby.
In 1996 and 1997 Gary Lock and Chris Gosden of Oxford University excavated parts of the defences, gateways and interior as part of their Hillforts of the Ridgeway project, publishing the results in 2005. They found that Segsbury was used between about the 6th and 2nd centuries BC, but not densely or continuously occupied. They suggested it served as a communal centre for gatherings, exchange and the management of sheep, rather than as a permanent village. Large single-rampart hillforts like this are rare, with between 50 and 100 known nationally.
Visiting
The lane that climbs south from Letcombe Regis, opposite the church, becomes a gravel track that cuts straight through the middle of the fort and meets the Ridgeway beyond it, so the ramparts and ditch can be seen well from the right of way. The interior is private farmland; follow any signs on site. There is no car park at the fort itself. Our walk from Letcombe Regis to Segsbury Camp and the Wantage Monument describes the route.
Nearby
The Devil’s Punchbowl, a deep coombe west of Letcombe Bassett, and the Lord Wantage monument to the east are both on the Ridgeway within a few miles.