Mendip Hills - History

History

Twenty Palaeolithic sites have been identified in the Mendips, of which eleven represent faunal remains and lithic artefacts recovered from caves. The remaining eight sites refer to surface lithic discoveries, and the artefacts found include points, scrapers, and handaxes. Twenty-seven Mesolithic finds are represented by flint and chert lithics. Large numbers of artefacts have been found near Neolithic, Iron Age, and Bronze Age features, such as the barrows and forts around Priddy and at Dolebury Warren. The caves of Cheddar Gorge have yielded many archaeological remains, as flood waters have washed artefacts and bones into the caves and preserved them in silt. The Cheddar Man, Britain's oldest complete skeleton, was found in Gough's Cave, part of the Cheddar Complex.

Within the Mendip Hills AONB, good evidence exists for 286 definite examples of round barrows. The National Monuments Record (NMR) holds over 1,200 entries for the area, and there are over 600 listed buildings, in addition to over 200 scheduled ancient monuments. These protected monuments range from prehistoric barrows and hillforts to the Black Down bombing decoy from the Second World War.

Settlement on the Mendip Hills appears to fall into two types. The first, apparent in the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods, and repeated on a small scale in the medieval and post-medieval era, comprised occupation by self-sufficient groups in small communities or isolated farms. The second was represented in the Iron Age and Roman periods by large sites with specialist functions, existing by virtue of their ability to exert power over lowland producers. From the Iron Age onward the ownership of land took on increasing importance, with large landholdings based on the mines or on stock grazing, denying settlers access to the plateau or forcing them off the hills.

There is evidence of mining dating back to the late Bronze Age, when there were technological changes in metal-working indicating the use of lead. The Roman invasion, and possibly the preceding period of involvement in the internal affairs of the south of England, was inspired, in part, by the mineral wealth of the Mendips. Much of the attraction of the lead mines may have been the potential for the extraction of silver; the Latin "EX ARG VEB" stamps on the Mendip lead pigs specify a de-silvering process and cast silver ingots have been found. The silver coinage of the Dobunni and Durotriges is also likely to reflect the availability of silver from the mines.

By the end of the medieval period a complex body of customary law had come into existence dealing with the four "Mendip mineries". That the medieval control was in the hands of the monastic foundations may indicate some continuity of tenure of large scale holdings, focused on the mines, from the Roman period.

William Wilberforce's visit to Cheddar in 1789, during which he saw the poor circumstances of the locals, inspired Hannah More to begin her work improving the conditions of the Mendip miners and agricultural workers. Under her influence, schools were built and children were formally instructed in reading and Christian doctrine. Between 1770 and 1813 some 7,300 ha (18,000 acres) of land on the hills were enclosed, mainly with dry stone walls that today form a key part of the landscape. In 2006 funding was obtained to maintain and improve the walls, which had steadily deteriorated over the years.

Over 300 "Mendip Motor Cars" were built by an engineering works based in Chewton Mendip in the years immediately before and after World War I. In World War II a bombing decoy was constructed on top of Black Down at Beacon Batch in an attempt to confuse bombers aiming to damage the city of Bristol, and piles of stones (known as cairns) were created to prevent enemy aircraft using the hilltop as a landing site.

In the 1960s, the tallest mast in the region at 293 metres (961 ft) above ground level, the Mendip UHF television transmitter, was installed on Pen Hill near Wells, one of the highest points of the Mendips. The transmitter's antenna rises to almost 589 metres (1,932 ft) above sea level. Since 2003, arguments have raged over plans to erect a wind turbine near Chewton Mendip. The proposal was initially rejected by Mendip District Council, which enjoyed the support of a range of local groups and organisations, on the grounds that the environmental impact on the edge of the AONB outweighed the nominal amount of electricity which would be generated. In April 2006, however, a planning enquiry gave Ecotricity permission to build a 102 m (335 ft) turbine during the following year.

The Mendip Power Group are installing micro-hydroelectric turbines in a number of historic former watermills. The first to start electricity generation was Tellisford Mill, on the River Frome, which began operating in 2006 and produces 50–55kW. Other mills in the Group, together with initial assessments of their capacity, include: Stowford Mill (37 kW) and Shawford Mill (31 kW), Jackdaws Iron Works (10 kW), Glencot House (5.8 kW), Burcott Mill (5.2 kW), Bleadney Mill (5.4 kW), Coleford Mill (6.6 kW), Old Mill (5.2 kW) and Farrants Mill (9.9 kW).