Swallowcliffe

Hidden high the valley of the River Nadder, discover the little village of Swallowcliffe, compete with its local pub saved by the residents then bought by a Top Gear presenter. Wander past the site of the lost chapel, up onto the high hills sheltered in Swallowcliffe Wood, to views of White Sheet Hill topped with a long barrow, an Iron Age farmstead and the burial of a Saxon Princess. Circle the hillfort ramparts of Castle Ditches, weaving between trees and bluebells to meet the gushing streams that scatter the slopes. Drop back down into the valley to mill remains, including its mill race, grindstone and filled pond, to return to Swallowcliffe. Pass the new 19^th century church, packed with its own treasure, to the surviving pub. The Old London Elm having crumbled on the edge of the old Turnpike, now the A30.

Distance:  3.5 miles/5.5km (see map at bottom of page for the route)

Duration: 2 hours

Ability: Easy.

Max Height: 615ft.

Min Height: 352ft.

Total climb: 423ft.

Terrain: Tracks, paths and roads.

Map: OS Explorer 118 Shaftesbury and Cranborne Chase.

Start Point: The Royal Oak, Swallowcliffe. (Postcode: SP3 5PB, Grid Reference: ST964271, What Three Words: attitudes.sweeter.massaged).

How to Get There:  From Shaftesbury, travel east from the town on the A30. After 7 miles or so, following the rising slopes of Whitesheet Hill on the right, turn left onto Barber’s Lane. Merge onto Loaders Lane then turn left onto the High Street. Follow it deeper into the village then turn right to find both the pub and car park on the right.

Dogs: In accordance with the Countryside Code and any notices on route.

Refreshments: At the start and finish of the walk is The Royal Oak, please visit if using their car park.  

Neighbouring Walks: Motcombe, Wardour, Mistleberry, Win Green and Melbury Abbas.

Swallowcliffe is placed in a deep chalk valley of a small tributary of the River Nadder. It sits in the ancient landscape of Cranborne Chase, preserved by William the Conqueror shortly after his arrival for centuries to come. This preservation and restriction of development has ensured the survival of ancient earthworks covering a plethora of activity from the Mesolithic period through to the Romans. To the east is the Vale of Wardour, complete with its ruinous castle while, to the south, the slopes rise to peak of White Sheet Hill, towering above the landscape at 224m high and topped with an ancient route along the ridgeway. A number of ponds line the little stream’s course, which cuts through the heart of the village, with more recorded on older maps. One, known as London Pond, was placed on the eastern edge of the main road to London, hence its name, but was drained in the 20th century.

Neolithic activity includes two long barrows, one to the north in Castle Ditches and the second, at 95m in length, to the south on the slopes of White Sheet Hill, known as Swallowcliffe Down. The area is rich in Iron Age activity including a possible farmstead on the opposite side of Swallowcliffe Down to the long barrow. Excavations on the site discovered large storage pits, one of which contained a loom suggesting a settlement of farmers and weavers. To the north of the village are the earthworks of Castle Ditches, an Iron Age hillfort.

The name Swallowcliffe derives from the old English for cliff or slope along with ‘swaelwa’ or ‘swallow’ which can be the name of a stream, suggesting Anglo-Saxon origins. In 1966, during excavations of a Bronze Age burial mound, an impressive and rare Anglo-Saxon bed burial was unearthed. The young female, aged between 18 and 25 was laid out on an ash wood bed constructed using iron fittings. Sadly the grave was partially robbed in the 19th century, so part of the skeleton was missing. Nevertheless, she was still surrounded by a number of elaborate grave goods including an ornate gold and silver roundel sat on a satchel, glass cups, an incense burner, a sliver spoon, iron and bronze buckets, beads, knives and safety pins, many of which are on display in Salisbury Museum. This hoard, which has been dated to 950AD, clearly suggests a burial of some importance, so much so it has even been suggested that she was a princess.

By 1066 the settlement was recorded as three separate estates, with the largest attributed to Wilton Abbey. Shortly after the dissolution of the monasteries, in 1544, the old abbey and its lands were passed to William Herbert, who became the 1st Earl of Pembroke (10th creation) in 1551, the land staying with the Pembroke title for the next 400 years. During this time Swallowcliffe remained a rural backwater, inhabited by farm labourers and craftsmen, growing up around a 12th century church in its centre. The village was seen to be so unimportant that it missed out on the first roll out of the turnpikes. Introduced in 1762 the road followed the ancient track along the top of the ridgeway but in 1788 the trust lapsed and the road was trumped by a newer turnpike to the north, now the current A30. It was disturnpiked in 1864 but milestone remains still line its route. By the 19th century the church, which often struggled in its spring soaked valley, had become ruined. It was replaced in 1864 by a newer church to the north, funded by George Robert Charles Herbert, the 13th Earl of Pembroke. The Earl also introduced a school and a vicarage to the west of the village. By 1898 there was a Post Office, a miller, numerous farmers, a blacksmith with apprentices, carpenters, a grocer and linen draper, wheelwrights, a boot maker, a shopkeeper, and two public houses. By 1908 a new farmhouse had been built but, like the Mill, had shifted into private ownership. This set the ball rolling and in 1918 the village was split up and sold, mainly to the tenants, at auction in 1918 marking the end of aristocratic rule.

The original pub of the village, known as London Elm Inn, was built as a farmhouse in 1743 and sat on the new Salisbury to Shaftesbury turnpike road, opposite London Pond. It was recorded as a pub in 1757 and continued to be so until the 20th century, but was ruinous in 1984 and is now nothing but stones hidden by a clump of trees. The second pub began life as an early 18th century tan yard, turning cattle hides into leather, and was placed in the centre of the village on the river banks neighbouring the old church. In 1852 the property was developed and extended and became the Royal Oak. The pub was closed in 2007 but was bought by the village and reopened in 2015. In 2020, after closure for the second time, the pub was bought by Chris Bryant and the television presenter James May, best known for his antics alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond on the BBC series Top Gear (between 2003-2015), adding a little glamour and fame to its history. The pub serves James’ own Gin and even provides its own dog menu.

From The Royal Oak, head out onto Common Lane and turn right to cross the river and pass the old Chapel site. Nothing of the church remains today as many of its elements were reused in the building of the new church. However, it remains a peaceful central spot of the village, marked by a memorial stone, boarded by the stream and original stone wall and entered through an old iron gate.

Continue to the corner and turn left opposite the old Forge, off the main village road as it continues to the 17th century Swallowcliffe Manor. The manor, previously known as Place Farm, Upper Farm or Manor Farm, is believed to have replaced an older building. It was built in two stages and was extended in the 19th century.

Pass Rosemary Cottage and the village hall to curve to the right, skimming the edge of the gardens of Brooke House. Brooke House was built as a long range building in the early 1700s, reusing an older 17^th century fireplace. It was temporarily split into three cottages in the 18^th century before returning into a single dwelling in 1920, gaining the name Brooke House in the 1960’s.

Head straight onto the track at the end of the lane and when the footpath curves to the left, continue straight ahead onto the restricted byway. Climb steeply up the hill through Swallowcliffe Wood to exit the trees and bear left. Merge onto a track and follow the top of the woodland, curving around the steep slopes that drop down on the left. At the next boundary, carry straight on through a farm gate, still sticking to the edge on the woods. When the path splits, bear left around the bushes and up into an open field. Cross straight over to the base of Castle Ditches’ ramparts.

The Iron Age hillfort of Castle Ditches encloses a rough triangular area, with the 10m high ramparts following the contours of the steep sided hill, providing wide open views along the valley of the River Nadder. Although the earthworks are now buried in trees, two entrances are clearly visible. As you arrive at its base its eastern entrance continues onto a holloway, weaving between the rising ground. In contrast, the narrow, covered western entrance cuts across the ramparts obliquely, exiting on its northern edge. The Neolithic long barrow sits in its interior, at 60m long. It was excavated in 1989 when pottery was unearthed. Historically it was known as Spelsbury and/or Willburge but had adopted the name Castle Ditches from the 19th century. The land today is in private ownership and therefore access is forbidden without permission, but footpaths circle the site. Opposite the eastern entrance Red Barn once stood, now nothing but scattered stone.

Facing the hillfort’s entrance, turn right and curve around the inner corner of the field. Follow the edge of the Whitmarsh Wood as the views open up to the south towards Swallowcliffe Down and its long barrow, ancient ridgeway, Iron Age farmstead and Saxon Princess burial. Head through the boundary and take the next footpath on the left, through a small gate. Turn immediately left, sticking to the fence, to then divert away and drop gently down the hill through the trees.

On meeting a junction of tracks, turn left, heading deeper into Whitmarsh Wood. Exit the trees into an open field and cut straight across, the ramparts rising on the left and the valley of the Nadder down on the right. Enter back into the woodland, through a gate and onto another path cutting through the vegetation. Curve around more earthworks of the hillfort, ignoring the bridleway approaching for the right, and bear right when the path splits. Pass the hillfort’s western entrance, tight on its bottom edge, to then leave the trees though another gate.

Follow the fenced track between the horse paddocks, with views across the valley to Wardour, heading straight for the 14th century Withyslade Farm. The farm was first recorded under the ownership of the Wardour estate and was built around the same period as the castle. In the 19th century it was restored into what we see today. Join a gravel track and when the track diverts to the farm buildings, turn left up to the hillfort’s south western corner. Turn right at the top and right again at the trees, skimming the edge of the northern boundary of Swallowcliffe Wood. Take the next footpath on the left, into the trees, cutting the woodland corner, and exit the opposite side. Cross straight over the open field, climbing a stepless stile half way down. Bear left to either a second stile or a gate in the far bottom corner then take the next footpath on the right, over a stream, to arrive at The Mill.

The old corn mill dates back to the 13th century and, at the time, belonged to the Abbess of Wilton. In 1742 it came under the ownership of Henry Herbert, 7th Earl of Pembroke with the 8th and 9th Earls developing the site. A large mill pond was constructed on the south side of the mill and a big wheel inserted at the back in an alcove. The water flowed under the house to turn the wheel then into the meadows to the north. The eastern range was added and used as a granary and a bakery with a bread oven was installed. The mill remained as part of the Pembroke estate until 1894 but by 1903 it was no longer in working condition and was turned into a private home. The machinery was removed and all that remains today is a large sluice gate at the end of what were the mill pond and a grindstone that sits on a tree stump.

Head up the steps past the mill, between the main building and the mill race, to a little gate on the left. Skim the corner of the Old Mill, with the grindstone in the garden ahead and the millpond now a lower, large terraced level. Bear right to follow the footpath past the log store and exit through another little gate into an open field. Bear left to cut diagonally up the field, gently climbing the hill to the steps down to Rookery Lane. Turn left and follow the road back into Swallowcliffe, passing the church on the left.

St Peter’s Church was built to the same 12th century design as the original. Three bells (currently unringable), a stone effigy of the knight Sir Thomas West d.1343 (who founded the chantry in the old church in 1335), and two stone fonts, were saved from the old church and inserted into the new. Another treasure is that of a 13th century coffin lid, a significant stone slab which depicts an Abbess holding a crozier over her right shoulder. Its indents would have once been filled with brass but it has been lost over time. She is thought to have been an Abbess of Shaftesbury, which was home to one of the richest nunneries of England. It had added importance as it is believed to be one of only two surviving in the whole country. The church now sits sensibly on higher ground towering over the village today.

Sir Thomas West d.1343

The stone fonts

Take either the road or church path down to the junction of Rookery Lane and Common Lane and turn left to return to the pub and your vehicle.