WOOLSTONBURY HILL

Wolstonbury Hill is a 676 feet (206 metres) high hill on the South Downs, north of Brighton, with spectacular views.  It is a scheduled monument, the site of a late Bronze Age enclosure, or hill fort, and other remains, as well as a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) notable for chalk downland flowers, including eleven different types of orchid, and over 30 species of butterflies.  It also has the highest concentration of anthills on the South Downs and the remains of a 20th century rifle range allegedly used during World War Two.  What more could you ask?

There is evidence that hilltop was also used during the Iron Age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon periods.

Extensive damage was caused during flint digging in the 18th and 19th centuries when, allegedly, some skeletons were unearthed.  Other remains – animal bones, pottery and worked flint – were dug up in the 1920s.  Overall, there seems to be a great deal of uncertainty about what, exactly, went on on Wolstonbury Hill.

There is some traditional association with nearby Danny House, a nearby Elizabethan mansion (not open to the public).  During WW1, Lloyd George stayed at the house and is said to have mislaid some secret papers while walking on the hill.  During the Second World War, the area was used by Canadian troops training for D-Day.

Access to Wolstonbury Hill is by footpath from various points – as identified on the OS map.  Post Code is for Pyecombe, from which there is a bridleway leading almost to the top.